The Masters preview: Key holes and the best two-balls to pick from
Jordan Spieth, right, holds his son Sammy's hand as he gives five to Justin Thomas, left, during the par-3 contest at the Masters golf tournament, Wednesday, April 9, 2025, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Until balls are in the air on Thursday, all eyes are on the world Nos. 1 and 2 who are the favourites.
McIlroy has displayed the best pre-Masters form with two prominent PGA Tour wins including the Players when he won even without his A-game. He has the weight of history – his own at Augusta and what he can make by winning – on his shoulders, but his chances may never be better than this week.
Scheffler has deliberately improved since a self-inflicted holiday hand injury slowed his dominance, but he looked closer to his 2024 self in a runner-up two weeks ago in Houston.
Only three players – Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods – have ever repeated at Augusta, but Scheffler is immensely capable of joining them.
It is the rarest of occasions when the green jacket is donned by a player not ranked among the top-30 in the OWGR.
The math is changed a little with LIV Golf not earning official points leaving its players to plummet. As recent past champs, Rahm and Reed have the tools and experience to win again at Augusta. No. 116 Reed is in sneaky good form to shatter the record for highest ranked Masters winner. No. 80 Rahm is poised to bury a disappointing defense last year.
The most likely LIV guys to crash the Masters Champions Dinner are No. 19 Bryson DeChambeau and No. 89 Joaquin Niemann.
It’s a funny game when players ranked Nos. 7 and 14 in the world would be considered longer shots, but a pair of Georgia-raised and schooled players are just that according to oddsmakers.
Last month’s Arnold Palmer Invitational marked Henley’s fifth career PGA Tour win. He’s made seven consecutive cuts in eight career Masters starts, including a T4 in 2023.
He’s no stranger to major leaderboards. Straka, too, has won already this year at the American Express.
The native Austrian who spent his teenage and collegiate years in Georgia never missed the cut in three Masters starts, his best a T16 finish last year. He was runner-up in the 2023 Open at Hoylake.
Shane Lowry believes that a Masters can be won or lost on a handful of critical holes where its essential to handle proficiently.
“There’s a few key holes out here,” Lowry said. “Obviously, the tough par-4s and the par-5s. If you play No. 1, No. 5, 11 and 12, if you play those holes well and play the four par-5s well, you’re going to have a chance to win the Masters.”
The 445-yard uphill opener (Tea Olive) can make or break a day at the start. Several dangerous pin locations on the undulating green require just getting out with a par, while hollow on the right offers a rare birdie chance.
The 495-yard uphill dogleg left fifth (Magnolia) requires a 313-yard carry to cover the deep corner fairway bunker, so more often players lay back to a longer approach into a one of the most uniquely sloped greens.
The 520-yard downhill dogleg right 11th (Dogwood) that begins Amen Corner lost some of the planted trees down the right side and behind the green. The pond on the left side has doomed many Masters hopes.
The beguiling little 155-yard Golden Bell – the shortest hole at Augusta National and the only one that’s never substantially changed since it was first built – its arguably the most famous hole on the course and a frequent protagonist in Masters lore.
Many dreams have drown in Rae’s Creek that runs across the front of the green. It remains to be seen how the famous swirling winds that torment anything from 9- to 6-iron will be considering the considerable tall trees that were lost on the hill behind the green when Hurricane Helene came through last September.
Said Lowry: “I’ll take four pars here on the 12th this week. I don’t need any hole-in-ones.”
The four-some provide ample opportunities for players to collect crystal for eagles while providing enough trouble to derail a round. No. 2 (Pink Dogwood) has the famous “Delta ticket office” in a ditch down the left side of the dogleg in the trees where Masters dreams go to die.
Not making birdie here feels like a missed opportunity. The uphill No. 8 (Yellow Jasmine) is the only hole that ranks easier than the second, with no real hazards except mounds left of the green. The back-nine pair – No. 13 (Azalea) and No. 15 (Firethorn) – are risk-reward dazzlers.
The 13th was lengthened last year, but whatever affect that had was hard to tell because stern winds skewed any data. Word is the front of 15 has been softened a touch to maybe be less penal for balls trickling back to the pond.
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