Scheffler, McIlroy side-by-side in Masters showdown

GOLF

AUGUSTA – Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler and world No.2 Rory McIlroy, each chasing a milestone Masters victory, will be playing partners in the first two rounds starting today at Augusta National.

Reigning Olympic champion Xander Schauffele, the world No.5 seeking his first major title, will complete the feature-trio from the field of 89, which includes 20 Masters newcomers. Scheffler, fancied by oddsmakers, could join 15-time major winner, Tiger Woods as the only players to win the Masters twice while ranked world No.1.

The 27-year-old American has seven top-10 finishes in eight starts this year, including wins at The Players Championship and Arnold Palmer Championship. McIlroy, a four-time major winner from Northern Ireland, knows all too well that a Masters triumph would complete a career grand slam. It is the 10th time he has tried to finish the feat since winning his most recent majors in 2014.

McIlroy, a 2022 Masters runner-up to Scheffler, has six top-10 finishes in his past nine starts at Augusta.

Among those confident McIlroy will complete the career grand slam is five-time Masters champion Woods. Woods, a five-time Masters winner, is trying to make a record 24th consecutive Masters cut, surpassing the current mark he shares with Gary Player and Fred Couples.

The 48-year-old American says he still has what it takes to match the record six green jackets won by Jack Nicklaus, despite severe leg injuries from a 2021 car crash and ankle surgery last April. Thirdranked Jon Rahm will try to join Woods, Nicklaus and Nick Faldo as the only players to win back-to-back Masters titles.

He is among 13 players from the Saudi-backed LIV Golf League in the Masters field, having made the jump from the PGA Tour last December. Among those playing their first Masters are fourth-ranked Wyndham Clark, the reigning US Open champion and world No.9 Ludvig Aberg of Sweden. No rookie has won the green jacket since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979.