Masters of their own destiny

Augusta (US), April 10

Scottie Scheffler is on fire. Jon Rahm is defending. Rory McIlroy may be peaking. And Tiger Woods is back.

The 88th Masters Tournament promises plenty of plotlines when the first Major of the year tees off tomorrow here.

Scheffler’s claim as the best golfer in the world has only grown. His past three starts on the PGA Tour included two wins and a tie for second.

Last year, Rahm fended off Brooks Koepka to win the green jacket, his second Major victory. The Spaniard has since joined Koepka on the LIV Golf circuit; they are two of 13 LIV players on the property this week, a group that also includes past Masters champions Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Sergio Garcia, Bubba Watson, Charl Schwartzel of South Africa and Phil Mickelson.

For McIlroy, a win would both snap his nearly 10-year Major drought and complete his career Grand Slam.

Woods is limited physically; walking 18 holes for four straight days remains a bigger challenge than hitting any particular golf shot. But the five-time Masters champ wouldn’t be in the field if he didn’t think he could raise that total to six. — Reuters