The First Look: Masters Tournament

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FIELD NOTES: Akshay Bhatia earned the final spot within the area along with his dramatic playoff victory Sunday on the Valero Texas Open. He’s the primary former Drive, Chip & Putt participant to make the Masters area. … Scottie Scheffler arrives at Augusta Nationwide as world No. 1 and on high of the FedExCup standings. He has completed no worse than second in his previous three begins since switching to a mallet putter. He went back-to-back on the Arnold Palmer Invitational introduced by Mastercard and THE PLAYERS, then completed second on the Texas Youngsters’s Houston Open. That is Scheffler’s fifth Masters. He completed T10 final yr and has by no means completed outdoors the highest 20… Tiger Woods is within the area and may have a pre-tournament press convention at 11 a.m. ET on Tuesday. It’s Woods’ first begin since The Genesis Invitational, the place he withdrew within the second spherical after struggling flu-like signs. Woods performed final yr’s Masters however withdrew on the weekend and underwent ankle fusion surgical procedure shortly after. This marks the fifth anniversary of his “return to glory” victory in 2019. Woods has made the minimize 23 straight instances at Augusta Nationwide – tied for many all-time – and shall be wanting so as to add that file this yr… Rory McIlroy is taking his tenth crack at finishing the profession Grand Slam on the Masters. McIlroy has had his alternatives, most famously in 2011. He has completed within the high 10 in seven of the previous 9 Masters, together with a runner-up in 2022 however is coming off a missed minimize final yr. He earned his first top-10 of the season final week, ending third on the Valero Texas Open after a latest tuneup with famous swing coach Butch Harmon… Bhatia is among the many 20 first-timers at Augusta. Wyndham Clark and Ludvig Åberg spotlight the rookie class, together with 2023 PGA TOUR Rookie of the 12 months Eric Cole, Valspar Championship winner Peter Malnati (who’s making his Masters debut at age 36) and first-time PGA TOUR winners Nick Dunlap,Stephan Jaeger, Austin Eckroat, Jake Knapp and Lee Hodges. Dunlap already was within the area because the reigning U.S. Novice champion however then turned professional after profitable The American Categorical, which gave him a spot within the area after turning skilled. Fuzzy Zoeller is the one Masters rookie to win the inexperienced jacket, whereas six have completed runner-up of their maiden Masters… There are many notables searching for their first main title together with Viktor Hovland, Patrick Cantlay, Max Homa and Xander Schauffele, who’re all ranked within the high 10 on this planet. Within the case of Schauffele, he was within the last group on Sunday at each The Genesis Invitational and THE PLAYERS. He completed T10 final yr on the Masters and was runner-up in 2019.