The Masters is one of the most unique professional golf tournaments in the world. It's the only major tournament held at the same location each year, and since it's an invitation-only event, it has a small field of elite players who are very competitive. While a wide range of play styles have led to victories at Augusta since its inception, there are few select qualities in play that help players the most at this major. 

Greens in Regulation

Among all stats, including the number of putts, fairways, and drive distance, greens in regulation has had the largest correlation with winning The Masters. Players who have led the field in greens in regulation won the tournament 6 times compared to just one time for fairways or putts. In the last ten events, the winner of The Masters has only finished outside the top 5 for greens in regulation twice. If players have any hope of winning this major, they'll need to focus on getting on the green as quickly as possible each hole.

Putting Performance

Putting is crucial to winning any PGA tournament, but the greens at Augusta can have very fast greens that make putting mistakes even more costly than normal. Since Augusta National Golf Club does not use ShotLink during The Masters to measure exact putt length, it's difficult to determine how putting performance affects the chance of winning. Still, previous champions have showcased impressive putting skills during key moments of the tournament. 

An Experienced, Well-Tuned Professional

Augusta National is a golf course that rewards experienced players who are at the top of their game. A rookie has only won the tournament once in history, and no player has won within the last eight years without also finishing within the top three at another tournament within the same year. Defending champions, however, don't have a great success rate at Augusta with the last repeat victory dating back to Tiger Woods in 2002.

The Masters is considered the easiest major tournament to predict the winner due to these factors. These predictive factors, however, don't make this championship any less exciting. Golf at Augusta National is always tense and highly competitive.