Masters Power Rankings: Counting Down the Field from 89 to 1. Who’s Left Standing?

As far as I’m concerned this is THE week on the PGA Tour (although the PGA Tour does not run The Masters. The prestigious Augusta National Club members, led by Chairman Fred Ridley, run The Masters.)

It’s time to step up our game and pick the winner.  Scottie Scheffler is a heavy favorite at +400. Where will he rank on our countdown?

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The Masters Tournament at Augusta National Power Rankings Countdown

89-86. Senior Past Champions

These include Couples, Singh, Olazabal, and Weir.  Jack Nicklaus is the oldest Masters Champ at age 46.  These guys are well beyond 46. The course has simply gotten too long for these guys. Making the cut would be a feat for them.

85-81.  The Amateurs

Hagestad, De La Fuente, Shipley, Stubbs, and Lamprecht will enjoy their special week, but winning is out of the question. Their goal this week is to make the cut and win some crystal by being the low am for the week.

80-67. The Rookies (excluding Clark and Aberg)

Murray, Malnati, Jaeger, Hisatune, Eckroat, Schenk, Cole, Hodges, McCarthy, Knapp, Dunlap, Hojgaard, Pavon, and Bhatia. No rookie has won this tournament since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979.  Some have come close including Will Zalatoris in 2021 with a second. Out of this pack, I’d say Knapp and Dunlap could have a nice week.  Sorry guys, maybe next year.

66-63. Former Masters Champs whose games have long passed them by

Schwartzel, Willet, B Watson, and Z Johnson. Enjoy the Champions Dinner, guys. You could make the cut, but neither has a chance at winning.

62-45. The Mid-Pack

An, Bradley, Davis, Fox, Glover, Grillo, Hadwin, Im, Kim, Kirk, Kitayama, List, Moore, Oleson, Poston, van Rooyen, Straka, Villegas. All winners here. Bradley even has a major, but this is a stretch for all of them.

44. Tiger Woods

Tiger would never admit it, but I think at this stage of the game, he is only chasing the consecutive cuts made record. Making the cut and walking 72 holes would be an achievement that I think, secretly, he’d be happy with. 

43-36. LIV Tour (excluding Rahm and Neimann)

There are some big names in this group including DeChambeau, Garcia, Hatton, DJ, Phil, Cam Smith, Meronk, Reed, and Koepka. How can anyone evaluate their play on that tour? I don’t think they get the competitive conditions needed to win. Most of them have had success at Augusta National but it’s anyone’s guess as to the form they come in with.

35-25. Favorites not up to their standard form

Justin Thomas, Justin Rose, Collin Morikawa, Min Woo Lee, Tom Kim, Viktor Hovland, Rickie Fowler, Max Homa, Justin Rose, Gary Woodland, Jordan Spieth. For reasons unbeknownst to any of us, this group has underperformed this year, and I don’t think you can just show up and expect to find it all of a sudden. Spieth is such a wild card. He’s got the game but has registered too many ‘others’ on his scorecards.  Look for more of the same. As for the rest? Sure, they could find it on the range, but I’m not counting on it.

24-12. Top 5 or Top 10 Contenders? Yes. Winning? No.

Xander Schauffele, Cam Young, Tony Finau, Jason Day, Patrick Cantlay, Will Zalatoris, Sam Burns, Corey Connors, Harris English, Russell Henley, Adam Scott, Sahith Theegala, Shane Lowry, and Tommy Fleetwood. The perennial contenders who we keep betting on time and again, yet who all disappoint with a failed chance to win. They will all likely be there, but none will close the deal.

10. Nick Taylor +20000

Taylor doesn’t get much respect from the oddsmakers. He has two wins in the past year and has contended in many. He has one start at Augusta finishing T-29 in 2020 but is a much better player now.

His weakness is off the tee, but he can scramble and putt. He ranks 35th in scrambling and fifth in putting average, 19th in stokes gained putting.  He’s my under-the-radar pick for the week.

9. Rory McIlroy +1000

McIlroy has not held up to the pressure which keeps building major after major. This course is built for his game. He has all the tools. But there’s something missing.

The frustration shows. This is his biggest tournament as it would complete the Grand Slam for him. This could finally be the week for him, but he won’t be on my card unless there’s a live wager opportunity.

8. Ludvig Aberg +2800

Aberg is the next Viktor Hovland, but Augusta is tough on first timers as we mentioned above. Nevertheless, Aberg showed his mettle with an eighth-place finish at the tough Players and a second at Pebble Beach. He ranks 19th in driving distance, 27th in GIR, 29th in scrambling, and 19th in scoring average. If any rookie can pull off the upset, it’s this guy.

7. Matt Fitzpatrick +3300

Fitzpatrick has three Top 10 finishes here including a T-10 last year.  His best was a T-7 in 2016. He checks all the boxes. Major champion, Ryder Cupper, and is on form. His last two starts were a T-10 last week at The Valero and a solo fifth at the Players. He’s sneaky long (ranked 58 in driving distance), 38th in GIR, and is 10th in putting average. 

6. Brian Harman +6600

Harman shows up at this year’s Masters with a major championship under his belt having won The Open last summer. That should help his confidence here after missing the cut the last two years here. He did finish T-12 in 2021. Harman has a profile similar to another player not known for his driving distance but known for his wedge game and putting: Zach Johnson. I think this Georgia Bulldog is ready to make his mark on home soil.

5. Wyndham Clark +2800

Clark is the second rookie in our Top 10. He has two runner-up finishes to Scottie Scheffler this year including The Players. Like Fitzpatrick, he has a U.S. Open under his belt. He fits the Augusta profile.  Long hitter (10th in driving distance) and good putter (15th in strokes gained putting). I think he has a point to prove this week.

4. Jon Rahm +1200

Rahm has one thing against him and that’s being the defending champion. That’s rare at Augusta. Nick Faldo, Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus. That’s the list of players who defended. Besides the defending champion jinx, Rahm has been secluded in LIV land where he sits second in its overall standings. It’s hard to ignore his talent, but I just don’t know how tournament competition ready these LIV guys are.

3. Joaquin Neimann +2800

Neimann is another LIVer, so I’ve not seen him play. He does rank first on the points list and has won a tournament there. Last year, he finished T-16 here and I think he can improve on that. Per LIV stats, he ranks 2nd in driving distance, fourth in GIR, 20th in scrambling, and 10th in putting average. Look for him to be on the leaderboard late Sunday.

2. Scottie Scheffler +400

I like two guys this week to win. It’s virtually a toss-up for me. Scheffler is an obvious pick and has to be on everyone’s card. He’s the clear World No. 1 and currently has no weaknesses. He also isn’t the defending champion, which is a bonus. Scottie is a must play.

1. Hideki Matsuyama +2000

I’ve been monitoring Matsuyama as a Masters pick since January. The 2021 Masters Champ finished T-16 last year and T-14 in 2022 to go along with three other Top 11 finishes here. He didn’t have a great California Swing but turned his season around beginning at Phoenix where he finished T-22. He won the following week at The Genesis which put me on alert for The Masters.

He has continued to play well. He has finished T-12, T-6, and T-7 in his last three tournaments. He’s ready to wear another green jacket and he is my pick to win this week.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.