Masters 2024 – The top five players to watch

It’s here! Golf fans wash their hands. The happiest ones on the ground in Augusta, millions more on their TV screens. Thursday afternoon CET marks the start of golf’s biggest event of the year – The Masters 2024. It runs until Sunday, when a new champion will don the world’s most famous green jacket.

The starting field for the Masters Golf Tournament is extremely busy. The current top players, former winners and the greatest legends are all in attendance. Every one of the eighty-nine players in the starting field is hungry for a famous victory. Here are five of them to look forward to.

Scottie Scheffler

According to the bookies, the current world number one is the biggest favourite to win. Experts even say he’s the second biggest favourite since the unbeaten Tiger Woods ruled the green. Moreover, Scheffler already has one rich experience from the Masters, having beaten all his competitors in 2022.

No one else has dominated the golf courses in the last ten years like this 27-year-old. At the moment, he looks in killer form again. Last month, he won a major tournament, The Players Championship. Now Scottie Scheffler can consolidate his dominance with another big win.

Rory McIlroy

Perhaps no one goes into this year’s Masters with more pressure and desire to win than Rory McIlroy. One of the best players on the planet in the last decade is just one thing short of a career grand slam. He has come close so many times in Augusta, finishing second to Scheffler in 2022. So many times he’s lost in the final round at the Masters.

He’s got experience to spare, and again, it’s the setup of his head that will make the difference. The 34-year-old star from Northern Ireland is one of the favourites according to the oddsmakers. Either he finally achieves one big dream or he extends his eternal wait for another season. A large group of ready-made supporters would really like him to.

Joaquin Niemann

Niemann is a young and very promising golfer. However, he is one of those who left his PGA Tour career at the door and made his way to the competitive LIV Golf series. According to many, the 25-year-old Chilean is currently playing his best golf, having won two of the first three LIV tournaments this spring.

He has also played the Masters before, finishing tied for 16th last year. While he hasn’t earned any more world ranking points since joining the LIV, he has received an invitation from the Masters management that will allow him to play in the tournament. He will be one of those players who want to prove to the world that LIV players can match the world’s greatest.

Jon Rahm

Full name Jon Rahm Rodriguez is a twenty-nine year old Spanish seasoned pro at the peak of his powers. Experts say he’s the third favourite to win the title after Scheffler and McIlroy. Moreover, he will be defending last year’s triumph at the Masters, which may be the richest experience in the final tally. But no one since Tiger Woods in 2001 and 2002 has been able to defend this tournament.

Rahm shocked the golf world a bit a few months ago when he unexpectedly went to the rival LIV Golf series. That’s also why his qualities are in doubt this year. He hasn’t won at the LIV this year, but he has finished in the top 10 five times. Most recently in Miami, he finished in a tie for fourth place. Jon Rahm will probably bite again at this year’s Masters.

Tiger Woods

Every time this legend is on the start list, he causes a stir like no other. Tiger Woods is an absolute legend of the sport. Due to health problems and a serious car accident in February 2021, he is not one of the top favourites, but he said before the tournament: “If everything comes together, I can add one more title.” He has also won the Masters himself five times in the past, most recently in 2019.

He returns to Augusta National for the 26th time this year. No one else knows the ins and outs of a very specific course like he does. This year, he only played in one tournament, but withdrew after just 24 holes due to stomach problems. Insiders say he looks very fit at Augusta. A win for him would be a miracle. But the fact is, he’s still Tiger Woods.

Source: The Masters