Ten years ago a 28-year-old Trevor Immelman won the Masters by three strokes over Tiger Woods‚ which seemingly ushered in what should have been a decade at the very pinnacle of the game.

But a severe wrist injury all but ended Immelman’s competitive career‚ and even though he is one of five South Africans teeing up at the season’s first major on Thursday‚ he can’t be viewed as a serious contender.

Brandon Grace‚ Louis Oosthuizen‚ Dylan Frittelli and Charl Schwartzel‚ the other quartet of SA players in the field at Augusta‚ most certainly are contenders‚ even if they are outsiders at the 82nd staging of the tournament.

Winning the Masters is an entry to an exclusive club that no amount of money or success on the golf course anywhere else in the world can get you in.

You need to be a Masters winner to be guaranteed a way back into the tournament for as long as you feel you want to play.

For Immelman‚ he is realistic and knows that at a stage in his life‚ where he is neither a competitive player‚ nor a retired ex-player‚ he is just happy to be at Augusta again.

But as Immelman told Golf Digest in a recent interview‚ that flicker of competitiveness never fades when he’s on course‚ doing what he spent most of his life doing – moving a golf ball from tee to green in the fewest possible strokes.

“The problem with being an athlete is this‚ and you see it in every sport: because you were at some point in time very good or great at your sport‚ that part never goes away‚ thinking that you can still be that guy‚” Immelman told Golf Digest.

“Even when your skill diminishes‚ for whatever reason‚ age‚ injury‚ whatever‚ there’s still something inside you that makes you think you can do it.

"That’s probably one of the reasons you were any good in the first place. It’s like being a perfectionist. It helps you up to a certain point‚ and then it starts hurting you. It can eventually hold you back.

“There’s five percent of me that feels like I can still figure it out and contend in a tournament or two. But very often there’s a reality check to it at the end.

"Probably where I’m headed this week‚ but you never know.”

Frittelli is making his Masters debut after a superb last 18 months that have seen his world-ranking rocket from 152 to 50 with two European Tour wins in 2017.

Winning at Augusta though‚ usually requires some experience of the course and the occasion and it might be too much to expect Frittelli to contend for the title. Making the cut would be an achievement considering this is only his third major appearance.

Schwartzel‚ who so stunningly won the 2011 Masters by posting four consecutive birdies in the closing four holes‚ has shown he can do it at Augusta.

Despite recent form that suggests anything but success at the season’s first major‚ Schwartzel and Augusta do occasionally click. Last year he was third but it was the only time in eight appearances he finished inside the top 20.

Oosthuizen‚ ranked 31 and Grace ranked 33 in the world‚ loom as SA’s best challengers due to more consistent form in recent months.

Oosthuizen lost a play-off to Bubba Watson in 2012 and has two other two 20s in the past five years to boost his confidence.