The opening tee shot for the Masters is now just 30 days away, so Masters 2020 will soon be upon us...for a few of us, it is just about our favorite sports weekend of the year. For most, probably not, but still a weekend of interest. Here are my initial top ten favorites for this year as has been done for several years now. List is certain to change as players round into form and/or fall out of it prior to April. Should be a great tournament!

Top Ten: 1. Jon Rahm- I think his time has arrived. If not at Augusta, then later in the year for sure with respect to winning his first major. Rahm should be able to chew up the par-fives at Augusta and with an underrated short game rounding into form, I don't see many who can challenge sans Rory.  2. Rory McIlroy- Simply put, Rory is always in contention anymore every time he tees it up. His B-game has become good enough for a top-5 finish and it's hard to think he won't have at least that in the tournament he wants to win most.  3. Xander Schauffele- Much like Rahm, I think Schauffele's time to win a major is coming soon. And while I don't think it will be here, I do think he will contend on Sunday just as he did last year. Gritty player whose grit fits with major championships.  4. Hideki Matsuyama- Quietly playing very well of late. Tee to green, he's been awesome and on the greens, he's been hot and cold. A hot week on the greens, thus, could mean his first major title. Even an average week for him on the greens, though, likely gets him into contention.  5. Justin Thomas- JT either contends or he doesn't as evidenced by his play over the past two years. Here's thinking he'll be a birdie machine at Augusta with a blow-up or two over 72 holes as all that's standing between him and a title. I think the blow-ups are likely, though, and it keeps him this low.  6. Adam Scott- Scott, much like Tiger used to be, is the master of playing just enough prior to majors to be rested and ready to peak at the right time. His win at Riviera was impressive and could be a foreshadowing of him winning a long anticipated second major in 2020.  7. Tony Finau- Hard to believe Finau is still stuck on one PGA Tour victory and an opposite-field win at that. Tee to green game screams success at Augusta, but work on the greens could be a detriment. Still, I like him to be top-ten by Sunday afternoon.  8. Matthew Fitzpatrick- Pretty solid history at Augusta thus far in his short career and I think his overall trending up continues this time around. Don't know that Fitzpatrick will ever win a major, but I do think he's capable of being in the conversation. 9. Webb Simpson- With his putting now figured out somewhat, we're seeing what Simpson is capable of. He might have taken a second major already had the putting rules not changed. As is, he is an incredible ball striker and should be in contention in all four majors this year from my perspective.  10. Henrik Stenson-  Call it a hunch. I liked what I saw of Stenson in December at the Hero World Challenge. As he hasn't played much since, he should be rested and ready. Will look to his play in March as a barometer.    Players outside of my top ten who still have a very legitimate shot at winning: Patrick Cantlay, Patrick Reed, Tiger Woods, Tommy Fleetwood, Bryson DeChambeau, Gary Woodland,  Paul Casey, Marc Leishman, Bubba Watson

Highly ranked players who are off to slow start in 2020, but could catch lightning in a bottle for a week: Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose, Louis Oosthuzien, Rickie Fowler, Jason Day Young, exciting players with little Masters experience, but tons of game: Abraham Ancer, Tyrell Hatton, Sungjae Im, Cameron Smith, Jazz Janewattananond, Matt Wallace, Matthew Wolff, Joaquin Niemann, Cameron Champ, Byeong Hun-An

Solid, tested players...wouldn't be a shocker if they won: Matt Kuchar, Shane Lowry, Bernd Wiesberger, Francesco Molinari, Kevin Na, Lee Westwood, Danny Willett, Kevin Kisner, Billy Horschel, Sergio Garcia, Rafa Cabrera-Bello, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, Ian Poulter, Brandt Snedeker

Guys who have a punchers chance, but would make for a somewhat shocking winner: Chez Reavie, Shugo Imahira, Erik Van Rooyen, Victor Perez, Zach Johnson, Charl Schwartzel, Adam Hadwin, Jimmy Walker, Si Woo Kim, Justin Harding, Max Homa, Sung Kang, C.T Pan, J.T. Poston, Brendon Todd, Corey Conners, Lucas Glover, Charles Howell III, Jason Kokrak, Sebastian Munoz, Lanto Griffin, Tyler Duncan, Andrew Putnam, Andrew Landry, Nick Taylor  Guys who have no real shot at winning from my perspective: Angel Cabrera, Fred Couples, Trevor Immelman, Bernhard Langer, Sandy Lyle, Larry Mize, Jose Maria Olazabal, Vijay Singh, Dylan Fritelli, Nate Lashley, Mike Weir, All amateurs   Not playing due to injury: No one (yet)