Heading into last year's Masters Tournament, Davis Love III seemed at least a little perturbed that he wasn't considered a favorite.

He missed the cut in 2001 after an impressive six-year run, so there was plenty of surprise when he shot 67 for the first-round lead in 2002.

Love doesn't have to worry about being overlooked this year. With two victories so far and a deft new putting stroke, he's a trendy pick to be wearing a trendy color - green - come Sunday.

"It's nice to be back on the list," Love said Tuesday. "It's nice for everybody else to consider me a favorite, and it's also nice that I consider myself one of the favorites. I think that's even more important."

Love, who will play his 14th Masters, seems as excited as ever about winning the tournament he dreamed about as a child growing up in Georgia.

"It's good to not be trying to find my swing and figure something out when I'm here," he said.

Last summer, Love finally made the decision to improve his putting. He was seldom a bad putter, but he longed to be a great one. Doing so required overhauling his stroke.

"I had a run of not really being involved in the majors, and I felt like it was just because I never really got hot with a putter," said Love, who finished in a tie for 14th in last year's Masters. "I said, 'I'm doing as good as I can with my routine; I'm as focused as I can be, and I'm trying as hard as I can. My stroke's just not quite there."'

So Love consulted Scotty Cameron, best known for the line of Titleist putters that bear his name. Cameron convinced Love that he needed to alter his backswing to come inside - a technique used by great putters such as Brad Faxon, Ben Crenshaw and Greg Norman.

"Their putter swings like their golf club does - a little to the inside - and mine was always kind of straight back or almost outside," said Love, who finished the 2001 season 60th in putting on the PGA Tour.

Love took home one of Cameron's putters and saw immediate improvement. He finished last year 26th in putting average.

"That's what got me fired up about this year," he said. "I finally had something to build on."

Love tied for 12th in the Chrysler Classic, then elevated his game in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, ending a 24-month winless streak.

He suffered a setback at the Honda Classic by losing a late lead to Justin Leonard, but recovered in splendid fashion two weeks later with a blistering final-round 64 that won The Players Championship.

Love used his flat stick effectively during a run of five straight birdies at the TPC, and he's currently third in the PGA in putting.

Now he's in his most favored position at the Masters - a favorite.

"It's nice to be excited about the way I'm playing rather than frustrated with where my game was," he said.