Masters Tournament 2025 (*** NO LIV DISCUSSIONS ***)

[MattyO1984]

Ladies and gentleman, it is almost here!! It has been a long 9 months since Xander Schauffele knocked in the winning putt in the last men's major event played and an even longer 12 months since Scottie Scheffler donned the Green Jacket for the second time as winner of the Masters. The world of golf rarely stays still for any length of time and whilst the last 12 months have been less tumultuous than the 12 or 24 months that preceded them it is fair to say that landscape in men's professional golf is still a confusing and changing one. From one week to the next we are prevented from seeing the best of the best competing against one another however for one week, we can check that baggage with the Guards at the entrance to Magnolia Lane and enjoy "a tradition, unlike any other".

 

Augusta National enjoys a unique place in the world of golf - as much as this change, they always seem to stay the same. There are changes of some description every year. Whether it a tweak to a green here, some added length there, a new driving range or a press building, the Green Jackets always have something up their sleeve. Somehow, in-spite of the ever present evolution around the grounds, every change still seems to retain that sense of familiarity. Returning every year of course plays a big part in that however the manner in which everything is presented by the Club, a reserved class, provides us with the viewing equivalent of a warm blanket. We can wrap ourselves up in the coverage, forget about our woes and enjoy another wonderful week. For me, the only downside of Masters week is when the final putt drops and the reality that we have another 51 weeks to wait for that feeling again sets in (and that is me stuck watching on TV).

 

Many of the players returning to Georgia this week are doing so with positive memories in the bank from recent and not so recent past performances. Chief amongst them is Scottie Scheffler. The two time Masters winner and World #1 has endured an unusual three or four months. A freak injury seemed to derail somewhat his relentless pursuit of greatness however, after biding his time he came close to winning for the first time this year with his second place finish in Houston. Scottie will be looking to stake his claim as the best since Tiger by emulating Tiger in going back to back to win his 2nd and 3rd Masters wins. The man closest on his heels in the World Rankings is also another who would wish to emulate TW. Tiger along with Sarazen, Hogan, Nicklaus and Player are the only players in this grand old game to claim the career grand slam. Rory McIlroy has the chance (again) to add his name to that list of lists. His play this year has Scheffler looking in his rear view mirror. He has some good results around ANGC and while he may divide opinion a little more than he used to, there would surely be little more popular winners should Rory finally get a win in his 17th go around. Of course, there are numerous others who will be well placed to stop the top 2. Xander Scuaffele has claimed 2 of the last 3 majors. Ludvig Aberg came so close to picking up a win here last year. Mastuyama is a previous winner. Collin Morikawa seems closer to the golfer he was in 2020/21 than he did in the past couple of years. Justin Thomas too seems to have gotten back into the groove of being JT after a couple of down years. Then what of the LIV golfers? Bryson would seem to lead the pack and has previously declared Augusta National as a Par 67 for him. That bravado seems to haunt him every time he returns to Augusta but last year he seemed to be able to bury many of his demons and he will look to consign another one to history with a win this year. The combustible pair of Jon Rahm and Tyrell Hatton will also fancy their chances. Rahm of course a past winner and Hatton is the sort of player than seems to relish a challenge of a tough golf course (whether the viewers enjoy Hatton's challenging behaviour is another matter). Then of course there is Brooks Koepka, the man with the most majors in a post Tiger world. He has had a strange career - heavy in major wins, light in regular wins but you can guarantee that he will fight tooth and nail to keep himself ahead of Rory as this generations biggest major winner. 

 

It should be a great week! Grab the pimento cheese sandwiches, fix yourself an Azalea cocktail, sit down, enjoy and make the most of it. 

 

Defending Champion:-

Scottie Scheffler

 

 

Notables in the Field:-

Rory McIlory

Xander Schaffele

Collin Morikawa

Ludvig Aberg

Hideki Matsuyama

Russell Henley

Viktor Hovland

Justin Thomas

Wyndham Clark

Tommy Fleetwood

Shane Lowry

Sepp Strake

Keegan Bradley

Patrick Cantlay

Maverick McNealy

Robert MacIntyre

Tyrell Hatton

Bryson DeChambeau

Billy Horschel

Corey Conners 

Min Woo Lee

Akshay Bhatia

Sunjae Im

Sahith Theegala

Jordan Spieth

Adam Scott

Tony Finau

Jason Day

Jon Rahm

Cameron Smith

Brooks Koepka

 

Course:-

Augusta National Golf Club

Par 72

7,555 yards

 

 

 

[Hawkeye77]

ANWA starts today! DC&P will be the annual best Sunday morning show in a few days! 

[iBanesto]

40th anniversary of Bernhard Langer's 1985 Masters win.

 

🇩🇪

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 2 by iBanesto

[chillybilly]

Interesting stuff from Geoff Shackelford today. 

https://quadrilateral.substack.com/p/masters-media-menu

 

At the risk of linking AND excerpting...

 

-It sounds as if the CBS TV crew keeps getting smaller with retirements etc. while the streaming side (ie ANGC's own crew) grows each year. Frank Nobilo is moving to the 16th ie Verne Lundquist's old patch while still covering the 11th (presumably via TV monitor). I've been a fan of Frank's since he was playing and rue his near-miss at the US Open but to some extent I question this move. As Geoff points out, Nobilo had a great view of Amen Corner and described action on (parts of) 3 holes including the pivotal 12th.

 

The 16th has been pivotal in the past. Nicklaus hit a magnificent clutch shot to make birdie and Woods' chip-in is the preposterous stuff of dreams. But has it been as pivotal as the 12th or 13th? Challenging as they may be, holes #16-18 at Augusta don't have the fear factor of #11-13. The leader(s) can play it safe. The challenge of #16 isn't really the water and/or wind as it is on #12, it's mostly about pin placement and landing it in the correct spot on a relatively large green.

 

As a Nobilo enthusiast I still must ask: does the suave, cool Kiwi have the capacity to be anything but suave and cool should something dramatic occur at 16? To be fair the Woods shot justified the usually calm Lundquist in losing his mind but still...

 

-Any circumstance that reduces the presence of Mike Tirico is a blessing. He is Marmite - some love, some hate - but I have long found his unctuous act...unctuous and he's been wildly overused as a presenter/announcer for everything from the Olympics to hermit crab races.

[Hawkeye77]

35 minutes ago, chillybilly said:

Interesting stuff from Geoff Shackelford today. 

https://quadrilateral.substack.com/p/masters-media-menu

 

At the risk of linking AND excerpting...

 

-It sounds as if the CBS TV crew keeps getting smaller with retirements etc. while the streaming side (ie ANGC's own crew) grows each year. Frank Nobilo is moving to the 16th ie Verne Lundquist's old patch while still covering the 11th (presumably via TV monitor). I've been a fan of Frank's since he was playing and rue his near-miss at the US Open but to some extent I question this move. As Geoff points out, Nobilo had a great view of Amen Corner and described action on (parts of) 3 holes including the pivotal 12th.

 

The 16th has been pivotal in the past. Nicklaus hit a magnificent clutch shot to make birdie and Woods' chip-in is the preposterous stuff of dreams. But has it been as pivotal as the 12th or 13th? Challenging as they may be, holes #16-18 at Augusta don't have the fear factor of #11-13. The leader(s) can play it safe. The challenge of #16 isn't really the water and/or wind as it is on #12, it's mostly about pin placement and landing it in the correct spot on a relatively large green.

 

As a Nobilo enthusiast I still must ask: does the suave, cool Kiwi have the capacity to be anything but suave and cool should something dramatic occur at 16? To be fair the Woods shot justified the usually calm Lundquist in losing his mind but still...

 

-Any circumstance that reduces the presence of Mike Tirico is a blessing. He is Marmite - some love, some hate - but I have long found his unctuous act...unctuous and he's been wildly overused as a presenter/announcer for everything from the Olympics to hermit crab races.

 

He managed to get wrong the coverage for ANWA and DCP. That info was up on the Masters website on Monday and on Tuesday he said GC/NBC hadn't announced plans for coverage which wasn't accurate at all.  Kind of a silly mistake.  Mentioning in case anyone reads the article and thinks it wasn't announced or wondering where to look.

 

Masters website one of the best in the business - good place for info Geoff.  

[onthebogeytrain]

With my favorite player (Rickie) not in the field I am going all in pulling for Rory. I'm sure this will work out very well for me.

[jdl]

 

 

[bcjim]

3 hours ago, Hawkeye77 said:

ANWA starts today! DC&P will be the annual best Sunday morning show in a few days! 

Be honest,  I'm only interested in the actual tournament.  Th-Sun. And I'm really interested in that.  Par3 contests and a bunch of gals I've never heard of... not for me.  If it was an lpga event,  that would be interesting. 

[Pops99]

Great thread as always, Matty.

 

And you absolutely sum up my feelings with this line here: "For me, the only downside of Masters week is when the final putt drops and the reality that we have another 51 weeks to wait for that feeling again sets in"

 

That post-Masters depression is real. 

[Zjhl2024]

notables that's not on the field?

 

i know rickie is one

[StoutKing]

Love it Matty.  Let's go!

[Titleist99]

2 hours ago, jdl said:

 

 

 

This is the guy that must be stopped. Xander has to step up again. 🤣

[bcjim]

The Masters has really gone from following the old axiom of "leave people wanting more,  not less" to just turning the firehose on people. 

 

I think it's a questionable strategy. 

[Peak]

I have a feeling it’s going to be Collin who adds another major to his resume. Strong start to the year and not the one with the most outside pressure.

 

Speaking of outside pressure, I’d love to see Rory finally get his jacket but I’ll remain calm until he shows good form at Augusta. Beginning of the season has been great, but this means more.

 

Scheffler could very well win it again but he’s not quite as strong as last time.

 

Last one I have a feeling could be putting on the jacket is Bryson. Would pick any of the other three before him by quite some margin though.

[kwcsports]

6 minutes ago, Peak said:

I have a feeling it’s going to be Collin who adds another major to his resume. Strong start to the year and not the one with the most outside pressure.

 

Speaking of outside pressure, I’d love to see Rory finally get his jacket but I’ll remain calm until he shows good form at Augusta. Beginning of the season has been great, but this means more.

 

Scheffler could very well win it again but he’s not quite as strong as last time.

 

Last one I have a feeling could be putting on the jacket is Bryson. Would pick any of the other three before him by quite some margin though.

I like Colin but his on/off putting will hurt him on this greens IMO. 

[Duct Tape]

Superb intro MattyO. 
 

Like Pavlov’s dogs you’ve got me salivating for my favorite sports event a week early. Can’t stand the excitement. 
 

 

[PARETO]

I don’t understand how Xmas time gets all its own Hallmark movies, baking shows and holiday music - yet The Masters gets none of that. We all know The Masters is the most wonderful time of the year. I’m giddy. 

[PARETO]

16 hours ago, iBanesto said:

40th anniversary of Bernhard Langer's 1985 Masters win.

 

🇩🇪

 

 

 

 

 

That photo of Seve and Langer oooooozes class. Legends. 

[MattyO1984]

4 hours ago, PARETO said:

I don’t understand how Xmas time gets all its own Hallmark movies, baking shows and holiday music - yet The Masters gets none of that. We all know The Masters is the most wonderful time of the year. I’m giddy. 

 

This monstrosity is the closest we have gotten!! 😂

 

 

[chillybilly]

Strangely premature heat wave arriving this weekend - the ladies will be sweating it out on the hilly terrain both Fri and Sat.

 

More Masters-like temps return thereafter. I suppose if they must have rain then Sun and Mon Apr 6-7 would be the days to have it.

 

Forecasts are educated guesses especially a week out...tournament Thu looks ideal, Fri looks ominous, Sat & Sun possible showers but nothing sustained.

 

The conventional wisdom is that ANGC run The Masters their way on their timetable but there is also no doubt that CBS are obsessed with concluding on Sunday by 7 - they remain convinced that 60 Minutes is some cultural institution despite no one under age 60 watching or knowing anyone who watches it.

 

Both the club and the network are damned lucky the players' zeal for green jacket immortality means they will put up with a choppy schedule and the potential grind of walking a steep, saturated course twice in a day.

 

In the unlikeliest event that play carries over to Mon it will be a sparkling day.

 

 

 

 

 

[hammersia]

3 hours ago, MattyO1984 said:

 

This monstrosity is the closest we have gotten!! 😂

 

 

Can't see why any true golf fan would have the slightest issue with the hyper realism of this film.

 

The creek and wooden bridge that I'm sure you all remember used to be in front of the 9th green. 

The patrons on the fringes of the greens creating that extra tense atmosphere, no ropes required.

 

You can practically smell the magnolias through the screen. 

 

 

[MattyO1984]

2 minutes ago, hammersia said:

Can't see why any true golf fan would have the slightest issue with the hyper realism of this film.

 

The creek and wooden bridge that I'm sure you all remember used to be in front of the 9th green. 

The patrons on the fringes of the greens creating that extra tense atmosphere, no ropes required.

 

You can practically smell the magnolias through the screen. 

 

 

 

The star of the show is the actor playing Colin Montgomerie. Shocking omission when it came to awards season.

[chillybilly]

This is risking heresy but Dan Jenkins often rubbed me the wrong way not least in Dan Jenkins' high opinion of Dan Jenkins.

 

The books were/are entertaining but they and much of the golf writing had a bit of a tryhard factor with the forced folksiness. But when you're sitting next to a hack from the Akron Beacon Journal who's a slave to 'AP Style' in the press tent it's easier to stand out among one's peers. 

 

I reject in letter and spirit 'The Masters doesn't begin until the back nine on Sunday.'

-It's a cliche

-With the changes in the course - and the players' strategy and mindset - it's more untrue than true. Any player with a lead of even a single stroke isn't taking any chances. And making up ground - even a single stroke - is more difficult than ever.

-Dismissing 7/8 of any tournament is facile, silly. Especially a major and especially The Masters.

[Hawkeye77]

20 minutes ago, MattyO1984 said:

 

The star of the show is the actor playing Colin Montgomerie. Shocking omission when it came to awards season.

Robin Williams’ Golden Globe for Mrs. Doubtfire was deemed close enough. 

[Duct Tape]

4 hours ago, MattyO1984 said:

 

This monstrosity is the closest we have gotten!! 😂

 

 

Okay Matty,  can I have back the 30 minutes of my life spent skimming through that tripe?

 

Jeez, how many ways can you say awful?  

[JungleJimbo]

 

 

[JungleJimbo]

9 hours ago, Duct Tape said:

Superb intro MattyO. 
 

Like Pavlov’s dogs you’ve got me salivating for my favorite sports event a week early. Can’t stand the excitement. 
 

 

 

@Duct Tape : then you're in luck i.e. you can watch a week early!

 

 

[PickSicks]

Rory getting the final leg of a career grand slam would be nice.

 

Scottie winning three out of the last 4 would be epic.

 

I am all for first time masters winners as long as its not some type of jackleg (willett) 😂

[PickSicks]

 

If this doesnt make you cry, you dont like golf 

Edited April 3 by PickSicks

[JungleJimbo]

Does anyone else think this POV from Gary Player = colored by previous history e.g. his son being banned? 

https://www.golfwrx.com/651890/gary-players-son-banned-from-the-masters-for-perceived-guerrilla-marketing/ 

 

 

Edited April 3 by JungleJimbo