LET US consider our assignment. We are seeking a player who meets the primary requirements set out this week by the holder, Nick Faldo, for success in the Masters. For good measure, he must have a proven record in the major championships.

Three months ago, when his season on the USPGA Tour started with the Bob Hope Classic, Lee Janzen was already looking towards Augusta. He broke away from his normal routine on the practice ground and hit what he described as "Masters shots".

His caddie, Dave Musgrove, couldn't resist a quiet smile. The soft spoken Englishman, who is a member of Cox Moor GC near his home in Mansfield, still retains a warm glow from a wonderful experience here in 1988, when he guided Sandy Lyle to a Masters triumph.

Indeed the penultimate shot has been etched indelibly on Musgrove's mind. And who could blame him, given that it was a superb, seven iron bunker recovery of 150 yards which sent the ball 25 feet above the 18th pin from where it eased down the slope to 12 feet. The putt went down for a winning birdie.

"I like this lad's chances," he said of his latest charge. "He is incredibly methodical about everything he does, particularly where the Masters is concerned." That explains why he arrived at Augusta last Sunday so that his first practice round of the week would be in a quiet, peaceful atmosphere.

"He arranged his schedule weeks ago," Musgrove said. "First, we would miss out on New Orleans (last week's tournament). Then he told me he would he playing 18 holes here on Sunday, the front nine on Monday, 18 on Tuesday and the back nine on Wednesday."

But what about the Par three tournament? "He says he'll play that after he wins the Masters," replied the caddie. He didn't have to explain that Janzen had no wish to risk the jinx whereby no winner of the Par three has ever gone on to capture the main event.

As part of this week's build up, Janzen teamed up with John Huston in a fourball against Ben Crenshaw and Phil Mickelson on Tuesday. Musgrove's man duly, won the money, while Mickelson, who finished third behind Faldo and Greg Norman last year, was still affected by a recent throat infection.

Janzen certainly has no difficulty in meeting the first requirement set by Faldo: he is currently second in the putting statistics for the US Tour. It is a familiar situation for the 32 year old from Minnesota, who tied sixth in the putting statistics for the whole of last season when he got down in an average of 1.747 strokes on the greens he hit in regulation.

The second Faldo requirement is that the player must have shown himself to be capable of handling Augusta under Masters conditions. Again, Janzen passes the test, albeit with a modest grade.

In five successive Masters appearances starting in 1992, he has never missed the cut and was tied 12th for the last two years. He has also played the homeward journey impressively - after getting past the 10th, 11th and 12th. "We're aware there have been problems with those holes," said Musgrove.

On the 20 occasions he has played the last six holes in competition, Janzen has been a very impressive 10 under par. It is especially revealing to note his play of the crucial 18th where he has carded 15 pars, three birdies and only two bogeys, to be one under for 20 attempts.

"His natural shot is a draw and he sees no reason to switch to a fade," said Musgrove. "This ensures he'll be comfortable, whatever- the circumstances." And what of the 18th, where the customary approach is to fade a driver or one iron off the gaping fairway bunkers on the left?

"Unlike Sandy, who reached the sand with a one iron tee shot in 1988, Lee has decided he can play a three wood there and stay short of the bunkers," explained the caddie. "So there will be no need to swing differently, when the pressure is as its greatest."

Then we come to his record in major championships. This time, his competitive instincts are beyond dispute. On the final day of the 1993 US Open at Baltusrol, Janzen found himself involved in a head to head battle with 1991 winner Payne Stewart.

His response was to shoot a fourth successive sub 70 round for an aggregate of 272, matching the lowest score in the history of the championship, set by Jack Nicklaus. He won by two strokes for a reward of $290,000.

For good measure, Janzen also captured the 1995 Players' Championship which is widely looked upon as the "fifth major". But the critical question is, can he win the Masters? "He lacks the physical strength of Sandy and the mental strength of Tom Watson (whom Musgrove caddied for at Augusta in 1991)," the Englishman replied. "So he will need to conserve his energy if he's to win."

Then the caddie concluded with a smile: "That's where I come in."