The Athletic has reside protection of the 2025 Masters Match.
AUGUSTA, Ga. — When the Masters begins on Thursday, there’ll be no scarcity of prime contenders.
Scottie Scheffler is looking for to grow to be the primary back-to-back champion since Tiger Woods greater than 20 years in the past, and solely the second to win 3 times in 4 years (Jack Nicklaus, in fact, was the primary.).
Rory McIlroy is looking for to finish an 11-year drought between main championships. A Masters victory would additionally full the profession grand slam. Nobody has performed higher golf this 12 months on the PGA Tour, with wins on the AT&T Pebble Seashore Professional-Am and the Gamers Championship.
Xander Schauffele, after breaking by way of a 12 months in the past with PGA and Open Championship wins for the primary majors of his profession, may out of the blue be three-fourths of the best way to his personal grand slam with a inexperienced jacket.
Then there’s Jon Rahm, looking for a second Masters; Collin Morikawa, pursuing a 3rd main championship; and Ludvig Aberg, making an attempt for his first main in his second full professional season.
Or will somebody emerge seemingly out of nowhere to win the Masters and make the go to to Butler Cabin on Sunday afternoon?
Forward of this 12 months’s Masters, The Athletic has a giant board of its prime 30 contenders, as voted on by its golf workers.
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There’s little debate over who must be No. 1. Scheffler is the most effective participant on this planet and has gained the match two of the final three years. The query is whether or not Scheffler is the type of No. 1 he was in 2024. After reducing his hand on damaged glass and having surgical procedure, Scheffler has been each good and unstable in six begins. All six have been prime 25s, however his elite quick sport has been off and he’s engaged on getting his driver again to normal type. Nonetheless, Scheffler is the most effective Masters participant within the discipline and he’s coming off a wonderful T2. He will probably be fascinating to look at. — Brody Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
2 wins (’22, ’24)
Greatest earlier main end
2 wins
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Scottie Scheffler’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
25-29
United States
PGA Tour
McIlroy with large expectations at Augusta Nationwide? What may go unsuitable? Regardless of how cynical you’ve grow to be about McIlroy at majors, you may’t ignore how nicely he’s enjoying proper now. He has three wins — the Gamers, Pebble Seashore, the DP World Tour Championship — in his final seven begins. He appears as assured as ever however with extra self-discipline and technique. Technically, he’s by no means performed higher golf main into the Masters in his entire profession. It’s honest to be skeptical. It’s additionally honest to consider. — Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
2 (2022)
Greatest earlier main end
4 wins
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Rory McIlroy’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
30-35
Northern Eire
PGA Tour
When Åberg completed second ultimately 12 months’s Masters — in his first ever main begin — it solidified his arrival as probably the most thrilling younger expertise within the sport. Now, Åberg is 25 and simply gained the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines. He’s been a little bit erratic at occasions, mixing in a 77 with three good rounds, in order that must be monitored. However the different prime names beneath him have the identical issues. Åberg is a premier expertise who was tied for the lead at Augusta Nationwide with eight holes to go in 2024. Even when No. 3 is aggressive, he’s particular. — Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
2 (2024)
Greatest earlier main end
2 (Masters, 2024)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Ludvig Aberg’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
4 months in the past, there was no denying Schauffele was a top-two participant on this planet. The one cause he’s not anymore is a rib harm that held him out for 2 months. His three begins again have been irritating — he made progress with a T12 at Valspar — however you may’t deny the golfer who’s gained two of the final three majors. He’s additionally any person who performs the Masters in addition to some other main with 4 prime 10s in his final six begins. We’ve zero concept which Schauffele we’re going to get, but when it’s the great Schauffele, he’s in all probability increased on this checklist. — Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T2 (2019)
Greatest earlier main end
2 wins
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Xander Schauffele’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
30-35
United States
PGA Tour
On a listing full of untamed playing cards, there could also be no golfer extra fascinating and unpredictable than Rahm coming into this main season. After going to LIV — the place even his good golf is more durable to contextualize — final 12 months, Rahm had a messy main season with a T45 on the Masters, a missed reduce on the PGA Championship and a WD from the U.S. Open with a foot an infection earlier than a promising T7 on the Open Championship. Rahm continues to be No. 4 total on DataGolf, although. He’s an elite golfer with a Masters win simply two years in the past, but none of us know precisely what he’s now. My recommendation? Don’t low cost Jon Rahm. — Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
Win (2023)
Greatest earlier main end
2 wins
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Jon Rahm’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
So why is the No. 1 tee-to-green participant on this planet in 2025 — a participant with two profession majors — sixth on the checklist? It’s easy. It’s troublesome to belief him lately. If we’re speaking pure golf type, he’s in all probability behind solely McIlroy. However Morikawa has had some Sunday points. In 2024 alone, he went from the ultimate group on the Masters to seven photographs again. On the PGA, he was within the ultimate group and completed six again. In a vacuum, Morikawa must be a favourite this week, particularly after three consecutive Masters prime 10s. The query is that if he can take it. — Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T3 (2024)
Greatest earlier main end
2 wins
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Collin Morikawa’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
25-29
United States
PGA Tour
The place do you set extra weight? In DeChambeau’s 2024, when he gained the U.S. Open, almost gained the PGA Championship and had the first-round lead on the Masters? Or the 9 years prior with out a Masters prime 10? Augusta Nationwide has by no means been an ideal match for DeChambeau’s distance-focused sport, however he’s additionally earned the advantage of the doubt after an epic 2024. The onerous half is that he hasn’t had an excellent encouraging begin to the season on LIV. So it’s honest to cut back expectations this week. — Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T6 (2024)
Greatest earlier main end
2 wins
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Bryson DeChambeau’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
Thomas is definitively again, enjoying like a week-in, week-out top-10 golfer on tour. He has 4 top-10 finishes already this season and ranks No. 5 on this planet on DataGolf. So sure, Thomas has returned from his two years within the wilderness with stunning ball hanging and improved placing. He’s been lurking round rivalry every week, so the query now’s if he can win once more. In his two PGA Championship victories, he got here by way of in robust situations and tight leaderboards. However the Masters hasn’t been good to him; he missed cuts the final two years. — Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
4 (2020)
Greatest earlier main end
2 wins
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Justin Thomas’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
30-35
United States
PGA Tour
Matsuyama is the final word “he has it or he doesn’t” golfer. When he’s on, there aren’t greater than three golfers higher than him. When he’s off, he’ll miss cuts like he has the previous two weeks and cling round mediocrity. Therein lies the rub. We’ve seen good Matsuyama lately, profitable the FedEx St. Jude playoff occasion in August and the signature occasion Sentry in January. And, in fact, we’ve seen him thrive at Augusta Nationwide together with his 2021 win. We don’t know which Matsuyama we’re going to get, however he can win indisputably. — Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
Win (2022)
Greatest earlier main end
1 win
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Hideki Matsuyama’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
When Koepka gained his fifth main in Might 2023, the narrative that he was the fashionable sport’s nice main participant was rightfully solidified. Since then, Koepka has gone 5 straight majors with out a prime 25. He’s been unstable on LIV this season, and his driving numbers off the tee have been at a profession low. He’s truly shedding strokes off the tee regardless of being a wonderful driver. It’s troublesome to really feel assured in Brooks this week, however we’ve all been by way of this earlier than. It’s the basic Koepka conundrum: He not often ever performs good regular-season golf regardless of being one of many sport’s biggest rivals. He can grind it out and compete at any robust take a look at. It’s simply not often predictable. — Miller
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T2 (’19, ’23)
Greatest earlier main end
2 wins
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Brooks Koepka’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
Niemann solely has one top-20 end at Augusta Nationwide, however has discovered himself firmly within the dialog round match favorites lately. The Chilean is without doubt one of the hottest LIV golfers within the Masters discipline, with two particular person wins this calendar 12 months. Niemann has persistently made an effort to play DP World Tour occasions, and he has taken benefit of these alternatives. He made back-to-back appearances on the ISPS Handa Australian Open, the place he gained in 2023 and completed T5 in 2024. Based on DataGolf, Niemann is presently ranked second in strokes gained off the tee and eleventh in strokes gained method, two statistics that could possibly be helpful right here with its tight fairways and table-top greens. — Gabby Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T16 (2023)
Greatest earlier main end
T16 (Masters, 2023)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Joaquin Niemann’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
One of the vital constant gamers on the PGA Tour, Henley is coming into Masters week maybe as a darkish horse to the broader sports activities group, however an especially dependable decide for these aware of his current type. Henley has confirmed to be a prime American expertise with precision and accuracy throughout his sport. He’s coming into the match with a high-profile victory on his 2025 resume (the Arnold Palmer Invitational). Henley has made the reduce in seven consecutive Masters, so even when he doesn’t come residence with a inexperienced jacket this week, he’s in all probability going to no less than be excessive up on the leaderboard . — Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T4 (2023)
Greatest earlier main end
T4 (Masters, 2023)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Russell Henley’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
30-35
United States
PGA Tour
Lowry can have a wonderful shot at contending at this 12 months’s Masters due to one talent specifically: his iron sport. Lowry is without doubt one of the 5 greatest iron gamers on this planet proper now. On common, he’s gaining almost a full shot together with his method sport each spherical he performs on the PGA Tour. That space of Lowry’s sport has already served him notably nicely in 2025. He has 4 top-12 finishes this calendar 12 months, together with a solo second-place end at Pebble Seashore, which boasts a few of the smallest greens the professionals play. Not solely is Lowry a serious champion, however he’s additionally proved that he can persistently put himself in rivalry in any respect the majors. — Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T3 (2022)
Greatest earlier main end
1 win
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Shane Lowry’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
The most effective participant on the PGA Tour with out a victory, Fleetwood is one other participant whose iron sport ought to permit him to shine at Augusta Nationwide, the place pins will probably be positioned in sections of the greens which can be solely accessible through a superbly positioned method shot. He positive aspects .7 photographs together with his irons on common each spherical, and this 12 months, that has led him to 5 consecutive finishes within the prime 22 on the PGA Tour, together with a T5 end on the Genesis Invitational. Fleetwood’s efficiency ultimately 12 months’s Masters was his greatest but, and it is more and more feeling prefer it’s solely a matter of time earlier than the Englishman snags a serious win. He has completed within the prime 5 in any respect 4 at numerous factors in his profession, together with second-place finishes on the 2018 U.S. Open and the 2019 Open Championship. — Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T3 (2024)
Greatest earlier main end
2 (’18, ’19 U.S. Opens)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Tommy Fleetwood’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
Fond recollections at Augusta Nationwide can by no means harm, and Cantlay has one to carry on to: As a sophomore at UCLA in 2012, Cantlay was the low newbie. Now, Cantlay, 33, is headed into his ninth Masters begin in glorious early-season type, with two top-five finishes on his 2025 document and a T12 on the Gamers Championship. Getting over the hump and truly profitable the championship could possibly be troublesome. He persistently performs nicely in staff occasions, like final 12 months’s Presidents Cup, the place he performed a key function, and all the time appears to climb the leaderboard through the common PGA Tour season. However regardless of being one of many steadier gamers on this planet, he tends to come back up quick on the most important levels. — Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T9 (2019)
Greatest earlier main end
T3 (’19 PGA, ’23 U.S. Open)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Patrick Cantlay’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
30-35
United States
PGA Tour
Hovland has repeatedly switched swing coaches over the past 18 months, looking for a really feel that he says he wants to search out once more, impressed by the movement he made on the ball in his early days as knowledgeable. That journey has led Hovland to ups and downs, however principally the latter: rounds of 80+, lengthy evenings on the driving vary and a sense of coming right into a match figuring out he’s in all probability not going to contend. That each one modified when Hovland stunned each the golf group and himself by profitable the Valspar Championship in March. He realized he may take residence a trophy with out his greatest stuff. The timing of Hovland’s potential emergence from swing-adjustment purgatory may bode nicely for him on the Masters. — Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T7 (2023)
Greatest earlier main end
T2 (’23 PGA)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Viktor Hovland’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
For a second there, it appeared to be the 12 months of Straka. The Austrian golfer went on a tear at first of the PGA Tour season that included a win on the American Specific, a T7 end at Pebble, and a prime 15 on the WM Phoenix Open. The streak hasn’t ended — Straka has continued to drift across the prime of leaderboards together with his iron sport serving as a guiding drive. He’s ranked fifth in strokes gained method, second in greens in regulation and third in proximity to the opening. Augusta Nationwide is a second-shot golf course. If Straka maintains the shape he’s carried all season, it will come as no shock to see him making a run on the Inexperienced Jacket as a result of he’s statistically favored to fare nicely on the Alister MacKenzie design. — Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T16 (2024)
Greatest earlier main end
T2 (’23 Open)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Sepp Straka’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
Zalatoris’ 2025 resume isn’t the shiniest — he’s made all seven cuts, posting one prime 12 and three prime 30s. However the 28-year-old is trending in a really constructive path now that he’s totally recovered from again surgical procedure, and Augusta Nationwide could possibly be the proper place for that arc to achieve its peak. Zalatoris is one other participant who leans closely on his iron sport. He ranked 18th on the PGA Tour in strokes gained method and 14th in proximity to the opening. He has one of many strongest Augusta Nationwide data of the younger Individuals on tour proper now: a solo second in 2021, T6 in 2022 and T9 in 2024, one 12 months after he was pressured to withdraw as a consequence of harm and endure his microdiscectomy. If something will maintain Zalatoris again at Augusta, will probably be his placing. Zalatoris is ranked No. 130 on the PGA Tour in strokes gained placing. — Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
2 (2021)
Greatest earlier main end
2 (3 occasions)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Will Zalatoris’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
25-29
United States
PGA Tour
Hatton gained the Alfred Dunhill Hyperlinks Championship in October, the Hero Dubai Desert Basic on the DP World Tour in January and has one top-six end on LIV this 12 months. Hatton’s document within the majors is spotty. He’s posted a top-10 end at every of them, together with a T9 ultimately 12 months’s Masters, however he’s additionally underperformed fairly a number of occasions. Hatton’s largest hurdle at this 12 months’s match could be himself: He’s notorious for his outbursts and has been open about a number of holes at Augusta Nationwide residing “rent-free” in his head. — Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T9 (2024)
Greatest earlier main end
T5 (’16 Open)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Tyrrell Hatton’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
The 2025 Ryder Cup Captain is enjoying extra like a contender for the U.S. staff proper now than the person liable for placing it collectively. In eight begins this calendar 12 months, Bradley, 38, has two top-six finishes and two prime 15s. His sport has been constant throughout virtually each strokes gained class this season — he floats round No. 25 on the PGA Tour in strokes gained whole, off the tee and method to inexperienced. However the flatstick has posed main points for Bradley (he’s No. 129 in placing), and that statistic alone may maintain him again from an analogous success at Augusta Nationwide. The previous PGA champion additionally has not cracked the highest 20 in his eight begins on the Masters. — Herzig
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T22 (2015)
Greatest earlier main end
1 win
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Keegan Bradley’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
36-40
United States
PGA Tour
At 45 years and three months outdated, Garcia could be the second-oldest Masters champion in historical past, behind solely Jack Nicklaus. Presuming he can not win could be folly, because the Spaniard has loved a late-career renaissance over the past calendar 12 months. That features two LIV wins, the newest coming final month, and a solo third-place end at LIV Miami final week. His friends off the tee proper now are 20-somethings like Åberg and Morikawa, making an eleventh Ryder Cup look virtually a certainty. — Hugh Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
Win (2017)
Greatest earlier main end
1 win
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Sergio Garcia’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
A basic compiler, Conners just isn’t a fantastic decide to win the Masters, although he does have a pair of top-10 finishes within the final 4 years. Oh yeah, and his final 4 begins are a solo third-place end on the Arnold Palmer Invitational, prime 10s on the Gamers and Valspar, and a T18 on the Valero Texas Open final week. Each a part of his sport works, so it’s not like we will level to some apparent flaw. So why can’t he win? On paper, he can, although it stays to be seen whether or not he has the intangibles essential to be a serious champion. — Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T6 (2022)
Greatest earlier main end
T6 (’22 Masters)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Corey Conners’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
The 26-year-old Australian had his breakthrough second final month on the Houston Open, beating world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Gary Woodland by a stroke for his first PGA Tour championship. Lee touches 190 mph ball pace frequently, and averages 316 yards off the tee, third on the tour. However controlling that ball is his largest problem. Augusta Nationwide is so exacting off the tee that Lee will be unable to grip it and rip all of it that usually. — Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T14 (2022)
Greatest earlier main end
T5 (’23 U.S. Open)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Min Woo Lee’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
Berger is again for his first Masters since 2022, after again surgical procedure triggered him to overlook a lot of the final two years. The comeback tour in 2024 had its moments however was predictably uneven, and Berger has had a way more profitable 2025 to date. He was the most effective Individuals in golf when the harm took him down, so Berger has potential. — Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T50 (2022)
Greatest earlier main end
T6 (’18 U.S. Open)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Daniel Berger’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
30-35
United States
PGA Tour
Leaving final 12 months’s Gamers Championship, Clark had a stake because the second-best participant on this planet. What’s occurred since, with zero wins and two top-five finishes, has pushed him nicely down the depth chart. This could possibly be regression to the imply — keep in mind, he was an out-of-nowhere 2023 U.S. Open winner. Or it could possibly be the peaks and valleys that almost all skilled golfers face throughout their careers. Clark will want a powerful main season to make this 12 months’s Ryder Cup staff. — Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
Minimize (2024)
Greatest earlier main end
1 win
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Wyndham Clark’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
30-35
United States
PGA Tour
It was primarily a misplaced main season for Smith in 2024, with a solo sixth end on the Masters the one vibrant gentle in it. Lacking the reduce on the Open, which he gained in 2022, needed to be robust. It’s simple that Smith’s sport has pale since his transfer to LIV — he’s presently twenty ninth within the breakaway circuit’s season-long standings, and that’s simply not his potential. The driving force has been a sore spot. — Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T2 (2020)
Greatest earlier main end
1 win
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Cameron Smith’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
It’s lengthy been theorized that left-handers have a bonus at Augusta Nationwide, with its tight corridors and the path of its dogleg holes, and that figuring out tips on how to play the wind additionally will increase a contender’s probabilities of profitable the Masters. So right here you’ve MacIntyre, a lefty from Scotland, arriving again at Augusta Nationwide this week. He was T12 and T23 in his two Masters, the final three years in the past. He’s a greater golfer now. — Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T12 (2021)
Greatest earlier main end
T6 (’19 Open)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Robert MacIntyre’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
A Masters rookie, McNealy has elevated himself to a brand new stage in his age-29 season. After profitable the RSM Basic to shut out 2024, McNealy almost gained the Genesis Invitational and is coming off a T3 on the Valero Texas Open. As soon as a baseline participant together with his irons and across the greens, McNealy has turned himself right into a constructive. It’s not as flashy as the motive force, nevertheless it’s made all of the distinction for him. — Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
Rookie
Greatest earlier main end
T23 (’24 PGA)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Maverick McNealy’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
25-29
United States
PGA Tour
A decade faraway from his Masters win, Spieth returns to Augusta Nationwide hoping to assert a second inexperienced jacket. Can he do it? Coming off offseason wrist surgical procedure, Spieth is in no way the favourite. He’s nonetheless rounding his sport into form, and whereas he has been in a position to flash right here and there, he hasn’t stacked up 4 actually good rounds. — Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
Win (2015)
Greatest earlier main end
3 wins
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Jordan Spieth’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
30-35
United States
PGA Tour
The unquestioned MVP of TGL is looking for his first main championship. Augusta Nationwide and Horschel haven’t gotten alongside lately — his greatest end is a T17 again in 2016. Two worldwide wins in 2024 steered Horschel was nonetheless able to enjoying elite golf, and whereas his conventional golf type has not been glorious in 2025, it’s been adequate to suppose he can compete this main season. — Kellenberger
Efficiency final 5 tournaments
Greatest earlier Grasp end
T38 (2020)
Greatest earlier main end
T2 (’24 Open)
Strokes Gained
The bars under signify Billy Horschel’s % rank when in comparison with all 2024 Masters rivals.
36-40
United States
PGA Tour
(Illustration: Will Tullos / The Athletic; Photographs: Harry How, Richard Heathcote, Jonathan Bachman / Getty Pictures)