Features "A tailored made Wealth Management Service for the privileged many." The Masters - In depth preview The Masters 2001 - Field At a glance summary Lee Westwood withdraws from Masters Nicklaus, Palmer & Player paired together Duval confident that wrist is healed Tiger Woods centre of Masters attention Singh chooses Thai for Masters menu Pairings for Rounds 1 & 2 David Toms wins traditional par 3 contest Tiger Woods at the mercy of Augusta Augusta to undergo facelift in summer Jack Nicklaus slates modern ball design Masters considering extended TV coverage

David Duval, who has not played in a PGA Tour event in a month due to fatigue and a wrist injury, will tee off on Thursday in the first round of the Masters.

It's been a rough start to the season for Duval. He started 2001 with a seventh-place finish at the Mercedes Championships in Hawaii. He went on to miss back-to-back cuts at the Phoenix Open and the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, marking the first time since 1998 he missed consecutive cuts. He also finished in a tie for 51st at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic in February and the following week he withdrew from the Nissan Open because of fatigue.

Duval also pulled out of last month's Players Championship due to a wrist injury. Duval, who won The Players Championship two years ago to assume the top ranking in golf, injured the wrist earlier in March when he was working on his swing.

"Sure I would have liked to play more, more events this year and not missed some of the ones that I had to miss," said Duval. "I wasn't going to turn a four- or five- or six-week injury into an eight-month injury. All it needed was a little time to heal, and just to force one golf tournament, I wasn't going to do that to possibly sit out several months."

Duval finished in a tie with Loren Roberts for third last year at Augusta National. Duval held the second-round lead, but finished behind eventual winner Vijay Singh and Ernie Els. In 1999, Duval finished in a tie for sixth at the Masters and the year before that he tied for second, just behind winner Mark O'Meara.

Even though Duval has not performed up to par in the last few months, he is brimming with confidence heading into the Masters. "I think I'm in good position," he said. "I didn't do well last year because I was swinging the golf club well and hitting quality golf shots. I did well because I managed my game well and just picked my spots. This year, if I can combine that with how I'm hitting the ball, I think that's why I feel so good about my chances."

On Thursday Duval will tee off with Scotland's Colin Montgomerie and American Jonathan Kaye. Those two players could learn a lot from Duval. Montgomerie and Kaye have never won on American soil. In fact, Kaye's best finish was second, which he's done three times. Montgomerie's best finish at Augusta National was in 1998 when he tied for eighth place.

Duval also missed 10 weeks in the 2000 campaign after he injured his back. He hasn't won a tournament since capturing the Buick Challenge last October.