Pre-Masters picks and predictions are part of what makes the first golf major of the year so fun—sometimes for all the wrong reasons.
And former Premier League striker and manager Dean Saunders discovered just that in the build-up to Thursday's big tee-off at Augusta National. The talkSPORT pundit and 'golf expert' was asked for his take on whom to back heading into the much-anticipated tournament and duly obliged by naming Matt Kuchar as his man.
There was just one issue with that particular forecast, and it's a sizeable one. 'Kuch' isn't in the 89-man line-up for the 2023 Masters given he failed to qualify for the competition for the second year in a row.
Former Derby County, Aston Villa and Aston Villa forwards Saunders gushed over the American's skills as he called Kuchar "one of the best chippers" and "bang on form" ahead of the contest in Georgia. In fairness to the 58-year-old, Kuchar did impress with his share of third place at the recent Valero Texas Open, having also secured top-10 finishes at the Genesis Invitational and Sony Open earlier this year.
If ever there was evidence not to take the words of your favourite pundits as gospel, this was it. To his credit, the Swansea native accepts his slip-up with grace and dubs the incident "a reason not to gamble."
Not with tip-offs like that, at least. Before being rumbled on his lack of Masters minutiae, Saunders even went so far as to claim he'd already backed Kuchar at odds of 25/1, though he'll have to hope his bookmaker is generous with its refund policy.
Fellow co-hosts Ally McCoist, Gabby Agbonlahor and Gabby Agbonlahor did their best to contain themselves while Saunders waffled over his 'good chipper' selection. "He's not very good anyway," joked the Welshman as soon as the jig was up, offering no resistance amid a wave of laughter at his expense.
“[We've got] some of your other predictions for the world of sport,” wondered Brazil. “You fancy New Zealand to win The Ashes, [Michael] Phelps to win the London Marathon, Shamrock Rovers to do well in the Champions League, and Sue Barker to win Wimbledon!”
A quick scan of the Masters tee times at any point in the days leading up to the first round would have informed Saunders of his error. However it's just as well he didn't, considering the comedy moment it created live on air.
Fans may know to take their tips with a pinch of salt—depending on the source of their 'information'. And Saunders may be wise to stick to football matters in future, with his golf guesses unlikely to carry much weight in future.
