ESPN 2008 Masters

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- There is no explaining this, really. No form chart to show this was coming. No major championship pedigree from which to draw. No way you figure this foursome to be at the top.

Trevor Immelman was in the hospital four months ago. Brandt Snedeker has spent his brief time on the PGA Tour explaining how he pronounces his last name. Steve Flesch needed a late-season rally last year to even get into the Masters. And Paul Casey, perhaps the most highly touted of the group, has been an infrequent challenger in the game's biggest tournaments.

Yet one of them could very well be fitted for a green jacket early Sunday evening.

Of course, a guy named Tiger Woods might have something to say about that, even though he never has come from behind to win any of his 13 major championships and even though he is six strokes back of third-round leader Immelman.

The four players he will be chasing have played in 74 major championships. They have combined for seven top-10 finishes in majors. And, more importantly, no victories.

Plus, there are some weather issues, with windy conditions expected. That adds to the intrigue for players with little experience in the championship spotlight.

"I think anybody who is chasing would like a windy day just because it is awkward," said 2007 British Open champion Padraig Harrington, who is tied for seventh, nine strokes back. "If the guy leading the tournament has a windy day and he gets a few gusts of wind, it's a tough day for him."

Last year, a 17-year Masters trend was halted when the winner did not come from the final pairing. Zach Johnson, playing in the third-to-last group, also became an unlikely winner. That is where Woods will try to make a charge Sunday, hoping to keep his Grand Slam dream alive while passing a quartet of golfers with nowhere near his experience and guile.

Immelman, 28, has a two-stroke lead over Snedeker, with Flesch in third place, three behind, followed by Casey, who trails by four.

"I'm looking at it like I have nothing to lose," said Flesch, 40, a four-time PGA Tour winner who needed two victories at the end of last year to get his Masters invitation. As of six months ago, I wasn't even in this tournament. I'm bummed if I'm not here and thrilled to death to be here. I have nothing to lose. Nobody expects Steve Flesch to do much in the Masters Tournament."

Snedeker, 27, can take the same approach. The two-year PGA Tour player, who was rookie of the year in 2007, qualified when he won the weak-field Wyndham Championship. This is just his fifth major championship and only his second Masters, but he has made up for his inexperience with a willingness to learn and some dogged determination.

When Snedeker qualified for the Masters in 2004 as an amateur, he took advantage of a rule that allows tournament participants to play as many practice rounds as they want at Augusta National. "I think the members got tired of seeing me down here," he said. Snedeker continued the trend this year, making several visits to Augusta National this past winter.

He made the cut in '04, then made it back for his first time as a pro. Saturday, he hung in after a tough stretch that saw him bogey the 11th, 12th and 13th holes. He rebounded with birdies at the 14th and 18th, the latter of which got him into the final pairing with Immelman.

The South African is a surprising leader for the third straight day. Not because he is poorly regarded; Immelman has long been hailed by none other than Gary Player has one of "the best strikers of the ball I've ever seen in my life."

But Immelman, who has a single PGA Tour win (and five international titles), suffered through illness at last year's Masters and a cancer scare in December when he had a benign tumor removed from his diaphragm. He has not finished better than a tie for 40th in a stroke-play event on the PGA Tour this year. Last week, he missed the cut at the Houston Open.

And now he's on the verge of becoming the first player in Masters history to shoot four rounds in the 60s?

"I count myself fortunate to be in this position, and I'm just going to go and give it my best shot," said Immelman, who was fortunate to see his ball stop on the shaved bank of the par-5 15th hole, where he saved par.

Immelman has a few things working against him. No first-round leader has gone on to win the tournament since Ben Crenshaw in 1984 (Immelman was tied with Justin Rose). No player has gone wire to wire -- led after every round -- since Raymond Floyd in 1976. And he has just one score better than par in 14 final rounds at majors.

Then there is Casey, perhaps the most heralded of the group. The Englishman, 30, who lives in Scottsdale, Ariz., has eight European Tour titles and twice has played for winning European Ryder Cup teams.

And in 20 previous major championships, he's had his best success at the Masters, where he tied for sixth in 2004 and tied for 10th last year.

"I've played in the penultimate group before, back in 2004," said Casey, who is ranked 34th in the world and will play with Flesch in the second-to-last pairing. "And that was when [Phil] Mickelson and Ernie [Els] went down the stretch and made a lot of birdies. And I've drawn from that. I know what it's like."

But not what it's like to win.

Only one guy in the top five knows that feeling, and Woods has experienced it four times at The Masters alone.

But this foursome does have this going for it: "They know they're playing well," said Mickelson, who shot himself out of contention with a 75. "I don't think they're going to be too worried."

Easy for Mickelson -- a three-time major winner -- to say. Not so much when you're chasing your first.

Bob Harig covers golf for ESPN.com. He can be reached at BobHarig@gmail.com.