Hello, friends
89th Masters Tournament
Augusta National Golf Club
Augusta, Georgia
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Thoughts on Chalk (odds via Bet365.com)
Scottie Scheffler: A win takes him to three in four years. Only Nicklaus has done that. Without a win this season, he faces the top 50 in the OWGR, plus others, in the race for the green jacket.
Rory McIlroy: I’m backing him this year because he looks like Scheffler from last year. No LIV issues, no drama off the course, and the results are flowing. Making his 17th start, there’s nothing he hasn’t seen or experienced.
Jon Rahm: How weird will it be to wear pants and play 72 holes? This isn’t a hit and giggle, but nobody doubts his talent.
Collin Morikawa: Three straight T10 or better paydays and a front-row seat to Scheffler’s victory in 2024 provides the callouses and the hope.
Bryson DeChambeau: There’s plenty to over-think over 7,555 yards and the golf gods remember his “Par-67” comment. The jackhammer must evolve into an artist. T6 last year suggested he’s found something.
Ludvig Aberg: One time, one solo second. Do it again. Enters the week on MC-MC.
Justin Thomas: MC-MC on his last two visits is overruled by his last six months on TOUR. He’s done everything but win. Joe Greiner, Max Homa’s former caddy, is on the bag this week as The Rev is banged up.
Xander Schauffele: The results here speak for themselves. A late start to spring off a rib injury is highlighted by 66 to close at Valspar. 22-1 is solid.
Hideki Matsuyama: The winner at The Sentry, his only top 10 of 2025, is healthy. The winner here in 2021, he’s cashed in 12 straight.
Joaquin Niemann: In 18 rounds he’s broken 70 twice. He must be tearing up LIV…
Shane Lowry: Already a major champion, his penchant for finding fairways never hurts. The putter must cooperate.
Brooks Koepka: Solo second in March in Singapore is the 2025 highlight. Second twice at ANGC, he only shows up for the big-boy events.
Tommy Fleetwood: Wash, rinse, repeat. T3 2024 is his best. Blown away with 81 in the final round of Valero.
Jordan Spieth: The clues are there and this is his canvas. Lovely number at 33-1.
Others for Top 10, Top 20 action
Russell Henley should be included on all cards. Will Zalatoris owns three top 10 paydays from three starts. Cameron Smith and Patrick Reed proved enough to me over the last seven years to be included. Denny McCarthy keeps me daydreaming, while Tom Hoge is smoldering. Phil Mickelson is just silly enough, as he was in 2023, to linger. Jose Luis Ballester is the only amateur I would consider. Angel Cabrera won the PGA TOUR Champions event last week in Boca Raton.
NOW PLAYING:
| Host Course | Augusta National Golf Club |
| Yards (per official scorecard): | 7,555. |
| Par: | 72 (36-36). |
| Greens: | A1-Penn Bentgrass; 6,486 square feet. |
| Stimpmeter: | Tournament Speed – 13 feet and up. |
| Second Cut: | Ryegrass Overseed at 1.375 inches. |
| Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play | 44/6/5 |
| Architect(s): | Dr. Alister Mackenzie & Bobby Jones (1933). |
| Defending Champion (event): | Scottie Scheffler (-11) |
| Multiple Champion(s) Entered: | Scottie Scheffler (2) has won two of the last three tournaments. Phil Mickelson (3) has the most wins in the field. |
| Course Record (latest): | 63; Greg Norman (1996); Nick Price (1986). Neither won this event. |
| 72 Hole Tournament Record (Spring): | 270 (-18); Jordan Spieth (2015) and Tiger Woods (1997). |
| Fact of the Week: | The Par-3 contest winner has never won the 72-hole event. |
Augusta National
Familiarity breeds contempt? Not for me.
While I don’t have all the names of the holes memorized, I can tell you how to play each and every one.
Gotta hit it.
Gotta chip it.
Gotta putt it.
The second shot is the most important and sets up scoring chances or bogey avoidance.
Uneven lies, the challenge of reading the greens, judging the wind at No. 12 on Sunday around 4pm, are just some of the challenges.
Add the pressure for those who have never won a major championship, or even an event on TOUR, and it’s the best.
Recent Winners
- 2025 Season Winners
| Event | Winner |
| The Sentry | Hideki Matsuyama |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Nick Taylor |
| The American Express | Sepp Straka |
| Farmers Insurance Open | Harris English |
| AT&T Pebble Beach | Rory McIlroy |
| WM Phoenix Open | Thomas Detry (first time) |
| The Genesis Invitational | Ludvig Aberg |
| Mexico Open at VidantaWorld | Brian Campbell (first time) |
| Cognizant Classic | Joe Highsmith (first time) |
| Arnold Palmer Invitational | Russell Henley |
| THE PLAYERS Championship | Rory McIlroy (2) |
| Valspar Championship | Viktor Hovland |
| Texas Children’s Houston Open | Min Woo Lee (first time) |
| Valero Texas Open | Brian Harman |
2024 Season Winners
| Event | Winner |
| The Sentry | Chris Kirk |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Grayson Murray (Rest in Peace) |
| The American Express | Nick Dunlap (a) |
| Farmers Insurance Open | Matthieu Pavon (rookie) |
| AT&T Pebble Beach | Wyndham Clark (54 holes) |
| WM Phoenix Open | Nick Taylor |
| The Genesis Invitational | Hideki Matsuyama |
| Mexico Open at Vidanta | Jake Knapp (rookie) |
| Cognizant Classic | Austin Eckroat (first time) |
| Arnold Palmer Invitational | Scottie Scheffler |
| THE PLAYERS Championship | Scottie Scheffler (2) |
| Valspar Championship | Peter Malnati |
| Texas Children’s Houston Open | Stephan Jaeger (first time) |
| Valero Texas Open | Akshay Bhatia |
| 88th Masters Tournament | Scottie Scheffler (3) |
| RBC Heritage | Scottie Scheffler (4) |
| Zurich Classic | Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry |
| THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson | Taylor Pendrith (first time) |
| Wells Fargo Championship | Rory McIlroy (2) |
| 106th PGA Championship | Xander Schauffele |
| Charles Schwab Challenge | Davis Riley |
| RBC Canadian Open | Robert MacIntyre (first time) |
| The 49th Memorial Tournament | Scottie Scheffler (5) |
| 124th United States Open | Bryson DeChambeau |
| Travelers Championship | Scottie Scheffler (6) |
| Rocket Mortgage Classic | Cam Davis |
| John Deere Classic | Davis Thompson (first time) |
| Genesis Scottish Open | Robert MacIntyre (2) |
| 152nd Open Championship | Xander Schauffele (2) |
| 3M Open | Jhonattan Vegas |
| 2024 Paris Olympics | Scottie Scheffler (7) |
| 3M Open | Jhonattan Vegas |
| Wyndham Championship | Aaron Rai (first time) |
| FedEx St. Jude Championship | Hideki Matsuyama (2) |
| BMW Championship | Keegan Bradley |
| The TOUR Championship | Scottie Scheffler (8) |
| FedEx Cup Fall | |
| Procore Championship | Patton Kizzire |
| Sanderson Farms Championship | Kevin Yu (first time) |
| Black Desert Championship | Matt McCarty (first time) |
| Shriners Children’s Open | JT Poston |
| ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP | Nico Echavarria |
| World Wide Technology Champ | Austin Eckroat (2) |
| Butterfield Bermuda Champ | Rafa Campos (first time) |
| The RSM Classic | Maverick McNealy (first time) |
The 89th Masters Tournament Notables
- The field of 95 players includes the top 50 from the Official World Golf Rankings.
- The average age of winners is around 33 years old. The last four winners were in their 20s.
- Winning a record sixth green jacket, Jack Nicklaus became the oldest winner in 1986.
- The youngest champion was Tiger Woods (21 years old) in 1997.
- The only player (post-1945) to win on debut was Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979.
- Since 2000, three players have won on their second attempt: Charl Schwartzel (2011), Jordan Spieth (2015), and Danny Willett (2016).
- The last wire-to-wire was Spieth, becoming just the fifth player in history to lead after all four rounds.
- Only three players have successfully defended the title. Jack Nicklaus (1965-66), Sir Nick Faldo (1989-1990), and Tiger Woods (2001-2002) are the members of this exclusive club.
- Only three players ranked No. 1 in the OWGR went on to win: Tiger Woods (2007), Dustin Johnson (2020), and Scottie Scheffler (2022, 2024).
- Adam Scott is the only Australian winner.
- Hideki Matsuyama is the only Asian winner.
- Sergio Garcia was the last winner to need a playoff. Defeating Justin Rose, the Spaniard won his first green jacket in his 19th attempt, the record for a first-time winner.
- Mark O’Meara, aged 41 in 1998, is the oldest first-time winner.
- Raymond Floyd, aged 49 in 1992, is the oldest runner-up.
- The field will be cut to the top 50 and ties after two rounds.
- The winner this week will take home 750 FedExCup points.
- The purse and winner’s share will be announced later this week.
Recent Winners – Masters Tournament
Italics – not entered this week.
| Year | Winner | Notes |
| 2024 | Scottie Scheffler (-11) | Held off Collin Morikawa from the final group and won his second green jacket by four shots. |
| 2023 | Jon Rahm (-12) | Joined Seve Ballesteros, Jose Maria Olazabal, and Sergio Garcia as winners from Spain. |
| 2022 | Scottie Scheffler (-10) | Wins his first major comfortably by three shots over Rory McIlroy. |
| 2021 | Hideki Matsuyama (-10) | Blew the field away in Round 3 and cruised to his first major title. |
| 2020 | Dustin Johnson (-20) | Set the non-April tournament scoring record on a soft, dormant layout. |
| 2019 | Tiger Woods (-13) | The only player to win from outside of the top 10 after Round 1. He’s done that twice (2005) and won the tournament FIVE times. |
One and Done – Spotter’s Game
1 player per event (plus a backup pick if your guy get kidnapped on Wednesday night and doesn’t make it to the first tee Thursday).
1 use per year.
| Event | Selection | Place | Earnings |
| The Sentry | Sungjae Im | 3rd | $1,360,000 |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Russell Henley | T10 | 195,025 |
| The American Express | Adam Hadwin | MC | |
| Farmers Insurance | Jason Day | T32 | 52,080 |
| AT&T Pebble Beach | Ludvig Aberg | WD | |
| WM Phoenix Open | Rasmus Hojgaard | T12 | 195,500 |
| Genesis Invitational | Will Zalatoris | T24 | 168,857 |
| Mexico Open | Patrick Rodgers | T25 | 59,350 |
| Cognizant Classic | Daniel Berger | T25 | 73,721 |
| Arnold Palmer | Keegan Bradley | T5 | 800,000 |
| THE PLAYERS | Collin Morikawa | T10 | 656,250 |
| Valspar Championship | Sepp Straka | T28 | 55,844 |
| Houston Open | Aaron Rai | MC | |
| Valero Texas Open | Corey Conners | T18 | 113,050 |
LAST WEEK – Valero Texas Open
THE CHOICE: Corey Conners – T18
Sat three shots off the lead with two holes to play on Saturday. He ended his round bogey-double, faded to six shots back, and never returned to contend.
Others to consider:
Akshay Bhatia, Sam Stevens, Gary Woodland, Charley Hoffman
Three missed cuts and a T40. What a week!
THIS Week – 89th Masters tournament
For the second year in a row, I’m playing Rory McIlroy.
This year, he fits the profile of past champions. He’s playing, winning, and he’s in a great spot off the course. It’s time to add another page of history.
THE CHOICE: Rory McIlroy
Others to consider:
Jon Rahm, Cam Smith, Patrick Reed, Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth, Brooks Koepka
Glass Houses 