Masters TV Coverage 2012: Top Groups To Watch in Thursday's Opening Round

We are now less than 24 hours away from the start of the 2012 Masters.

There's still some fun to be had between now and then. The Par 3 Contest is on Wednesday, and that never fails to entertain if you're a hardcore golf fan. The TV coverage of that will start at 3:00 p.m. ET on ESPN, and Masters.com is also going to have some live video coverage.

The first round of the Masters will begin on Thursday, with the first group teeing off at 7:50 a.m. ET. Masters.com will begin its coverage at 10:45 a.m. and ESPN will take over live coverage at 3:00 p.m. and will go to 7:30 p.m.

Now that you know all that, you need to know which groups to keep an eye out for. You're free to browse the groups and their accompanying tee times for yourself, but there were four groups in particular that caught my eye.

Charl Schwartzel, Keegan Bradley and Kelly Kraft (10:24 a.m.)

In this group, you have the defending Masters champion, the 2011 PGA Championship winner and a golfer in Kelly Kraft who won the U.S. Amateur Championship in 2011.

Schwartzel can't be counted out because of what he did at Augusta National last year, but he's heading into the 2012 Masters in something of a funk. After scoring two top-five finishes in early March, he missed the cut at the Transitions Championship and the Shell Houston Open.

Bradley, however, is not in a funk. He's finished in the top 10 in his last two tournaments, the most recent of which was a fourth-place finish at the Shell Houston Open. He's a dark horse to win the Green Jacket, which would be his second major victory in a row.

As for Kraft, well, perhaps he'll get lucky. Jason Day made noise in his Masters debut last year. All Kraft has to do is follow his fine example.

Tiger Woods, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Sang Moon Bae (10:35 a.m.)

With all respect to Miguel Angel Jimenez and Sang Moon Bae, this one's all about Tiger Woods.

The buzz surrounding Tiger these days is as positive as it's been in years. He's coming into the Masters fresh off his first official PGA Tour victory since 2009, and everyone knows he's played very well at Augusta in recent years. Tiger has finished in the top 10 at the Masters in each of his last seven trips.

Tiger finished tied for fourth at the Masters in both 2010 and 2011, which is pretty impressive given the fact his game was a mess both years. Now that Tiger's game isn't a mess, it's no wonder he's a heavy favorite to win the Green Jacket.

It would be his fifth, for the record, not to mention his 15th major victory. He'll be looking to get his chase of The Golden Bear back on the right track. 

Angel Cabrera, Rory McIlroy, Bubba Watson (1:42 p.m.)

This group features Tiger's primary competition for the Green Jacket, Rory McIlroy.

McIlroy could have won the Masters last year, as he had a four-stroke lead heading into the final round. He proceeded to card an 80, and finished tied for 15th.

It's all water under the bridge. McIlroy went on to win the U.S. Open, and so far this year he's played impressive golf. If he wins the Masters, there will be no doubt that he is the best player in the world.

McIlroy won't be playing next to amateurs, of course. Angel Cabrera won the Masters back in 2009, and Bubba Watson has had plenty of bright moments during his time on the tour.

Phil Mickelson, Hunter Mahan, Peter Hanson (1:53 p.m.)

This time last year, Phil Mickelson was a heavy favorite to win his fourth Green Jacket. 

Things are a little different this year. Lefty is still widely respected and he's played some good golf this year, but the return of Tiger and the emergence of McIlroy have combined to push him down the pecking order a little bit. Everyone acknowledges Lefty's existence, but not many are expecting him to win the Masters this year.

That doesn't mean he won't, of course. It doesn't mean you should ignore him, either. Mickelson is always fun to watch.

Hunter Mahan is an interesting character, too. He missed the cut at the Masters last year, but he finished in the top 10 in both 2009 and 2010. He'll be looking to get back on the right track, and he's definitely coming into the tournament on a high note after winning the Shell Houston Open.

Peter Hanson is a relative unknown in the grand scheme of things, but his work on the European Tour speaks for itself and so far this year he has three top-five finishes to his name.