The 88th Masters has Tiger in the Field; Scheffler is the Heavy Favorite

April 10, 2024 by CollegeFootballPoll.com Staff

The Masters isn't the oldest of the four major golf tournaments, but it's usually ratings gold. The final round of the 2023 event totaled over 16 million viewers. The Par 3 event is today at Noon (ET) with live stream coverage available on Masters.com from start to finish, and ESPN hosting a traditional broadcast from 3pm-5pm.

John Rahm is the defending champion after weather forced him to play 30 holes on Sunday. He moved from 4 shots out of the lead to wearing the Green Jacket and became the fourth Spanish player to ever win the coveted title. In all, Spaniards have 6 Masters championships to their credit. A very young Seve Ballesteros (age 23) won in 1980 and again in 1983; Jose Maria Olazabal also took two titles (1994 and 1999). Sergio Garcia, the sometimes villain of profession golf, was a welcomed champ in 2017.

Rahm's only other major tournament win came in the 2021 US Open when he became the first player from Spain to get his name on the Wanamaker Trophy.

Rahm officially joined LIV golf in December. His 2024 Masters odds (+1100) were posted on FanDuel.com on Wednesday morning, tying Rory McIlroy. They are right behind heavy Masters favorite Scottie Scheffler (+450) whose 2022 title is his only major win, so far.

Tiger Woods in is Augusta, walking 9 holes on Monday and Tuesday with friends Fred Couples and Justin Thomas. Can he survive four days of 18-hole walks on the hilly course in August? He has iogged just 24 holes this season and last appeared at his Genesis Tournament where he had to withdraw after those 24 holes because of flu symptons. Tiger is among the odds leaders to miss the cut (-140) and near the bottom of the golfers expected to make the cut (-104).

Tiger last won the Masters in 2019 for his 5th green jacket. He chases Jack Nicklaus' 6 Masters titles, as well as Jack's record of professional majors with 18 (Tiger has 15). Tiger is tied with Sam Snead with 83 PGA victories. Tiger trails Jack by 7 when it comes to worldwide professional events, 117-110.

Woods will tee off at 1:24 p.m on Thursday.

Here are some of Thursday and Friday's highlighted groups.

7:40 AM (Honorary Starters): Jack Nicklaus (84), Gary Player (88), Tom Watson (74)
8:00 AM Thursday, 11:06 PM Friday: Tournament begins with Erik Van Rooyen, and Jake Knapp
10:30 PM Thursday, 1:36 PM Friday: John Rahm, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Nick Dunlap
10:42 PM Thursday, 1:48 PM Friday: Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlory, and Xander Schauffele (2021 Olympics golf champion) .
10:54 PM Thursday, 2:00 PM Friday (Final pairing): Wyndham Clark, Viktor Hovland, and Cameron Smith.
1:24 PM Thursday, 10:18 AM Friday: Tiger Woods,Jason Day, and Max Homa
1:48 PM Thursday, 10:42 AM Friday: Jordan Spieth, Ludvig Aberg, and Sahith Theegala
2:00 PM Thursday, 10:54 AM Friday: Dustin Johnson, Collin Morikawa, and Tommy Fleetwood

McIlroy is still chasing his first Masters win. Rory, along with Jack and Tiger managed to win four majors by the age of 25, but he has not won any majors since grabbing that fourth title with his second PGA Championship victory in 2014. He won The Open Championship earlier that same year.

Viktor Hovland is certainly among the candidates who could break through with a first major victory. Hovland has a tie for 2nd at last year's PGA and a T4 at the 2022 Open Championship.

Ludwig Aberg is making his first start in any major.