Key events
The Strokes Gained: Putting stats are perhaps a hole behind but, nevertheless, they’re pretty informative so far. Rose is ranked 1st while Scheffler is 4th. And if Scheffler is putting well, look out! That said, you can’t just rely on the flatstick here and the defending champ has just pulled a second straight tee-shot, this one resulting in him finding a fairway bunker down 18. Scheffler would become a three-time winner if he gets it done this week and, talking of triple Masters champions, Phil Mickelson (2004, 2006 and 2010) has just signed for a 75. A pair of closing bogeys have taken the edge off a brave back-nine fightback.
Collin Morikawa, who started the Masters as third favourite behind Scheffler and McIlroy, had it going today but he’s been leaking oil coming home and signs off with a bogey at 18. That’s three dropped shots in his final four holes, turning a sub-70 round into an even-par 72. Frustrating. Meanwhile, Scheffler is having an adventure down 17. His tugged tee-shot leaves him blocked out by a tree which he decides to heave a gap iron over the top of. It comes up short but he chips to around eight feet and drains the par putt. “Putts like these, these define champions,” says Rich Beem in the Sky commentary box. Scheffler remains tied second alongside Conners (F) and Hatton, who does ever so well to make par at 16 after leaving himself at the top of the green but solving the puzzle with a tickling breaker and a steely par putt.
This is inspirational stuff from Justin Rose. The 9th and 10th are supposed to be consolidation holes but the Englishman has birdied them both. And let’s not forget he picked up another shot at 8 so that’s three par breakers on the spin. On he marches to 6-under, now two clear of the field. Can he keep it going? The tough 11th is a tough next hurdle but there are chances at 13 and 15. Meanwhile, Rory pars 7 but it’s only after a poor approach and some tidy short-game play. Current status: not firing but hanging in there well at -1.
Scheffler breaks a run of seven straight pars with an unlikely birdie-2 at 16. It’s a good shot to the classic Sunday pin down on the bottom tier but the flag in round one is much further along the green. No worries, Scheffler decides to drain a 42-footer for birdie, sparking one of those great Augusta roars! The official Masters scoreboard shuffles and the winner in 2022 and 2024 moves up to tied second, just one behind Rose. Justin Thomas follows Scheffler in with a lengthy putt of his own but that’s the two-time PGA Championship winner’s first birdie of a strangely lacklustre round. On the plus side, another red circle at 17 or 18 and he could be signing for a 72.
-6: Rose (10)
-4: Conners (F), Scheffler (16), Hatton (15)
-2: Rai (F), English (F), Morikawa (15), Day (16), McCarthy (10), DeChambeau (6)
Pars for Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. Rory will be happy with his three swishes at the 6th to stay at -1 but Scheffler may be just a little niggled that his has come at 15, meaning he’s failed to pick up a shot on both the back nine’s par 5s. Still, 12 pars and three birdies to start a Masters defence will do very nicely thankyou.
There seemed to be a run of Masters in the 2010s where Fred Couples was turning back the clock and making the dreamers believe he could add a second green jacket. They ended quite a while ago and his last six attempts here show five missed cuts and a 50th. But today he’s opened with a 1-under 71, the first time he’s broken par in round one in 11 years. That 71 has been matched by a, shall we say, less popular former winner, Patrick Reed. ‘Captain America’ has had four top 12 here since winning in 2018 so he’s definitely worthy of the ‘course horse’ tag.
My word. Justin Rose makes another birdie, the latest at 9 after a superb approach allows him to hole from five feet, and hits the front on his own at 5-under. That’s a scintillating outward half of 31. Of course, it’s no surprise to see him at the top of a Masters leaderboard on Thursday. He’s had a piece of the first-round lead at Augusta National no less than four times here (the most recent in 2021) and here he goes again.
Rory holes another testy par putt at 5 to remain 1-under and three off the pace. Now he’ll be hitting down to the par-3 6th green, a huge drop from the top of the hill where tee-shots sail over the heads of patrons sitting on the bank. They wouldn’t be sat there if I was teeing off, let me tell you. As for Rory, this was him speaking yesterday: “I’ve preached this the whole year, but just managing my game and minimizing my mistakes. If I get myself out of position, putting myself back in position. Just playing really smart and being really logical and rational about everything. If I can do that for four days, I feel like I’ll have a good chance.” So far, so good.
Thanks Scott. Enjoy your recreation of the Champions Dinner. What are ya serving? Anyway, I’ll start with a tale of two Højgaards. Nicolai scribbled just four pars on his card in a rollercoaster 76 today. But proving that twins don’t do everything the same, brother Rasmus has started with six straight pars. Perhaps no surprise to see Nicolai’s colourful card given that the Dane made more birdies than anyone (21) in last year’s Masters when he ended an excellent Augusta debut in tied 16th. He had 17 bogeys and two ‘others’ that week so he’s been a fun watch here.
… and with that, I’ll hand you over to David Tindall, who will take this baby home. See you again tomorrow!
Justin Rose joins his compatriot Tyrrell Hatton at the top! Birdie at the par-five 8th, his fourth of the day, takes him there. And how about this from the 33-year-old Canadian nearly-man Corey Conners, whose best result here was a tie for sixth in 2022, his third consecutive top-ten Masters finish? Birdies at 15, 17 and 18, and he signs for a best-of-day (so far) 68. Throw in bogey for Collin Morikawa at 15, the price of flying the green with his approach, and here’s what the all-new leaderboard looks like.
-4: Conners (F), Hatton (13), Rose (8)
-3: Scheffler (14)
-2: Rai (F), English (F), Morikawa (15), Day (14), McCarthy (8), Bhatia (4), DeChambeau (4)
Harris English finishes with birdie at 18. The 35-year-old local lad, who has never finished in the top 20 at the Masters, signs for a two-under 70 and is the joint early clubhouse leader with Aaron Rai.
Rory McIlroy finds the heart of the green at the par-three 4th. He can’t rake in the long birdie putt, and in fact leaves himself quite a bit of work to do, racing it ten feet past. But he makes the one coming back, and that’s a staunch putt. See also Tyrrell Hatton, who secures his par on 13 despite racing an excitable first putt well past the hole. They’re -1 and -4 respectively.
It’s a poor start for Jon Rahm, of LIV Golf and Buyer’s Remorse fame. A dropped shot at 2, the result of some scrappy putting, and already the 2023 champ doesn’t cut a figure of contentment. He’s +1. Better early news for Matt Fitzpatrick, who birdies 4, and Bryson DeChambeau, who picks up a shot at 2. They’re both -1.
Cameron Smith, who has never missed the cut at the Masters, and finished in a tie for second in 2020, has begun his latest bid in stealthy fashion. A birdie at the last for a one-under 71, having previously made one other birdie, one bogey, and 15 pars. Meanwhile an uncharacteristically sloppy three-putt for Scottie Scheffler, but he’d reached the par-five 13th in two, so the damage is just par, not a dropped shot. He remains at -3.
Some glorious short-game play at 3. Ludvig Åberg first up, and it doesn’t augur well when his wedge from the right-hand side bounces hard on the green and down the bank to the left. But then Akshay Bhatia, from a similar position out right, lands a delicious chip 15 feet to the right of the hole that spins around to a couple of feet. He’ll tidy up, but not before Åberg chips in for a birdie of his own! And then it’s three from three, with Rory McIlroy the neatest and tidiest of them all, albeit without half as much drama. McIlroy and Åberg are -1; Bhatia, who had birdied 2, is -2. A spring in Rory’s step all of a sudden!
Aaron Rai finishes up with par, and signs for a fine 70. It’s a round that promised more, after a front nine of 32, but he’s done well to stem the bleeding after three consecutive birdies around Amen Corner. He’s -2.
Tyrrell Hatton leads the Masters! He lands his tee shot at 12 to eight feet, one of the shots of the day there, and rolls in the putt with great confidence. Meanwhile Jason Day, who finished second here on debut back in 2011, birdies 12 and 13 to join the party.
-4: Hatton (12)
-3: Morikawa (13), Scheffler (12), Rose (7)
-2: Rai (17), Conners (15), Greyserman (15), Day (13)
Two holes in, and Rory McIlroy already cuts a frustrated figure. Head not quite addled, but he doesn’t look totally happy, a little agitation betraying him as he goes about his business perhaps too briskly. Having missed a makeable birdie putt at 1, his tee shot at 2 flies into a step-faced fairway bunker. He’s forced to wedge out, and his third takes a hot bounce onto the fringe at the back of the green. He stabs with great uncertainty at the birdie putt, which breaks weakly to the left. He’s faced with a missable five-footer … which to be fair he makes. A par-par start that could have been better, but it also could have been worse. Perhaps that’ll settle a few nerves.
Bernhard Langer, 67, understandably ran out of energy on the back nine. Having hit the turn in 35, he came back in 39, dropping strokes at 12, 13 and 17. Still, that’s a decent 74 and there’s no reason whatsoever why the beloved veteran can’t make the cut on his valedictory appearance tomorrow afternoon.
Some ersatz Jean van de Velde stylings from Joaquin Niemann. He sends his second at the downhill par-five 13th stumbling into Rae’s Creek. Or more exactly, resting on the sand by the stream. He’s able to chip up … but the ball stalls on the bank and comes rolling back into the drink. It’s not submerged, though, and he has another go. This one squirts out, and lands 15 feet past the flag. He can’t steer in the right-to-left swinger for an unlikely par save, and slips back to -1. But going the other way: his partner Collin Morikawa, who curls in a huge putt along similar right-to-left lines, but from twice the distance, for eagle! Throw in a bounceback chip-in birdie for Aaron Rai at 17, plus birdie for Corey Conners at 15, and all of a sudden we have a very glamorous and interesting leaderboard!
-3: Morikawa (13), Scheffler (12), Hatton (11), Rose (6)
-2: Rai (17), Conners (15)
An opening bogey for the Open champion Xander Schauffele. He’s +1. Back-to-back dropped shots by the 2020 winner Dustin Johnson, at 3 and 4. He’s +2. But most welcome news of 2017’s hero Sergio Garcia, who opened with birdie and is currently -1 through 4. He won recently in Hong Kong on the LIV tour, so let’s rule nothing out yet.
Davis Thompson would be an unexpected winner, but given he’s a Georgian born and bred, a popular one. The 25-year-old from Atlanta is very much trending in the right direction: his first PGA Tour win last year at the John Deere Classic, a top-ten finish at the US Open, then another top-ten finish at this year’s Players. Now he’s opened his Masters debut with a one-under 71. Birdies at 13 and 15 on the way home, a fine response after making four bogeys between the 5th and 11th.
Now then, you’ll have noticed the group at -2 is significantly smaller than it was. The main top lines of that mass exodus: A double bogey for Brian Harman at 14, and a similar fate for Jordan Spieth at 10. And now Aaron Rai has immediately handed back the shot he picked up at 15, failing to get up and down from greenside sand at 16. He’s unravelled badly since hitting Amen Corner, and slips back to -1.
A huge chance for Rory McIlroy to open with a birdie. He sends his second pin high to 12 feet, but doesn’t give the left-to-right slider enough oomph, and it’s always dying to the right. Pars for Bhatia and Åberg as well. Meanwhile one heck of a turnabout in fortune for Aaron Rai at 15. His second over the water sails the green and nearly finds the pond behind. But it stops in just time, and he wedges up to kick-in distance for an unlikely birdie! He’s back in the group at -2.
-3: Scheffler (10), Hatton (10), Rose (5)
-2: Rai (15), Niemann (12), Canter (8)
It’s not been poor Nick Dunlap’s day. The 21-year-old from Alabama is making his second start at the Masters. He didn’t make the cut last year, and he’s not going to do so this time either. Out in 43 after four bogeys and a triple at 5, he’s just made back-to-back doubles, at 11 and 12, finding the drink at both holes. He’s +11 through 12 and Augusta National is proving a hard-knock seat of learning for the young man all right.
Not many under-hit tee shots at 12 stick on the bank at the front without toppling back into Rae’s Creek. There’s Fred Couples en route to victory in 1992 and … er, that’s about it, isn’t it? Collin Morikawa’s ball somehow stays dry here, though, and he takes advantage of his huge break by getting up and down from the bank for par. An omen of glory to come? Perhaps! He remains at -1.
Heeeeeere’s Rory! An opening drive sent down the middle of Tea Olive. Ludvig Åberg crashes one down there as well. Finally the slight, willowy Akshay Bhatia – described by Butch Harmon on Sky as “like a 1-iron without a grip” – makes it three good ones out of three. Let’s see how this unfolds, then.
… but while Brian Harman was making birdie at 13, his playing partner, the leader Stephan Jaegar, was suffering real bad. His third lands pin high, but spins dramatically back into the creek. That leads to a double-bogey seven on the third-easiest hole on the course today, and suddenly the very top of the leaderboard has an extremely familiar look to it.
-3: Scheffler (10), Hatton (9), Rose (4)
-2: English (13), Harman (13), Jaeger (13), Niemann (11), Spieth (9), Canter (7), McCarty (5), Homa (4)
Michael Kim is back in the hutch with a one-under 71. Great to see the 31-year-old Texan return to form after years of struggle. Meanwhile on 13, Brian Harman rakes in a 50-footer for birdie to move to -2.
Min Woo Lee is down in Mize/Rai Country, the swale to the right of 11. He plays a high-tariff lob miles into the air, landing his ball softly on the edge of the green and letting it release to three feet. In goes the putt, and that’s one of the great up-and-downs. Nerves of steel and he remains at -1.
It’s three birdies in three holes for Justin Rose! What a start. Meanwhile in more good news for fans of English golfers, Tyrrell Hatton has birdied 8, while Harris picks up a stroke at 13. I’m here all week, try the pimento cheese.
-4: Jaeger (12)
-3: Scheffler (9), Hatton (8), Rose (3)
-2: English (13), Niemann (10), Spieth (8), Canter (6), McCarty (4), Homa (3)
Justin Rose has had his near misses here. He was in contention in 2007, when Zach Johnson won; in 2015 when Jordan Spieth broke through; and perhaps most famously lost a playoff in 2017 to Sergio Garcia. At 44, he’s enjoying a late-career resurgence in the majors, having finished in a tie for sixth at last year’s PGA, and a tie for second at the Open. Clearly not done yet, he’s opened his 20th Masters bid with two birdies. Speaking of Spieth, he’s just birdied 8 to move back to -2, alongside Rose and selected others.
Laurie Canter is making his Masters debut at the age of 35. A late bloomer, he won his first DP World Tour event at last year’s European Open, and followed that up with his second title at the Bahrain Championship a couple of months ago. Now one of the top 50 players in the world as a result, he’s secured his invite to Augusta and looks in the mood to grab the opportunity with both hands. Birdies at 3 and now 6, the latter the reward for sending his tee shot at the par-three pin high. Just a couple off the lead at -2!
Aaron Rai’s promising round is unravelling at pace. His wedge into 13 sails over the flag and generates no spin, and he’s left with a tricky downhill putt from 43 feet. He tickles it down the green, pin high. The only problem is, he’s completely misread it, setting it six feet wide right and watching in horror as it fails to break towards the hole. He can’t make the par saver, and that’s three consecutive bogeys. He’s -1.
Scottie Scheffler makes his move. His second into the par-five 8th disappears down a swale and rests in a divot. But he punches up cleverly, pitching into the backstop behind the flag, and letting the camber take his ball back to 14 feet. In goes the birdie putt, and the defending champion is going along very nicely indeed.
-4: Jaeger (11)
-3: Scheffler (8)
-2: Rai (12), Niemann (9), Hatton (7), Campbell (4), McCarty (3)
We haven’t turned our attention to Nicolai Højgaard for a while. Since that double bogey at 12, he’s since carded pars at 13 and 14, bogeys at 16 and 17 … and an eagle at 15. Just the four pars on his card today. Three doubles. Four bogeys. Six birdies and an eagle. He’s +3. His twin Rasmus is out in a minute. Match that, brother.
Another bogey for Aaron Rai. He dunks his tee shot at the par-three 12th into the bunker guarding the front – better than the drink, at least – and can’t get up and down. Back-to-back bogeys, and suddenly Stephan Jaeger has a two-shot lead. Things change fast at the Masters.
-4: Jaeger (10)
-2: Rai (12), Niemann (8), Scheffler (7), Hatton (7), Campbell (4), McCarty (2)
The first match is back in the clubhouse. A disappointing end to Davis Riley’s up-and-down round: bogey-bogey and the Masters debutant, a two-time winner on the PGA Tour, ends the day with a one-over 73. His playing partner Patton Kizzire never got going, and currently props up the entire leaderboard after shooting a seven-over 79.
Collin Morikawa’s second into the par-five 8th is a thing of beauty. A fairway wood that bounces off the camber to the right of the green and gathers into the heart of the playing surface. Two careful putts and that’s his first birdie of the day. He’s -1, and one of the pre-tournament favourites looks pretty pleased, having patiently waited for something to happen for him.
Aaron Rai looks to have played the treacherous 11th well. A drive down the middle. An approach into Larry Mize’s swale to the right of the green, taking the water on the left out of play and leaving a fairly basic (for these lads) uphill chip. But a weak chip dies off to the left, and he can’t make the dribbly four-footer that remains. A first bogey of the day out of nowhere.
-4: Jaeger (10)
-3: Rai (11)
-2: Niemann (8), Scheffler (7), Hatton (6)
