- Paul Casey clubhouse leader after opening-round 65
- First round yet to be completed after rain delay
- Defending champion Tiger Woods shoots 68
- Official leaderboard | Fleetwood’s hole-by-hole guide
That’s your lot for today, then. Tomorrow will be a long one, as there are plenty of first rounds not yet completed. The organisers will be confident of catching up ahead of the weekend, though, with the weather no longer an issue. Hope you’ll join us again for that! Nighty night.
-7: Casey (F)
-5: Simpson (F), Schauffele (F), Thomas (10)
-4: Matsuyama (F), Westwood (F), Oosthuizen (F), Reed (F), Woods (F), Wolff (11*), Scott (10), Frittelli (9*)
-3: Janewattananond (F), Rahm (F), Wallace (F), Fowler (11), Langer (10*), D Johnson (9), Rose (9)
Justin Rose opts to finish the hole he’s on – and what a decision! He clips his second at 9 pin high to 18 feet, then rolls unerringly into the cup for birdie. Having looked all but certain to drop back to -1 a few minutes ago, he’s now hitting the turn in three-under 33 and smiling very broadly indeed!
And it’s another birdie for Woolf. Two fuss-free putts on the par-five 2nd, and he rises to -4. This is his first competitive round at Augusta National! At which point the klaxon goes for the end of the day’s play. Everyone gets the opportunity to finish their hole if they so desire. But plenty of players are marking their balls and wandering back home.
Another birdie for Justin Thomas, the latest at the very tricky 10th. He’ll be wishing the sun could hang in the sky for a couple of hours more. He’s up to -5, and looks bang in form for that elusive second major.
Rose drains his downhill putt for par! That is a quite stunning escape after a hook, a blade and a chunk. The triple whammy! One of the silliest pars ever made in the history of golf, and quite magnificent. Rose walks off with a huge smile on his face, raising a fist of triumph in the self-deprecating comic style. It keeps him at -2, and you never know how important that will be come the end of the week. So what have Scotland and Justin Rose taught us? Never give up, kids, that’s what.
Scotland’s men have qualified for a major football championship for the first time since 1998. It’s got the square root of bugger all to do with the golf, but just thought it worthy of mention. That should cheer up Sandy Lyle after his opening round of 78. Yes.
Related: Serbia v Scotland: Euro 2020 play-off goes to penalty shootout – live!
It continues. Having knifed one through the green one way, Rose duffs the one coming back. He’s left with a 30-foot par putt on one of the easiest holes on the course, ranked 15th, averaging 4.67. Meanwhile his playing partner Cameron Champ has turned around a slow start with birdies at 4, 6 and now 8. He’s -2.
Rose is making a five-course meal of the par-five 8th. He hooks his second into the pine straw down the left … then thins his wedge straight through the green in the amateur style. One to make hackers everywhere feel a little less hapless. Hey, if it can happen to a former world number one…
News of Bubba, who was going well the last we heard. Well, no longer. Bogeys at 16 and 17 were followed by a double at 18, the result of failure to get out of the bunker on the right. He’s back to +2, and one of this week’s more leftfield tips looks a little more unlikely now.
Mickelson’s second into 10 topples down the left bank. He chips up to six feet, then nearly sinks to his knees as his par putt half-disappears into the hole only to pop back out. He slips to -1.
Something happens for McIlroy at long last. Two big booms down the par-five 8th and he’s on in two. His eagle putt, from 30 feet, never looks like dropping, but it stops close enough for birdie to be a certainty. He’s back to level par.
Another birdie for Adam Scott, who rakes a 25-footer across 9 and turns in 32! Shame the daylight is running out in double-quick time, because a few of the chaps out there could otherwise be bothering the top of the leader board soon. Tomorrow morning, perhaps.
-7: Casey (F)
-5: Simpson (F), Schauffele (F)
-4: Matsuyama (F), Westwood (F), Oosthuizen (F), Reed (F), Woods (F), Scott (9), Thomas (8), Frittelli (7*)
Justin Thomas bounces back from his dropped shot at 7 with birdie at 8. He very nearly eagled but his chip clocked the flagstick and stayed up. He’s -4 again. Meanwhile some belated news of 2017 runner-up Justin Rose, who started with bogey but has made a Mickelsonesque comeback: birdies at 2, 5 and 6. He’s -2. There are a lot of players who will fancy their chances right now.
Phil Mickelson would become the first fiftysomething to win a major if he prevailed this week. When he lamely bogeyed 1, you wouldn’t have put too much money on it. But birdies at 2, 6 and now 9, the latest the result of a 132-yard flop to kick-in distance, brings him up to -2. I mean, he almost certainly won’t do it. He can’t do it, surely. He can’t. He could, though. He could do it. Imagine if he did it!
McIlroy’s short game is so erratic. On 7, he wedges from 96 yards to four feet. It’s a simple-enough putt for a much-needed birdie, but he shoves it to the right and remains at +1. Meanwhile the 30-year-old South African Dylan Frittelli, who put in a decent performance at the recent PGA, is on the move. An eagle at 13, birdies at 14 and 15, and now a quite wondrous tee shot at the par-three 16th, his ball landing to the right of the flag and gently rolling down and … not quite in, though it looked like a hole-in-one for a split second. It stops the width of a dimple short, but he’s more than happy with yet another birdie, and he’s -4 through his first seven holes.
Earlier today, the 62-year-old Larry Mize shot a glorious two-under 70. Now it’s the turn of the 63-year-old Bernard Langer to show the young ones a thing or two. Having birdied 15, he lands a 6-iron gently on the 16th green, allowing the camber to take his ball round to five feet. That’ll move him to -2. Speaking of former champions, Danny Willett has hit the turn in level-par 36.
Rickie Fowler, woefully out of form of late, appears to have hit a rich vein. He’s birdied 2, 4 and now 9 to turn in 33: he’s -3, and if he goes on to win this, good luck finding a more popular victor. Ah hold on, here comes the equally affable 2013 champ Adam Scott, who has picked up strokes at 2, 3 and 8. He’s -3 as well.
Thomas hits a hot second through the back of 7. He can’t get up and down from the sand, and that’s the first blot on his copybook today. He’s back to -3. His partner Koepka lands his approach on the dancefloor, but sends it backspinning hysterically off. He can’t get up and down either, and he slips to +1.
Matthew Woolf is really enjoying the test set by Augusta National. He sends his second at 17 miles right of the green – about 25 yards right, to be accurate – but he lobs up gracefully from the bottom of the swale, screeching his ball to a halt right by the flag. Another par escape on his Masters debut … and aren’t these major championships a doddle? His ended his first, this year’s PGA, in a tie for fourth, then finished his second, the US Open, as runner-up. Third time lucky? You wouldn’t put it past this brilliant young Californian. He’s -3.
Francesco Molinari, so close yet so far last year, has turned things around after a slow start. The 2018 Open champ bogeyed 10 and 11, but has bounced back with birdies at the par fives, 13 and 15, to move back to level par. A little frustration as he doesn’t give his 12-foot birdie chance on 16 enough juice, but there are worse fates.
A wonder save on 16 by Woolf. He shoves his tee shot to the right. He’s left with an absurdly treacherous chip down towards the hole, front left. Too much and he could end up in the water. Too little and it might stop dead. He gently plops a chip onto the first bit of green available. It rolls slowly, almost threatening to grind to a halt. But then it takes one slow turn over a ridge and picks up the necessary speed, eventually stopping in serene fashion four feet from the cup. That’s a quite exquisite touch. He escapes with par and remains at -3. Matt Wallace meanwhile signs for a 69.
Nothing much is happening for Brooks Koepka yet. Six holes, six pars. He’ll be looking over at his playing partner Justin Thomas with a green eye. Actually, he might be squinting a bit, because the sunlight is not long for the off. If this Masters was being held in April, the sun would go down a few minutes before 8pm local time. But now it sets at 5.25pm. If we’re lucky, we’ll get the best part of an hour.
Matthew Wolff, fresh from his second-place finish at the US Open, has started the next major in similarly impressive fashion. He’s birdied 12, 13 and now 15, the latest birdie for the 21-year-old Californian tickled in from 20 feet at a gallery-teasing slow speed. Shame there weren’t any patrons there to ooh and aah as it teetered over the edge and thought twice before falling. He’s -3 already, and will have learned plenty from his difficult final round at Winged Foot.
Yet another birdie for Justin Thomas! He’s got a very tricky putt on 5, up and over a ridge on the hardest green on the course. He should do well to get it close, but in it goes! He laughs incredulously. When your putter’s hot, it’s hot. He’s the biggest mover and shaker out on the course right now. This is some leader board already.
-7: Casey (F)
-5: Simpson (F), Schauffele (F)
-4: Matsuyama (F), Westwood (F), Oosthuizen (F), Reed (F), Woods (F), Thomas (5)
-3: Janewattananond (F), Rahm (F), Finau (F), Wallace (17)
A 74 for Jordan Spieth. It’s just not happened for him anywhere since that outrageous victory at Birkdale in 2017. It’s been a strange decline; the decision to coax a few extra yards out of his swing might not have been the best. Meanwhile nothing’s happened for Rory in the majors since Valhalla in 2014. He does well to rattle in his par saver on 4, though, and there’s a notable spring in his step as he escapes without further early damage.
They’re obviously not going to be able to get everyone round tonight. The legacy of that three-hour storm delay this morning. Hey, at least the weather is supposed to hold for the rest of the week. So it’ll be just a matter of how many holes the second wave of starters can squeeze in. Some players might be more grateful of the opportunity to go in and reboot than others. McIlroy, for instance, has just dumped his tee shot at the par-three 4th into the deep bunker at the front, and his splash out isn’t great. He’s left with a 12-foot par saver. If that doesn’t go in, it’ll be another slow start to a major. He’s beginning to specialise in those.
Thomas is the width of a dimple away from making it four birdies in a row. But his 25-foot putt across 4 shaves the high side of the hole. Meanwhile Wallace also comes incredibly close to picking up yet another stroke, but his 15-foot curler on 16 somehow stays up. And back on 13, Bubba Watson springs into life after bemoaning his luck with a mud ball. His approach to 13 flies wide left, but he still gets up and down for birdie, then makes another by rattling in a tramliner on 14. Suddenly the two-time winner is -2.
Speaking of being In The Mix Again … it’s Tiger Woods! He finishes with par at 9 for yet another sub-70 round at Augusta National. He signs for a 68, and the defending champion is just three off the lead. That’s his first bogey-free round in the majors in 106 attempts. And there’s him supposedly out of form.
A third birdie in three for Thomas! He’s scampered up the standings to -3 with indecent haste. Meanwhile Tony Finau finished strongly, with eagle at 15 and birdie at 17. His Masters record so far: a tie for 10th and a tie for fifth. The big man is long overdue a big win. An opening round of 69 and he’s in the mix again.
Matt Wallace has just the one top-ten finish at the majors to his name: a tie for third at the 2019 PGA. But the 30-year-old Londoner looks in the mood for another. He’s followed birdies at 13 and 14 with eagle at 15, firing his second to 12 feet and guiding in the snaking putt. He’s suddenly in very good nick at -3.
His mood probably won’t be helped by the eagle his playing partner Dustin Johnson makes. Throw in Patrick Cantlay’s birdie at 1, reward for sending his second from 160 yards to blow-in distance, and McIlroy is trailing his partners by two and three shots respectively after just the one hole.
Two birdies in the first two holes for Justin Thomas. Coming behind him, Rory McIlroy bogeys 1, unable to get up and down from sand. He’s already wearing his trademark Augusta hangdog expression, his shoulders drooping as his second into the par-five 2nd drifts away to the right. Then it’s a dreadful lob over the flag and off the other side of the green. He putts up to kick-in distance, saving his par, but he certainly doesn’t have the demeanour of a man who thinks he can win this tournament. For comparison, Thomas’s first two shots at this hole weren’t particularly good, either, but from a similar position on the right, he span a chip to a couple of feet and made birdie. Worrying early signs for the grand-slam chasing McIlroy.
Paul Casey pars 9, and he’s signing his name to an opening-day 65. Just brilliant. He’s certainly due one, after coming so close at the PGA recently. Also finishing up, but on the 18th: Xander Schauffele. He takes advantage of a big break – his pulled approach threatened to topple down a bank on the left, but stood up in the fringe – and rolls a 30-footer in for birdie, the ball threatening to stay up on the left before falling through the back door. That’s his fifth birdie on the back nine, holes he covered in 32 strokes. That’s a magnificent 67, and with his record in the majors – six top-ten finishes in 13 starts – he’s a serious contender.
Shot of the day by Patrick Reed! This is quite something. He’s on the pine needles down the right of 9, with branches overhanging. He draws low and hard from 190 yards into the heart of the green, his ball screeching to a halt a couple of feet from the cup. That is truly sensational, the sort of manufactured nonsense that would make the likes of Seve or Bubba proud. That’ll be an outrageous birdie and a very fine 68!
A really impressive end to young Jazz Janewattananond’s round. Birdies at 13, 15, 16 and 18 have catapulted him right up the standings. A fine debut round by the 24-year-old Thai. The 2018 champion Patrick Reed has quietly been about his business, meanwhile, and birdie at 8 has moved him up to -3. He’s in a spot of bother at his last, though, hoicking his drive at 9 into trees on the right.
Opening birdie at 1 for Justin Thomas, as he rattles in a 25-footer. Westwood gets lucky with his tee shot at 18, his ball twanging back into the fairway. Onto the green in regulation, then two putts, and he’s putting his name to an extremely creditable 68. Back on 9, DeChambeau strokes in his putt for a much-deserved birdie. That’s a strong finish, and he’s suddenly signing for a 70. That round threatened to spin out of control this morning, either side of that double-bogey seven on 13, but he dug in impressively. He’s -2. And par for Oosthuizen, who is in the house with a 68.
-7: Casey (17*)
-5: Simpson (F)
-4: Matsuyama (F), Westwood (F), Oosthuizen (F), Schauffele (17), Woods (16*)
-3: Janewattananond (F), Rahm (F), Reed (17*), Cabrera Bello (13)
DeChambeau’s drive at 9 went 364 yards! He takes advantage by wedging gently to eight feet … and that putt will be uphill so he can give it a good go. Rahm, by contrast, having only (1) driven his ball 340 yards, fluffs his wedge in. He’s outside credible birdie range, and has to settle for par. That’s a 69 that could have been better … but given his cold start, could have been a lot worse. He’s right in the mix.
Westwood slices his drive at 18 into the trees down the right. He’s another player whose momentum has completely slowed; out in 31 but no birdie since, and now he’s facing his second bogey on the back nine. Meanwhile fun and games on 9, where DeChambeau and Rahm send two manic blooters down the track. DeChambeau really got behind his drive, taking the trees on the left out of the equation. That is rather long. But this place is about smarts as much as brute force, and Larry Mize, 62 years young, is in with a round of 70. What a performance by the 1987 champ!
Par for Casey at 7. Nothing to be sniffed at on the hole playing hardest today. The tournament leader remains two clear of the clubhouse leader Simpson at -7. An early birdie for the out-of-form Rickie Fowler at 2; that might give one of golf’s great Nearly Men succour. Birdies for Oosthuizen (-4) and DeChambeau (-1) at 8; only a par at the par-five for Rahm, though, and he’s looking a little down after a momentum-slowing couple of holes. He’s -3.
Simpson scoops out from the deep bunker at 9. But he can’t get close and the ball topples down the ridge running through the middle of the green. No matter, though! He rolls in the 25-footer he’d left himself, and that par will feel like a birdie. His pimento-cheese sandwich will taste even better now. He signs for an excellent 67 … and his partner Hideki Matsuyama finishes birdie-birdie for a fine 68! Schauffele gets up and down to save his par at 15. Meanwhile par for Tiger on the tricky 5th … and an opening bogey for his old sparring partner Phil Mickelson, who takes three to get down from the side of 1.
-7: Casey (15*)
-5: Simpson (F)
-4: Matsuyama (F), Westwood (16), Schauffele (15), Woods (14*)
Kokrak’s misfortune might have spooked his partner Schauffele. He’d laid up, and only just gets over the brook. Inches away from getting wet. Back on 7, Rahm three putts from the fringe. That’s incredibly careless, and he slips back to -3. But on 6, Casey lands his tee shot 15 feet to the left of the flag, then trundles the birdie putt into the cup. He’s suddenly two in the lead, and that advantage could extend soon because Simpson is making a pig’s lug of 9, finding pine straw and then sand. He’ll need to get up and down from the bunker if he wants to sign for a 67.
DeChambeau takes his putter out, and judges his par prod pretty well, coming as it does off the fringe and onto the short stuff. It stops a turn short and that’s bogey. He’s back to level par. Then some drama on 15, where Jason Kokrak sends a mud ball flying through the green and into the drink over the back. The ball nearly hits a passing Lee Westwood; he gets out of the road just in time, then sportingly leaves a tee peg where the ball entered the hazard, making Kokrak’s life a wee bit easier when he gets down to survey the damage.
Bother for Bryson down 7. He sends his drive into the trees down the right. He spots a route through the branches towards the green, but sends it over the back, then fails to chip up with the necessary confidence. The ball sticks on the slope and he’s got a battle on to save his par now.
Matt Kuchar has been slowly mooching up the leader board. Birdies at 8 and 12, and now he’s rolled one in across 15. His playing partner Lee Westwood leaves his chip up from the back a wee bit short, though, and has to settle for par. He remains -4.
-6: Casey (14*)
-5: Simpson (17*)
-4: Westwood (15), Rahm (15*), Schauffele (14), Woods (13*)
-3: Matsuyama (17*), Kuchar (15), Oosthuizen (15*), Kokrak (14)
A three-putt bogey for Oosthuizen on 6. All the fault of a mishit tee shot that left an initial putt of 60 feet across one of the trickiest greens on the course. He slips to -3. Another birdie for Schauffele, though, as he knocks his second to 12 feet then hits one of the most confident putts you’ll see all week, a full-fat whistle straight into the centre of the cup. He’s -4 and fully recovered from that mid-round slump.
A poor second into 15 by Westwood. He’s taken too much club and the ball bounds through the back and down the big slope. He’ll be doing very well to get up and down from there for a birdie on this (relatively) generous par five. Meanwhile Casey replicates DeChambeau’s error on 5, pulling his approach into the deep bunker at the back. He’ll be hoping for a sand splash as sensational as the one Bryson cooked up a few minutes ago.
An up and down from off the front of 7, wedging over sand and tidying up from three feet, saves the 2012 US Open champion Webb Simpson’s par. The North Carolinian remains at -5, one off Paul Casey’s lead. It’s gone a little quiet all of a sudden, in the wake of a burst of birdie and eagle action.
I got a wee bit overexcited about Casey’s shot into 4. It was more like 30 feet away, so not so much of a birdie op. He makes do with two putts for his par and he remains at -6. Meanwhile Xander Schauffele has set about regaining his momentum, and birdies at 11 and 13 take him back up to -3.
Thanks Niall. Back just in time to see Casey ease his tee shot at 4 to 15 feet … and for DeChambeau to pull a simple wedge into 5 and end up at the bottom of a huge bunker at the back left. But no bother! He splashes out from 16 yards to the very edge of the cup. From the ridiculous to the sublime, and the big man remains at -1.
Time to hand back to Scott Murray, who will guide you through the rest of the day’s play. Here’s the current state of play:
-6: Casey (12*)
-5: Simpson (15*)
-4: Westwood (13), Rahm (13*), Oosthuizen (13*), Woods (11*)
Casey gives himself a great chance to pick up another shot at the third, but pushes his uphill birdie butt just wide. He’ll be annoyed with himself, but he tidies up for par and stays in the lead. Woods with a birdie putt at the second, but it’s a little tentative and comes up short.
Paul Casey is the latest player to have a chance at eagle on the second … and he drains the putt to jump into the overall lead! It’s all happening.
Rahm follows his eagle at the second with a birdie on the third, and he’s up to four under, one off the lead. And so is Tiger, who picks up a shot on the par-four first. Five players in the group one behind Simpson – Woods, Rahm, Casey, Westwood and Oosthuizen. That’s a classy chasing pack.
Westwood drops a shot at the 12th, unable to scramble a par. That puts Webb Simpson in the outright lead! Reed can’t save par either and drops back to two under, alongside Matt Kuchar and 2003 champ Mike Weir.
-5: Simpson (13*)
-4: Westwood (12), Casey (10*), Oosthuizen (11*)
-3: Woods (9*), Matsuyama (13*), Rahm (11*)
Casey has a tricky uphill birdie putt to join the leaders, but rolls it a foot wide left. Simpson also has a birdie chance, albeit from about half a mile away. He’s close enough to secure par. Meanwhile, a couple of contenders edge up the leaderboard – both Jon Rahm and Hideki Matsuyama have joined the group on three under.
Reed ends up in a bunker as he starts his back nine, and has to pitch up to have a chance of saving par. It’s a little short, as is Tiger’s birdie putt on the 18th. On the 10th, Bryson DeChambeau hooks a terrific second shot from the tree line to find the back of the green. Westwood escapes from the tricky par-four 11th with, well, a par. Still no dropped shots for him.
Cuddly fan favourite Patrick Reed has joined Tiger Woods on three under par; he’s birdied 16, 17 and 18 after a shaky start from the 10th. At the 18th, Tiger’s tee shot drifts right a touch, but finds the edge of the fairway.
Thanks Scott. Let’s start with a change at the top of the leaderboard – Webb Simpson has eagled the second (he started at the 10th) and joins Lee Westwood on five-under! Elsewhere, Louis Oosthuizen has birdied the first, and is one shot off the lead …
-5: Westwood (10), Simpson (11*)
-4: Casey (8*), Oosthuizen (10*)
-3: Woods (8*)
Right, things are nicely poised for me to hand over to Niall McVeigh for a bit. Enjoy, enjoy … and I’ll see you again later.
Rahm’s ball didn’t disappear into the trees, ending in the first cut. He takes advantage by creaming his second to ten feet, and knocking in the putt. A birdie, and after a poor start he’s played the back nine in 35 strokes and is in red figures: -1. He allows himself a small smile of satisfaction. Oosthuizen tidies up for his birdie: he’s just two off the lead now. And DeChambeau, starting from deeper trouble in the pines, is happy enough to get out of Dodge with a par. He turns in level-par 36. Tiger taps in for his birdie on 16, incidentally, so the top of the standings look like this:
-5: Westwood (9)
-4: Casey (8*)
-3: Simpson (10*), Oosthuizen (9*), Woods (7*)
Tiger isn’t the only one dialling it in. Up on 18, Oosthuizen – who got a lucky break while attempting to follow DeChambeau and Rahm into the trees – fizzed his second from 180 yards to three feet. That’ll surely be enough for a back nine of 33.
Westwood keeps on keepin’ on! He screws his second at 9 pin high to eight feet, and knocks the birdie putt into the cup! He’s out in 31! Amen Corner to come soon. Meanwhile Tiger pings his tee shot at 16 to a couple of feet, and will surely be coming to -3 in short order.
DeChambeau takes 3-wood for safety on 18 … and hooks one into the trees on the left. Rahm follows him in. These two have been driving like Seve today. With plenty of absurd escapes to match. Meanwhile on 15, Tiger birdies his second par-five of the day. He’s doing nothing fancy, keeping his powder dry for battle later in the week. You can be sure that if he’s anywhere near the leaders on Sunday afternoon, those around him will develop serious concerns. And on 16, Casey makes another birdie to join his old mate Westwood in the lead.
-4: Westwood (8), Casey (7*)
-3: Simpson (10*)
-2: Matsuyama (10*), Oosthuizen (8*), Stenson (7), Woods (6*), Cabrera Bello (5)
One hell of an up and down by Bryson DeChambeau on 17. He hits a hot one through the back, 60 feet down into the swale, with very little green to play with. He bumps his chip into the bank, letting it topple up onto the putting surface and rolling a couple of feet past. In goes the saver, and his exquisite short game has got him out of several scrapes already. Doubly impressive when you consider his momentary lapse of noggin on 13.
So having said that, Westwood birdies the par-five 8th to snatch the lead back for himself! And it’s an all-new English look at the top, because Casey birdies 15 to move a shot off the lead.
-4: Westwood (8)
-3: Casey (6*), Cabrera Bello (4)
So having said that, he’s joined at the top of the leader board by Rafa Cabrera Bello. The late-blooming 36-year-old Spaniard hasn’t done much at Augusta, but he’s flown out of the blocks today. Three birdies in the first four holes, the latest the result of a beautiful tee shot to six feet at the 180-yard par-three 4th. He’s -3.
Lee Westwood is now the sole leader of the Masters. Just 65 holes away from glory.
-3: Westwood (7)
-2: Snedeker (9), Simpson (9*), Matsuyama (8*), Scheffler (8*), Oosthuizen (7*), Schauffele (6), Stenson (6), Casey (5*)
DeChambeau’s putt is a tricky one: downhill with a huge left-to-right break. He sets up almost at a right angle. But he tickles it in magnificently. That’s back-to-back birdies, and he’s repaired the damage of the double on 13 in super-fast time! The pre-tournament favourite is back to level par … and back on an even keel, sending another drive straight down the track at 17. Pars at 16 for Rahm and Oosthuizen, incidentally.
Rahm on the par-three 16th, where two days ago in practice he did this:
Rahm’s eagle putt on 15 slides by the right lip, but it’s a tap-in for birdie. This is a great response by the big Spaniard after opening with those two early bogeys. He’s back to level par. Two-putt birdies for both Oosthuizen (-2) and DeChambeau (+1).
A first birdie of the day for Tiger. He’s pretty lucky to get over Rae’s Creek with his second, and his broad smile reflects that. But he’s not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, and rolls a 50-foot putt close enough for his birdie. The defending champ is -1.
DeChambeau absolutely stripes one down the middle of the par-five 15th. It carries 308 yards and stops dead on the sodden fairway. Despite all the travails of the morning, this thoroughly entertaining dude is still not hanging back. He gets on in two, though doesn’t put his 7-iron particularly close. Maybe 60 feet away. Oosthuizen needs a fairway wood, and he’s on in two as well, facing a 45-footer. Rahm meanwhile creams an iron into the heart of the green, and he’ll have a look at eagle from 25 feet or so.
It’s three birdies in four holes for the PGA rookie of the year. Scottie Scheffler picks up strokes at 12, 14 and 15, and his tie for fourth three months ago at the PGA, where he finished three shots shy of the eventual winner Collin Morikawa, may stand the 24-year-old Texan in good stead. Meanwhile hats off to DeChambeau, who knocks in a staunch par saver at 14 to remain at +2.
-3: Scheffler (6*), Westwood (6), Schauffele (4)
-2: Simpson (7*), Leishman (7*), Matsuyama (7*), Stenson (4), Casey (4*)
A third birdie in the first five holes for Lee Westwood. The 47-year-old Englishman meekly let Phil Mickelson seize the day in 2010, then repeated the trick with Danny Willett in 2016. One last hurrah to make good? His fortysomething compatriot Paul Casey has been going along nicely too, after opening with birdie at 10; he finds 13 in two, and moves to -2 after a couple of careful putts. Meanwhile DeChambeau is in more trouble, this time at 14, having sent his tee shot into the trees down the left. He’s all over the show. He gets a relatively fortunate bounce back into the first cut, but can only punch out, and his wedge in leaves a tricky downhill eight-footer for his par.
DeChambeau escaped with par at 11 after a wild drive. He’s not getting away with bogey at 13, leaving a weak putt short and left of the hole. A double-bogey seven, and he clatters down the leader board to +2. He really lost the head going down that hole. Easy to say in hindsight, but maybe it was a bit early in the week to go for Mickelson-style heroics from the pines. There’s no shame in laying up sometimes. Par for Oosthuizen, who remains at -1, but a birdie for Rahm, who’s back to +1 after getting up and down in a fuss-free style from the swale to the left, taking advantage of the lucky bounce he got with his second.
This has been quite the melodramatic start by DeChambeau, whose face falls as he fluffs his chip down the hill on the left of 13. His second effort is a little timid, too, but he’ll have a putt to limit the damage to bogey. And to think some people call this man boring. Meanwhile Schauffele’s perfect start continues apace: birdie at 3, and he takes sole ownership of the lead.
-3: Schauffele (3)
-2: Matsuyama (5*), Mize (6), Scheffler (5*), Westwood (4), Stenson (3)
Oosthuizen and Rahm help DeChambeau find his first ball. It’s in a bush, so he’ll have to take an unplayable. He’ll be chipping four, from thick grass on a downhill lie, with not much green to play with. Back on 11, it’s a bogey for the Open champion Shane Lowry, though he’ll be relatively calm, having watched a bunker shot whistle across the green and towards the drink. Somehow it stuck on the bank, and after a chip and a putt, the damage is limited. He’s +1.
Rahm hasn’t found his rhythm yet. Having crashed his drive at 13 down the middle, he pulls his iron to the left of the green. But he gets a lucky bounce off the bank and his ball ends up on the apron, pin high. Up and down, and that’ll be a bounceback birdie. But nothing short of a disaster for DeChambeau, who spends an age cleaning his shoes so he can get good purchase in the pines, then hoicks an awful second into the bushes to the left of the green. Not entirely sure he’ll find that. He plays his second provisional ball of the morning, and plops that one in Rae’s Creek! He’ll be desperately hoping to find his first ball, because otherwise this is going to be very costly.
So here’s DeChambeau on 13. Suggestions that he might take on the trees at the left-hand corner of the dogleg. But he’s sent his drive out towards the Mickelson Pines on the right. One well left, another well right. Whatever happens to the tournament favourite, it’s going to be a hell of a ride. Meanwhile three big names join the veteran Mize at the top of the leader board: Hideki Matsuyama (5*), Lee Westwood (3) and Xander Schauffele (2). It’s already clear that there are birdies out here for players willing to attack the flags on responsive greens. There could be a low score out here for somewhere.
A poor start for Jon Rahm. His tee shot at 12 is a little short and finds the sand at the front. His escape is a little under-powered, and he prods gingerly at his par putt, which breaks left apologetically. One of the pre-tournament favourites is already +2. Oosthuizen and DeChambeau both nearly drain 20-footers but happily make do with two-putt pars.
Larry Mize takes sole ownership of the lead! The 1987 champion, born 62 years ago in Augusta, birdies the par-three 4th to move to -2. There are currently 15 players at -1, so let’s not get hung up on updating the leader board. Tiger meanwhile was able to get up and down from the side of 10 to save his par.
Plenty of big names already in the red early on at -1: Jimmy Walker, Marc Leishman, Hideki Matsuyama, Lee Westwood, Xander Schauffele, Paul Casey. Add Louis Oosthuizen to that list, as he rolls in the 10-footer he quietly left himself at 11 while the big boomers were mucking about in the pines. Rahm can’t save his par from the side of the green, the result of a heavy-handed chip up, but DeChambeau tidies up for an outrageous par save.
If DeChambeau was faced with this chip on a hot sunny day in April, he’d be feared of sending his ball across the green and into the lake. But the receptive greens mean he can go for the flagstick, and he dumps his chip eight feet from the flag, stopping it pretty much dead. That’s a delightful touch from a very tricky position, and he’ll have a chance to scramble an unlikely par. Meanwhile on 10, Tiger’s out, but there’s mud on his ball and his second goes down the bank to the left of the green. If you’re going to miss, that’s the side to miss, as Tommy Fleetwood explains in our course guide.
Related: Masters 2020: Tommy Fleetwood’s hole-by-hole guide to Augusta
Bryson isn’t so lucky, his drive tucked behind a fir. He’s got a route out, just not towards the green. He batters it low, in the general direction of Mize’s Hollow, but it’s well to the right of that, and he’ll have a hell of a chip over the swale from 100 yards or so. Oosthuizen meanwhile is quietly on in two. And speaking of Larry Mize … the 1987 champ has birdied 2 and 3, having bogeyed 1, to join the leaders!
-1: Pan (4), Walker (4*), Snedeker (4), Howell III (4), Janewattananond (4), Mize (3), Scheffler (3*), Casey (1*)
Right, let’s see where these lads have ended up. Rahm looks to have caught a huge break, finding his ball in the first cut. That must have caromed off a tree and back towards the fairway. What fortune, though a reminder that the first cut
of rough
Bogey for Conners at 3, and he drops back to level par, leaving Jazz Janewattananond the lone leader at -1. Ah hold on, scrub that, Jazz is joined by local lad Charles Howell III, who birdies 3. Meanwhile up on 11, Rahm and DeChambeau take turns to send big hooks deep into the pines down the left. The shots are so spectacularly wild that both men take a provisional. Rahm’s second effort finds the fairway, but it’s a mud ball, while DeChambeau’s provisional finds the pine straw down the left again … though at least he’ll definitely find that one. There is something to be said for taking it down a notch sometimes, as Oosthuizen’s smooth fairway-splitter demonstrates.
Rahm achieves the impossible on 10, leaving his putt across a sloping green short. The SubAir system hasn’t fully dried out the greens, but context is everything, and they’re still lightning fast. But that was really timid. He knocks in the five-footer he leaves himself, though. Par. Then Bryson prods tentatively at his birdie putt, which had plenty of left-to-right break over its six feet. Not enough juice, and it dies to the right. He rubs his brow in frustration, but par at 10 is never to be sniffed at. Two putts for Oosthuizen and all three walk off with no damage done.
Bryson DeChambeau tees it up for the first time. He doesn’t give his opening drive, at 10, too much welly, yet it still flies 320 yards. Louis Oosthuizen creams one down the middle but is a good 40 yards behind him. He just about finds the dancefloor with his second, though he’ll have a long putt from the fringe on the left. Jon Rahm splits the difference, then sends a gentle fade to the front-right of the green. He’ll have a decent look at birdie from 20 feet or so. And finally Bryson, who from 154 yards wedges 12 feet past the flag, gently spinning back to six feet. What a statement of intent that is. What a shiver it’ll send through the field if he makes birdie on the opening hole!
The first birdie of the 2020 Masters is made by Corey Conners. The 28-year-old from Canada hasn’t done much in the majors to date, but has one Tour win at the 2019 Texas Open. He’s just short of the par-five 2nd in two, chips daintily over sand to a couple of feet, and tidies up for birdie. He’s soon joined there by Jazz Janewattananond; the 24-year-old Thai, who tied 14th at last year’s PGA, birdies 2 as well. An early shake-up of the leaderboard.
-1: Conners (2), Janewattananond (2)
E: Glover (2), Pan (2), Snedeker (2), Howell III (2), Matsuyama (1*), Hadwin (1*), Scheffler (1*)
The players are back out and about! Some big names will be teeing it up soon – Tiger, Bryson, Jon Rahm, Louis Oosthuizen, Patrick Reed, Shane Lowry, Paul Casey, Tony Finay, Xander Schauffele, Jason Day – but for now let’s watch Sandy Lyle perambulate without too much of a care down 11, having demonstrated the softness of the greens by plopping his second 25 feet from the cup, the ball barely moving upon landing. How do we know he doesn’t have too much of a care? Because he’s wearing a blue striped shirt – it’s not a Breton, but it’s getting there – and his breeks are held up with an ostentatious pair of braces, the sort usually only seen on 1980s children’s television presenters and recently departed light entertainers. A strong look, though his putter’s not quite so hot, and he’ll have to settle for par. He’s +1.
We have news! The sun is threatening to break through the clouds at Augusta National, where they’re planning to reopen the driving range in 20 minutes with a view to getting play under way again at 10.30am local time, 3.30pm GMT.
Play has been suspended due to inclement weather. Hopefully the storm will pass by midday (5pm GMT) and we’ll be up and running soon after. But it’s been a bit of an anti-climactic start to the 2020 Masters, so for those of you jonesing for hot hole-by-hole action, here’s our as-it-happened reimagining of Jack Nicklaus winning at 46 (1986) and Greg Norman’s capitulation (1996). We’ll be back the second the skies clear.
E: Glover (1), Conners (1), Pan (1), Howell III (1), Janewattananod (1)
+1: Lyle (1*), Walker (1*), Snedeker (1)
+2: Lin -a- (1*)
Time for lunch. There’s only one option. Speaking of old classics, here’s a 2016 piece by Andy Bull on the unique flavour of Augusta National. See you again when we have some more news.
E: Glover (1), Conners (1), Pan (1), Howell III (1), Janewattananod (1)
+1: Lyle (1*), Walker (1*), Snedeker (1)
+2: Lin -a- (1*)
In lieu of proper action …
This morning Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player continued the Honorary Starter tradition that began in 1963. #themasters pic.twitter.com/sDC20f1avp
For what it’s worth, here’s the first leader board of the 2020 Masters. With play having lasted barely 20 minutes before being suspended, only nine players have completed a hole so far. But this is where we are, and if nothing else it shows how teeing off at the treacherous 10th is no picnic:
E: Glover (1), Conners (1), Pan (1), Howell III (1), Janewattananod (1)
+1: Lyle (1*), Walker (1*), Snedeker (1)
+2: Lin -a- (1*)
The rain is already tipping down with extreme prejudice. The course will take a good old soaking over the next few hours, but here’s where the state-of-the-art SubAir drainage system kicks in. It also helps that the heavy rain expected last night didn’t really materialise. So we should be good to go pretty quickly once the storm passes. But the moisture-bothering SubAir suction pipes can only work so much magic, and the greens will be pretty receptive for the rest of the week. Softer conditions will give players the chance to attack some pins. Lower scores ahoy … with the usual this-is-golf caveat, naturally.
The bad news first. The storm is expected to last most of the morning at Augusta, with the doors of heaven very much ajar: a flash-flood warning has been issued. The suggestion is that we’ll not get much play, if any, until around midday local time, 5pm in British money. Bah, eff, jeff, etc. However, it would seem the weather will behave for the rest of the day, and most likely the rest of the week too. So let’s sit this out. Take this opportunity to make yourself a pimento cheese sandwich for breakfast/lunch and we’ll keep you posted when we know more.
The weather klaxon has just gone. Play has been suspended with a thunderstorm heading for Augusta National. It was fun while it lasted.
Well, so much for that. Sandy isn’t able to get his chip up onto the green, and that’s the first bogey of this year’s event. He’s quickly followed into the debit column by 2016 PGA winner Jimmy Walker, and the third member of the group, the 20-year-old Chinese amateur Yuxin Lin, who doubles. Yuxin is here on account of winning the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship for the second time in three years. The only other player to win that one twice: Hideki Matsuyama. One to watch, certainly, though an inauspicious start. Mind you, starting first thing on Thursday, at 10, in the mist, isn’t exactly ideal. Still 71 holes to go, so plenty of time to turn this around.
The players will be going off from split tees today and tomorrow, to ensure everyone gets round before nightfall. So over on the 10th, the honour of hitting the Tournament’s first drive of the week goes to the 1988 champion Sandy Lyle. One of the bigger hitters back in the day, he belts one 272 yards down the middle. The ball disappears into the mist rolling down the hill. His approach lands just short of the green, though with the pin at the front that’s not a bad leave.
The early tee times were delayed slightly. A storm took its own sweet time to pass. But after a ten-minute wait, the 2009 US Open champion Lucas Glover took the first shot of the 2020 Masters, knocking his opening drive straight down the middle of Tea Olive. Just the 291 yards, 30 or so short of the 2020 US Open champ’s garden-variety carries, but times change, huh.
In a misty morning … Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player take the ceremonial opening tee shots of the 84th Masters Tournament. A moment to remember their old buddy Arnold Palmer, like the clouds above the storm just had to cry. Lee Elder will make it a three-ball again next April.
Today’s hole locations. #themasters pic.twitter.com/C17ZU3jwdZ
Magnolia Lane. Amen Corner. Rae’s Creek. The Butler Cabin. Hello again, old friends, it’s been way too long. It’s taken 19 months to come back round, but the long wait is finally over. It’s the 2020 Masters Tournament! A beam of sporting sunshine at the end of a long dark year. We deserve this.
Metaphor is all good and well, but actual sunshine is not guaranteed. The 84th edition of the Masters is the first to be held in November, and while autumn temperatures aren’t expected to be much different than spring, the forecast is for rain. That’ll make the course play even longer than the 7,475 yards on the card – no wonder Bryson and DJ are favourites – though as former champ Jordan Spieth has pointed out, if you can “throw some darts” in softer conditions, “it could be anybody that wins”.
