Tomorrow, they tee it off at Augusta National for the Masters, widely considered to be the most prestigious event in professional golf, with its historic traditions, atmosphere, and pristine venue. The Masters is typically the largest handle golf tournament every year, as well.<\/p>\n
This year the build-up feels a little different, though. Tiger Woods isn\u2019t there \u2013 having taken himself out of the spotlight for the foreseeable future, after a car accident in March. Phil Mickelson isn\u2019t playing this weekend either, having pulled out a few weeks back because of a family illness.<\/p>\n
Both men are in their 50s now, and in Woods\u2019 case, his body has undergone multiple surgeries, so this should be expected. Maybe it\u2019s because they\u2019ve been so much a part of Masters\u2019 lore the past 25 years \u2013 Tigers has won five of these, Phil three \u2013 so it feels like something is missing, that we\u2019re almost backing into the weekend. Their personal narratives, and their storied personal rivalry, has a lot to do with it.<\/p>\n
Emotions aside, there are plenty of favourites for bettors to focus on. Does Rory McIlroy have it in him to repeat as champion, which, if he did, would make him the first golfer to pull that off since Woods did it in 2001 and 2002? Reported back problems the past few weeks has oddsmakers holding back.<\/p>\n
Does Scottie Scheffler, with almost cyborg-like efficiency on a golf course, and currently the Betway odds-on favourite to win the tournament (+500), overcome a recent slump (for him, anyway). Scheffler has won two Masters titles \u2013 2022 and 2024 and is a Top 10 finisher over the past four years. Scheffler hasn\u2019t posted a Top 5 finish since the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February.<\/p>\n
And what about the LIV Golf guys, in contention for this weekend? Bryson DeChambeau is right after Scheffler, at +1000, with Jon Rahm also at +1000. Rahm plays some of his best golf at Augusta \u2013 a Top 10 finisher five times since 2018. Rahm won the Masters in 2023. And then there\u2019s another former Masters champ, Patrick Reed, sitting at +2800.<\/p>\n
MONEY SHOT BEST BETS<\/strong><\/p>\n Scottie Scheffler <\/strong>+550<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n This is boring, I know, but people talking about Scheffler being in a little bit of a slump \u2013 understandably distracted in large part because he and his wife just had their second child this past weekend \u2013 likely motivates him to eviscerate the field even more. It\u2019s been a long time since anyone has dominated golf to the level Scheffler has.<\/p>\n Ranked No. 1 in the world, nothing seems to rattle Scheffler. And he\u2019s built for Augusta \u2013 with its lightning-fast, wildly contoured greens, slick and severely sloped. Scheffler is currently ninth in Putts Per Round (27.67). The course demands perfect positioning. Scheffler\u2019s ninth in GIR Percentage \u2013 71.30 per cent.<\/p>\n The Masters has the smallest field of the four men\u2019s major championships. Yes, Scheffler hasn\u2019t played in a month \u2013 finishing T22 at TPC Sawgrass on March 11, after a 24th at the Arnold Palmer March 4 \u2013 but I expect him back on top this weekend, charged up after the birth of his son.<\/p>\n Xander Schauffele <\/strong>+1200<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n I am taking Schauffele as well. The Californian has the skillset to win at Augusta (five top 10s in the past seven years, starting with that T2 in 2019, the year Woods last won), with his play of late rounding into form nicely (24th at Bay Hill, 3rd at TPC Sawgrass, T4 at the Valspar Championship).<\/p>\n