25. Phil Mickelson
When, or really if, the Masters is played, Lefty will 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.
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24. Francesco Molinari
The 2018 winner of the Open Championship, Molinari is usually one to watch when it comes to major events. That should be the case at Augusta, where the Italian finished tied for fifth in 2019. Molinari is a confident golfer, who does not seem to let the big stage pressure his game.
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23. Henrik Stenson
Now, Stenson might not be on a lot of radars when it comes to winning the Masters, but he’s a proven player with a strong track record at major tournaments. The winner of the 2016 Open Championship, Stenson has placed in the top-10 in at least one major in five of the last seven seasons. His best finish at Augusta was a T5 in 2018.
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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. He tied for third at last year’s PGA Championship, but there are still plenty of issues with Spieth’s game – both mentally and physically.
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21. Bubba Watson
A two-time Masters champion (2012, 2014), Watson usually draws pretty decent odds to be competitive at Augusta. It’s obviously a special place for him, and how well he’s playing entering the event tends not to have much baring on how he will show at the Masters. In 2018, Watson tied for fifth and was T12 in 2019.
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20. Louis Oosthuizen
Oosthuizen is apparently dealing with a shoulder injury, so it’s possible his Masters’ status will be in doubt – depending when, or if, the tournament is actually played. 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 42-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.
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18. Matt Kuchar
Like Casey, Kuchar is in his 40s and still waiting on that first major title. While at the moment he’s not quite playing to the level he’s enjoyed in recent seasons (a victory each in 2018 and 2019), the passion burning inside Kuchar to win a major burns bright. In 10 career starts at Augusta, Kuchar has four top 10s and five inside the top-15.
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17. Hideki Matsuyama
Before the Players Championship was canceled due to COVID-19, Matsuyama fired a 9-under-63 – for a course record during the only round played at the event. 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.
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16. Rickie Fowler
For some time now, Fowler has been branded the best golfer never to win a major. It’s a label that might be weighing on the 31-year old. However, if there is one place where Fowler might make a major breakthrough, it’s at Augusta. Fowler finished second there in 2018 and tied for ninth at the 2019 Masters.
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15. 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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14. Tommy Fleetwood
The Englishman is on the radar of plenty of pundits when it comes to being a Masters favorite. 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 made just one cut (T36 in 2019) in three starts there.
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13. Bryson DeChambeau
DeChambeau remains sort of a golf enigma. He seems to have the makings of a major champion – the talent, preparation and intelligence. However, the mental part of his game is still in question – along with his putting. He has yet to place in the top-10 at any major, but could this be the year that all changes?
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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 eight top-10 major finishes. Rose posted three top 10s at the Masters from 2015-17.
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11. Patrick Cantlay
A sexy Masters pick, Cantlay is another one of the fine young golfers currently tearing it up on the PGA Tour. Fourth on the Tour money list in 2019, Cantlay has the potential for a breakout season after winning a tournament in each of his previous two campaigns. He also turned heads last season with a tie for ninth at the Masters and a T3 at the PGA Championship.
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10. Tiger Woods
When, or if, the Masters is played this year, 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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9. 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. Expect Finau to be among the leaders at some point if the Masters is to be played in 2020.
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8. Adam Scott
The 2013 Masters champion, Scott is still looking for his first major triumph since sporting the Green Jacket. In his last five 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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7. 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’s last two major performances from 2019 were rather forgetful, so it will be interesting to see how he fares once things start up again in 2020.
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6. Justin Thomas
At the moment, Thomas is the PGA Tour’s money leader with more than $3.8 million in the bank in 2019, thanks to two victories. 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.
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5. 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 is playing well at the moment. Fourth on the PGA Tour Money List, the 2018 Masters champion has finished in the top-10 in half of his tournament starts already this season.
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4. 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 four majors over the past two seasons, so a victory in these such events seems like only a matter of time.
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3. 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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2. Brooks Koepka
Koepka, reportedly, is not blaming recent knee surgery for his early struggles in 2020 (no top 25s, missed cut in three starts this calendar year) on recent knee surgery. However, his swing could use some improvement, so perhaps the downtime due to the COVID-19 pandemic will provide Koepka with an opportunity to fine-tune some things. He tied for second at Augusta in 2019, and should be ready for the challenge if there’s an opportunity in 2020.
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1. Rory McIlroy
He’s the world’s No. 1 golfer and needs a win at Augusta to complete a career grand slam. Before his T21 last season, McIlroy placed inside the top-10 at each of the previous five Masters. Also, McIlroy has not won a major since 2014, so there is plenty of incentive and motivation for him to play well and be in contention at Augusta – whenever that may be.
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