The Masters got off and running with Thursday's first round action and it was a bit of a wild day despite overall benign conditions at Augusta National Golf Club. Justin Rose set a pace in the afternoon that no one could keep up with as he rolled out to a three-shot lead after the first round. However, Scottie Scheffler and Ludvig Åberg are close behind.
Rory McIlroy, meanwhile, was close behind until he butchered his final four holes to fall back to even par. That was the case of others who made early pushes toward the top of The Masters leaderboard, not the least of which were Joaquin Niemann and Collin Morikawa. But all of these guys still seem in no danger of missing the cut this week, it's just about if they can make a run.
Before we get to that, though, here's a look at every player at even par or better after the first round on The Masters leaderboard.
Masters Leaderboard | Score to Par after Round 1 |
|---|---|
1. Justin Rose | -7 |
T2. Corey Conners | -4 |
T2. Scottie Scheffler | -4 |
T2. Ludvig Åberg | -4 |
T5. Tyrrell Hatton | -3 |
T5. Bryson DeChambeau | -3 |
T7. Aaron Rai | -2 |
T7. Harris English | -2 |
T7. Jason Day | -2 |
T7. Akshay Bhatia | -2 |
T11. Michael Kim | -1 |
T11. Davis Thompson | -1 |
T11. Cameron Smith | -1 |
T11. Fred Couples | -1 |
T11. Brian Harman | -1 |
T11. Patrick Reed | -1 |
T11. Max Greyserman | -1 |
T11. Min Woo Lee | -1 |
T11. Bubba Watson | -1 |
T11. Matt McCarty | -1 |
T11. Denny McCarthy | -1 |
T11. Daniel Berger | -1 |
T11. Matt Fitzpatrick | -1 |
T11. Sungjae Im | -1 |
T11. Viktor Hovland | -1 |
T11. Shane Lowry | -1 |
T27. Cameron Young | E |
T27. Zach Johnson | E |
T27. Stephan Jaeger | E |
T27. Collin Morikawa | E |
T27. Joaquin Niemann | E |
T27. Maverick McNealy | E |
T27. Brian Campbell | E |
T27. Tom Hoge | E |
T27. Sergio Garcia | E |
T27. Rory McIlroy | E |
T27. Sahith Theegala | E |
There are a ton of big names on the leaderboard after 18 holes but there is still a ton of golf remaining for these players before someone is crowned a Masters champion. While we'd love to run through every player above, let's dive specifically into three players who statistically fit the mold to believe they're going to be a factor throughout the remaining 54 holes but also three players who's numbers say they're very much in danger of fading if they keep up what they showed on Thursday.
Early Masters contenders still in shape to make a run
T26. Rory McIlroy (E)
Look, maybe I'm just coping with the fact that Rory McIlroy had it to 4-under in the first round only to make inexplicable double bogeys on both No. 15 and No. 17 to close out his round at even par and seven back of the lead. But I refuse to believe that's the case based on the numbers.
Those two blow-up holes that cost Rory are ultimately outliers but also indicative of where he struggled on Thursday. He gained an impeccable 3.58 strokes with his ball striking but lost 1.10 with the putter and 0.87 around the green. Considering he's in the midst of the best putting season of his career, if that turns to the positive and his ball striking continues, he's going to play himself back into contention.
T2. Ludvig Åberg
Many wondered if the debut runner-up finish from Ludvig Åberg last year was legitimate or a flash in the pan, especially as he came into this year's Masters not displaying the best overall form. Turns out, it was absolutely legit, at least based on the first round.
It was simply a pristine effort from the young Swede on Thursda, amplified by the fact that he only gained 0.33 strokes putting on the day, meaning that he gained a remarkable 5.28 strokes tee-to-green. That's the name of the game at Augusta and, if he can just stay level with the putter, that type of performance is how you end up putting on the Green Jacket come Sunday.
T5. Tyrrell Hatton
Pre-tournament, I'm not sure I heard Tyrrell Hatton's name mentioned more than once. Perhaps that was a mistake based on what he put on display on Saturday. The LIV Golf star put on a ball-striking clinic in the first round, gaining 2.77 strokes on approach alone, but backing that up with 1.63 strokes gained around the green. What's most indicative of his future success this week is that he actually lost 0.08 strokes putting and still finished the day tied for fifth.
Hatton is always liable to blow up at a moment's notice given his temperament but his performance in Round 1 says he can stay in the mix to be a surprise winner of a Green Jacket.
Early Masters contenders destined to fall back to Earth
1. Justin Rose
Yes, I realize it probably sounds absurd to say that Justin Rose, a man who holds a three-shot lead after the first round of The Masters, isn't going to hold onto it. However, there's a good reason for feeling that way when you dive into how he made it happen on Thursday to jump out in front of the rest of the field.
Put simply, Rose led the field in SG: Putting by a wide, wide margin, gaining 5.26 strokes on the greens while the next-closest player gained 3.67 strokes. While he did play well on approach and around the green as well, overall, he gained just 1.61 strokes ball-striking. At Augusta, I just don't see that being sustainable in terms of how to stay atop the leaderboard.
T2. Scottie Scheffler
If fading Justin Rose over the remaining 54 holes seems foolish, then fading defending champion Scottie Scheffler over the final three rounds is probably ludicrous. However, Scheffler finished fifth in the field in SG: Putting in Round 1. That might register as a good sign to some people, but we know without a shadow of a doubt that's not the strength of his game. Furthermore, his DNA is that of a ball-striking, but he only gained a meager 1.45 strokes ball-striking to open the tournament.
Scheffler has been good not otherworldly this season with his ball-striking, in contrast to last season. Because of that, though, it leads me to believe he might not be quite as formidable this week at Augusta and the first round was confirmation bias for that statistically, despite him sitting tied for second.
T10. Max Greyserman
The theme here is that I don't think you can win The Masters with only a hot putter, so that's why we're fading Max Greyserman after the first round as well.