Hanson in front in Augusta

Peter Hanson is now 4/1 with bet365 to win the Masters after he carded the best round of the week to hold a one shot lead going into the final round.

The Swede, who has never won a major, carded 65 to enter the clubhouse nine-under, one shot ahead of three-time winner Phil Mickelson.

“It’s going to be tough. It’s a new situation to me,” said Hanson.

“I’ll try to do the normal stuff. I’ve got my two kids here and my wife, so just try to stay in the house and cook in, and like I said, I probably won’t be watching a lot of Golf Channel or stuff. Just trying to stay away from all that and try to get as much sleep as I can and try to be ready.”

Bet365 have Mickelson as 7/5 favourite for the Green Jacket after hitting four birdies and an eagle on the back nine to end the day in style on eight-under.

Former Open champion Louis Oosthuizen was tied with Mickelson heading to the 18th hole but he missed the green from the middle of the fairway, with the bogey five leaving him a shot back in third.

Left-hander Bubba Watson is fourth on six-under after carding 69 with Matt Kuchar a shot further back in fifth.

Lee Westwood  is out to 20/1 with bet365 to claim a first major after carding a level-par 72 to remain on four-under with Hunter Mahan, Padraig Harrington and Henrik Stenson.

Faldo savages woeful Woods

Three-time Masters winner Nick Faldo gave a scathing assessment of Tiger Woods’ form at Augusta following the end of play on day two (Woods 40/1 – Outright Winner with bet365).

Former world number one Woods is eight shots off the lead jointly held by the American duo of Fred Couples and Jason Dufner after signing for 75 for his second round.

Woods only made the cut by two shots and Faldo is far from impressed with the 14-time Major winner’s showing at the midway point.

Speaking on US TV in his role as a pundit, the 2008 European Ryder Cup captain stated: “I think we can officially say that Tiger has lost his game – and his mind right now.

“He has not got a clue how to get the clubface onto the ball.

For his part, Woods says his challenge ‘is not over’ yet in Georgia as he looks to correct his obvious swing problems over the weekend.

Couples and Dufner are five-under for the tournament so far, to lead a chasing pack of Rory McIlroy, Sergio Garcia, Bubba Watson, Louis Oosthuizen and Lee Westwood by a single shot ahead of day three.

McIlroy is the current favourite at 10/3 with bet365 while Westwood is available at 13/2.

Mickelson eyes more Masters glory

Three-time Masters champion Phil Mickelson (8/1 Outright – bet365) believes he is firmly in contention for glory at Augusta once again this weekend after carding a round of 68 on Friday to leave him two under par for the tournament and just three shots off the lead.

Mickelson enjoyed a decent second day as he chases another Major title and his 68, which came after a first-round 74, means he is two behind the halfway leaders Fred Couples (22/1) and Jason Dufner (16/1), who are at -5.

‘Lefty’ admitted he needed a good round to move him up the leader-board and was delighted with his performance.

“I played well and shot something in the 60s that got me back in the tournament,” said the 41-year-old.

“I was hoping for one or two more under, but that birdie on 18 felt terrific to finish that way.

“And to be only three back now heading into the weekend feels great, too, especially after the first 10 holes yesterday.”

Couples, meanwhile, rolled back the years to share the lead with Dufner after day two, while England’s Lee Westwood (13/2) was in joint second alongside the much-fancied Rory McIlroy (10/3), a resurgent Sergio Garcia (14/1), Bubba Watson (12/1) and former Open winner Louis Oosthuizen (16/1).

Woods admits there’s work to do

Tiger Woods, who is 8/1 in the outright betting with bet365, admits he needs “to go do some work” after a disappointing opening day’s play at the Masters.

Ahead of the event, the majority of the attention was on the developing rivalry between Woods and Rory McIlroy but both players struggled on day one, with Woods bogeying the final two holes and McIlroy starting his round with a double bogey.

The duo also only found six of the 14 fairways while Woods fired into the trees, forcing the need to take penalty drops, on the second and 18th. At the end of the day’s play, McIlroy is four shots off the lead on one under, with Woods five shots behind on level par.

This is surprising considering the former world number one was so impressive at Bay Hill a fortnight ago en route to claiming his first PGA Tour title for two and a half years.

Despite this improved form, Woods admits he needs to perform a lot better if he is to win his first Green Jacket since 2005 and his fifth overall.

He said: “I squeezed a lot out of that round – I hit some of the worst swings I’ve ever hit.

“I didn’t hit it very good at all – and warmed up bad too. I need to go do some work.”

Meanwhile, Lee Westwood is the 4/1 favourite to win the Masters with bet365 after his opening five-under-par round of 67 in Augusta.

The Englishman took a one-shot lead at the close of the first day, with South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen and Sweden’s Peter Hanson close behind on four-under.

There are six players tying on three-under including Scotland’s Paul Lawrie and Americans Jason Dufner and Bubba Watson.

In-form Woods talks up Masters bid

Tiger Woods (5/1 favourite Masters outright with bet365) says that he is excited about his chances at The Masters after recently rediscovering his best form.

The 14-time Major champion has won the coveted Green jacket on four previous occasions, with the last coming in a memorable play-off against Chris DiMarco in 2005.

Woods has struggled over the last few years following his much-documented off-course problems but, after winning at Bay Hill in March, he appears to have rediscovered some of the focus that saw him labelled as possibly the greatest player ever.

Perhaps Woods’ most memorable Augusta victory came in 2001 when he completed the ‘Tiger Slam’ to hold all four major titles at the same time.

The 36-year-old believes his game is in the best shape since that win 11 years ago and says he is looking forward to mounting a serious challenge against the likes of current world number one Rory McIlroy (13/2 Masters outright with bet365) at this year’s event.

“Consistently, with this type of control, it has been a few years,” Woods said. “As far as having the speed and the pop in my game, it has been a very long time.

“As far as controlling my game, I feel like I’m hitting the ball just as consistently day in and day out as I did then,” he added.

Mickelson predicts Masters birdie blitz

Phil Mickelson is predicting some low scoring at Augusta this week as he goes in search of his fourth Masters title (Mickelson 12/1 Tournament Outright with bet365).

The 41-year-old won the last of his Green Jackets in 2010 when he overhauled Lee Westwood on the final day to win the prestigious title.

He has been in decent form this year with victory at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, while finishing tied for second at the Northern Trust Open and gaining a share of fourth place at the Houston Open on Sunday.

The Augusta National is one of the toughest courses on the circuit with lightning fast greens and pin positions that would give the average club golfer recurring nightmares.

But ‘Lefty’ has managed 13 top-10 finishes in 18 attempts, including the three victories, and he clearly knows his way around the Georgia venue.

While Tiger Woods’ resurgence has seen the spotlight shift onto the 14-time major winner and his possible showdown with Rory McIlroy, Mickelson has gone about his business in a professional manner this year and has arrived at Augusta full of confidence.

But the Californian thinks that, due to the amount of rain that has fallen in the area in recent times, anyone who has pretentions of winning the year’s first major will have to go extremely low (Winning Score 273 & Under 7/4 with bet365).

“I don’t want to say the greens are slow, but it’s just not the same Augusta,” he said. “It’s wet around the greens, and there’s no fear of the course. You’ve got to attack it this week.

“Unless something changes, it’s going to be a birdie fest.”

Westy feels he’s mastered Augusta

Lee Westwood feels this could be his year to win the Masters after finally working out how to play the Augusta National course (Westwood 18/1 Masters Outright – bet365).

The world number three has won tournaments all around the globe and has been the model of consistency in the majors over the past couple of years, with six top-10 finishes in his last 10 majors.

But, apart from a second-place finish behind Phil Mickelson in 2010, he has only finished in the top 10 on one other occasion from 11 outings at the Georgia venue.

The 38-year-old finished tied for 11th 12 months ago, before going on to record top-10 finishes in both the US Open and the USPGA Championship.

But he is hoping to improve on that finish this time around after admitting that the penny has finally dropped on how to play the exacting course.

“I’ve always been fairly aggressive and gone at a lot of flags, probably more than I should have done,” he said. “And it is a golf course you have to be very strategic on and play patiently.

“You learn it fairly quickly, but if you are stupid sometimes, like me, it takes a while to sink in.”

The Englishman finished down the field at last week’s Houston Open but was using the event to fine-tune his game ahead of the Masters.

And, having secured three top-five finishes already this year, the Worksop-born star believes that his game is in good enough order to finally break his Masters and major duck (Westwood 7/4 Top Englishman – bet365).

“Hopefully I’ll win. I think this year could be it,” he added. “I’m certainly playing well enough and getting my game together.”

Relaxed Day ready for Masters

Australian golfer Jason Day (40/1 Masters outright with bet365) is looking to go one better in Augusta this week after finishing joint runner-up at the Masters last year.

The 24-year-old, who enjoyed an impressive season in 2011, finished level with fellow Aussie Adam Scott behind the eventual winner Charl Schwartzel who claimed the famous Green Jacket.

Day also managed to secure a runners-up spot in the second major last year on the challenging course at the US Open, which saw Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy (6/1 Masters outright with bet365) claim his first major title.

Now Day is looking to go a step further, as he prepares to return to Georgia and take on the prestigious course at Augusta once again.

He told Sky Sports News: “It was a very, very good result last year, I didn’t think I was going to have a result like that.

“I can’t expect to come out here and win this tournament, I’m just to have to come and take it a shot at a time – the old clichés – and really enjoy myself.

“It’s going to be a very tough week, mentally gruelling and physically gruelling obviously.?

Donald determined to break duck

Luke Donald (14/1 – To Win Outright with bet365) is determined to break his Major duck at the Masters and has been spurred on by memories of his final round at Augusta last year, which propelled him into a tie for fourth.

Donald shot a 69, but had he not carded a double bogey on the par three 12th hole, where his tee shot found the lake adjacent to the green, he may have been even closer to earning the fabled Green Jacket.

The world number one, who finished four shots behind winner Charl Schwartzel (35/1) of South Africa last year, is in good shape going into the first Major of the year after regaining his place atop the world rankings from Rory McIlroy (5/1) after victory in this month’s Transitions Championship.

He said: “I think in a way Charl has a similar personality to me. He’s kind of a quiet guy who just goes about his business and because of that in some ways maybe he didn’t quite get the credit that he deserved for his win.

“But what he did last year was pretty amazing – I don?t think anyone’s ever birdied the last four holes to win the Masters. To do that under pressure to win your first Major is something else, and if he’s on that kind of form again this year, he’ll be tough to beat.”

The 76th edition of the Masters Tournament could yet prove to be even more exciting than last year with McIlroy, Tiger Woods (7/2) and Donald all having won in the build-up to the event.

The Englishman added: “Augusta is always one of the most exciting events of the year, just because it’s the first Major and especially this year because a lot of good things are happening in golf, a lot of the big names are playing well.

“So golf is really exciting right now. Tiger’s obviously making a comeback and all of the pieces of the puzzle are falling into place.

“As players, we all look forward to the Masters. It’s what a lot of the off-season is geared towards and I certainly can’t wait to get there.”

Westwood to build form in Houston

Lee Westwood (10/1 Shell Houston Open outright with bet365) says he is looking for a big performance at this week’s Shell Houston Open to send a warning to his rivals ahead of The Masters, which begins next Thursday.

Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods and Luke Donald have all decided to skip the event in Texas, preferring instead to hone their games as they prepare for the first Major of the season.

However, Westwood believes that the best way to prepare for four days at Augusta is by maintaining your competitive sharpness the week before.

“I like to be competitive the week before the Masters,” said Westwood. “It’s a tough test at Augusta. If you don’t go into it competitively sharp, you are not going to hit all the greens, going to have to get up and down.

“It just seems like it’s more important for the Masters to keep the momentum going.”

A number of the top players have already played practice rounds at the famous Georgia layout, as they look to adapt to the lightening quick greens, something many see as key to winning the coveted Green Jacket.

However, Westwood (18/1 Masters outright with bet365), who is yet to win a Major, has chosen to stay away as he believes it is impossible to truly replicate the tricky condition the course will be in on the opening morning.

“It’s nice to go and soak up the atmosphere with nobody there and get some work done, but the course isn’t really reflective of how it’s going to be on Thursday morning next week,” he explained.