25. Phil Mickelson
Lefty will again try to prove he still can be competitive in a major tournament environment. Mickelson’s a three-time Masters winner, but has not finished better than a tie for 18th in his last four trips to Augusta. Not to mention, his last top-10 at any major came in 2016. Mickelson could be a sentimental favorite, but a longshot nonetheless.
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24. Tommy Fleetwood
The Englishman is on the radar of plenty of pundits when it comes to being one of the up-and-comers ready to capture his first major. Fleetwood has twice finished inside the top-5 at the U.S. Open, and was second at last year’s Open Championship. Augusta has been a different story for Fleetwood, who has not placed better than a tie for 17th in his three starts there.
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23. Rickie Fowler
For some time now, Fowler has been branded as the best golfer never to win a major. It’s a label that might be weighing on the 31-year old who has 5 wins on the PGA Tour. However, if there is one place where Fowler might make a major breakthrough, it’s at Augusta. Fowler finished second in 2018 and tied for ninth last year at Augusta. He also earned a tie for 5th in 2014.
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22. Jordan Spieth
One of the biggest golf mysteries at the moment is still the plight of Spieth. At the tail end of the 2017 season, we were talking about Spieth’s likelihood of attaining his career grand slam. Well, he’s still on that quest, though he hasn’t won an event since the ’17 Open Championship. This year, he tied for 71st at the PGA Championship and missed the cut at the U.S. Open, but with top-3 finishes in four of his six career Masters appearances, he can’t be counted out.
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21. Adam Scott
The 2013 Masters champion, Scott is still looking for his first major triumph since sporting the Green Jacket. In his last six starts at majors, Scott finished in the top-10 on three occasions. However, his last top-10 at Augusta came in 2017 (T9). Still, Scott is one golfer never to rule out when it comes to being competitive in a big-time environment.
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20. Louis Oosthuizen
Oosthuizen has dealt with a shoulder injury this season, but he did manage to finish third at the U.S. Open after tying for 33rd at the PGA Championship. The former Open Championship winner is another veteran who tends to find his way at or near the top of leaderboards at major events. So, he’s always one to watch.
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19. Paul Casey
At 43-years-old, Casey is still searching for his first major championship. Yet, he’s also played some of the best golf of his career in recent seasons. Before missing the cut at the 2019 Masters, Casey finished within the top-6 at the event in three of his previous four starts. He should have some incentive to get another run like that going this year after earning a T2 at the 2020 PGA Championship.
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18. Tiger Woods
All eyes will be on Tiger. Eyeing a 16th major championship, Woods proved, at least for one weekend last season, that he could still tame a major course by posting an emotional fifth Masters victory. Things were much tougher for Tiger after that victory, but Augusta is a special place to him, and he’s still one victory shy of claiming the PGA Tour record (83) all to himself.
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17. Hideki Matsuyama
Matsuyama is another golfer who is usually competitive in majors, but still aiming for his first victory of the kind. From 2015-18, Matsuyama twice finished in the top-10 at the Masters and within the top-20 two other times. This season, the Japanese star tied for 22nd at the PGA Championship and recorded a T17 at the U.S. Open.
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16. Webb Simpson
Simpson’s only major win came at the 2012 U.S. Open, but he’s still been a quality golfer ever since that accomplishment. An excellent ball-striker, Simpson also knows how to manage his way around a tough course. That was the case at last year’s Masters when he finished tied for fifth.
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15. Tony Finau
We’re still waiting for Finau’s major moment of glory to come. Yet, he’s one of those relatively young PGA Tour stars many believe is truly on the verge of winning a major for the first time. At Augusta, Finau has been close. He tied for 10th in 2018 and was T5 in 2019 – by the way, those are the only two times he’s played the event.
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14. Patrick Cantlay
A sexy Masters pick, Cantlay is another one of the fine young golfers currently tearing it up on the PGA Tour. Cantlay has the potential for a breakout season having won tournaments in three straight campaigns. He also turned heads last season with a tie for ninth at the Masters. Although his last two major appearances were tied for 43rd finishes at the PGA Championship and U.S. Open, he is coming off a victory at the Zozo Championship and is riding plenty of momentum.
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13. Daniel Berger
Berger currently sits inside the top-15 in the World Golf Ranking. So, we know he can play. He’s been a solid performer in recent years and has the kind of game to contend at Augusta, no matter what time of year the event is staged. He’s played the Masters three times – last coming in 2018 — and his best finish is a tie for 10th in 2016.
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12. Justin Rose
Rose is no longer among the best golfers on the planet – at least not within the top-5 of the World Golf Ranking. However, he’s still too good not to be a factor at Augusta in 2020. Rose’s lone major victory came at the 2013 U.S. Open, and since then he’s recorded nine top-10 major finishes. Rose posted three top 10s at the Masters from 2015-17.
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11. Tyrrell Hatton
The Englishman can still let frustration get the best of him on the course, but nobody will doubt his talent. He has five major finishes inside the top-10 in his career. That said, Hatton’s never placed better than T44 in three starts at the Masters. He also missed the cut at the first two majors of 2020, but we still think he has a chance here.
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10. Matthew Wolff
Plenty of eyes should be on Wolff during Masters weekend. Why? Because the youngster’s major career is off to a rousing start. Wolff, who won his first PGA Tournament shortly after turning pro in 2019, finished tied for fourth at the 2020 PGA Championship. If that wasn’t impressive enough, Wolff placed second at the U.S. Open this year.
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9. Brooks Koepka
Koepka, reportedly, is not blaming recent knee surgery for his struggles in 2020. However, his swing could use some improvement. He tied for second at Augusta in 2019, and one would think the four-time major winner will be ready even though he did not take part in the U.S. Open. Koepka did tie for 29th at the PGA Championship this year.
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8. Xander Schauffele
A trendy pick to claim his first major championship, Schauffele is a fan and media favorite. He certainly has the game to win at Augusta, where he tied for second last season in just his second career start there. In fact, Schauffele has finished in the top-10 at seven majors over his four seasons, so a victory in these such events seems like only a matter of time.
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7. Collin Morikawa
Another young golfer who should get plenty of attention during Masters week. Morikawa is the reigning PGA Championship title holder, winning the event in only his second major start. Now, Morikawa failed to make the cut at this year’s U.S. Open, but there are plenty eager to see how he handles the famed Augusta track for the first time in his young career.
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6. Jon Rahm
Much like Schauffele, Rahm is on that list of players set to win their first major. The Spaniard is the No. 2 ranked player in the world and finished fourth at the Masters in 2018 and T9 last season. Rahm also seems more determined than ever to capture that first major, and he’s put in the work, both mentally and physically, to get it done.
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5. Dustin Johnson
DJ has had his moments at Augusta, with four top-10 finishes in his last four starts. He tied for second last season when it looked like he might finally get over the Masters hump. Johnson, the top-ranked player in the world, has also been quite good on the major scene in 2020. He tied for second at the PGA Championship and finished tied for sixth at the U.S. Open.
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4. Patrick Reed
Say what one will about Reed’s antics, ethics and his shooting-from-hip attitude, but he’s actually a pretty sound golfer who should be in contention for this year’s Augusta installment. Reed won the Masters in 2018 for his only major title, but tied for 36th in 2019. During the two major tournaments this year, Reed tied for 13th in both.
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3. Bryson DeChambeau
The buff DeChambeau, who has the body of a linebacker and the mind of a statistician, is a major champion. He earned that moniker following his impressive run at the U.S. Open. Oh yeah, DeChambeau also tied for fourth at the PGA Championship in 2020. Prior to 2020, DeChambeau had not finished in the top-10 in any of his major starts.
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2. Justin Thomas
Thomas is the third-ranked golfer in the world and perennial major contender every time he tees up the ball. It’s still a bit of a surprise that Thomas only has one major victory to his name (the 2017 PGA Championship). Thomas’ best Masters finish came last season with a tie for 12th. That was his fourth start in the event. If his recent play is any indication, he should be in the hunt come Sunday.
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1. Rory McIlroy
Rory’s 2020 was not nearly as successful as 2019, but he is ranked No. 5 in the world heading into the final week of October. Before his T21 last season, McIlroy placed inside the top-10 at each of the previous five Masters. McIlroy has not won a major since 2014, and considering the fact that he is a green jacket away from the ever-elusive career grand slam, he will be competing with plenty of motivation.
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