I have been avidly looking forward to the 2025 Masters since Scottie Scheffler donned his second green jacket in April 2024. There isn’t a better televised golf tournament on the planet than the Masters, and the Masters App and extended TV coverage have made the entire week a golf fan’s dream.
A lot can change in a year, and we’ve seen the infallible Scottie Scheffler show some signs of fallibility, whether it’s showing frustration on the course or missing putts that were gimmes for him in past years. While Scheffler has shown new vulnerabilities, his main rival at the top of the PGA Tour, Rory McIlroy, has found ways to win. McIlroy comes into this year’s Masters in his absolute best early-season form as he aims to complete golf’s career grand slam.
The Masters owes you nothing. Some of the best golfers in history seemed destined to win a green jacket, yet they came up short. Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Greg Norman and Davis Love III all came close during their prime, yet now they find themselves watching on TV instead of enjoying a Tuesday night dinner with the past champions. The “best current player to not yet win a Masters” crown has belonged to Rory McIlroy for a long while. If McIlroy finally breaks through to complete the career grand slam, the crown — and the pressure — will pass to Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa and Bryson DeChambeau.
A few notes about making picks this week: The weather might be a factor this week at Augusta National, with rain on Monday morning suspending practice. The forecast predicts showers early on Friday as well; keep that in mind when building your lineups this week. With ShotLink data only recently available for the Masters, some stats may look slightly off for players with lots of experience here. The course ranks third on the PGA Tour for the importance of strokes gained from tee to green. The greens are large and feature a lot of undulation, so lag putting and three-putt avoidance are factors. Bogies will happen, so avoiding the big numbers and bouncing back with a birdie or eagle becomes very important. Players have seen their dreams of winning the Masters dashed if they continue to miss fairways to the left.
Today, we’re reviewing my betting picks and daily fantasy picks. Tomorrow, we’ll visit sleepers and prop bets.
2025 Masters odds
Masters course information
- Course: Augusta National Golf Club
- Location: Augusta, Ga.
- Designers: Bobby Jones and Alister MacKenzie
- Par: 72
- Length: 7,545 yards
- Average green size: 6,486 square feet
Past Champions: 2024 Scottie Scheffler, 2023 Jon Rahm, 2022 Scottie Scheffler, 2021 Hideki Matsuyama, 2020 Dustin Johnson, 2019 Tiger Woods, 2018 Patrick Reed, 2017 Sergio Garcia, 2016 Danny Willett, 2015 Jordan Spieth, 2014 Bubba Watson
Betting slip
Collin Morikawa (+1400) is arguably the second-best golfer on the planet right now from tee to green. He gained over 11.6 strokes from tee to green in each of his last two golf tournaments and over 5.7 strokes from tee to green in each of his last three trips to the Masters. The runner-up finishes have been wearing on Morikawa this season, but when he has a chance to win a major championship, he seems to find another gear.
Xander Schauffele (+2000) has been on my betting card since the 2024 Masters ended. He had his breakthrough in 2024, winning two major championships and easily becoming the second-best golfer on the planet. His 2025 season has gotten off to a rough start because of a rib injury, but he showed enough at the Valspar to take a chance on him this week. He gained over 11 strokes on approach at the Valspar and has been gearing up for the 2025 Masters.
Shane Lowry (+4000) has been incredible from tee to green all year. He hasn’t gained fewer than two strokes for the week in any tournament since the Irish Open in mid-September of 2024. He has gained strokes off the tee in three straight trips to the Masters and over 6.5 strokes on approach at the 2024 Masters. He will have to be the best version of himself on the greens to win this week, but the stories it would produce if he won while his good friend Rory McIlroy had to wait another year would write themselves.
Robert MacIntyre (+4500) has been in fine form and happens to be a left-hander who is excellent off the tee, which seems to make him a perfect fit for Augusta National. MacIntyre has four top-11 finishes in his last five tournaments while gaining over five strokes from tee to green in all four made cuts. I may be fudging the numbers a bit, as his official strokes-gained numbers aren’t available for his T9 at the Porsche Singapore Classic. He has two top-25s here in two tries and looks poised to join the big names at the top of the PGA Tour.
Russell Henley (+5000) is a Macon, Georgia native who got pointers from Tom Watson during his first official practice rounds at Augusta National in 2023. He has made seven straight cuts at the Masters and is playing some great golf lately, with a win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and gaining over 5.2 strokes from tee to green in three straight tournaments. His best finish here was a T4 in 2023.
DFS plays
Scottie Scheffler ($12,400) is priced as the most expensive player in the field for good reason. The two-time Masters winner is the betting favorite and is coming off a T2 at the Houston Open, where he gained over 13 strokes on the field. He gained over seven strokes with his putter, which has me a little concerned that he was a bit lucky. He is gaining over six strokes tee-to-green consistently right now, which is great, but it’s a far cry from the 12 to 14 strokes gained tee-to-green he posted in 2022 and 2024 when he won. My ownership will be underweight on Scheffler at this price, but I will watch the projections carefully to see if he ends up becoming a good play based on the projected ownership.
Rory McIlroy ($11,100) comes into this week in the best form he’s had in many years leading into The Masters. He has two wins and two other top-five finishes in his six starts. Throw in the win alongside Scottie Scheffler in “The Showdown,” and he should be a very confident golfer. His biggest issue is that he has never quite figured out the greens at Augusta National. He consistently misses putts that he makes at any other golf course during the year. The window for him to win hasn’t closed, but it feels like it will never happen. (Is this just one big reverse jinx by me?!) If I go above the 10K range, I’m paying for Scottie over Rory this week.
Collin Morikawa ($10,500) See above.
Xander Schauffele ($9,700) See above.
Justin Thomas ($9,600) comes into this week playing some really good golf. He has four top-nine finishes on the season and had a really good chance to win at the Valspar before struggling on holes 17 and 18. He seems to have figured out his putter as he’s gained over 10 strokes combined on the greens in his last two tournaments. His terrible first round at The Players Championship put a dent in his excellent tee-to-green numbers. He missed the cut at the last two Masters and has struggled on the greens and with his approach shots. I believe he will bounce back this season, but I’m not all in on Thomas.
Joaquin Niemann ($9,300) is one of the lone LIV Golf players that I can see making a run this year. He was in excellent form, with two wins, before struggling at LIV Miami last week. He gained over 10.3 strokes from tee to green at LIV Singapore and has gained strokes from tee to green in each of his last three trips to the Masters.
Tommy Fleetwood ($9,100) might go overlooked after his T62 last week at the Valero Texas Open. He struggled a bit from tee to green in his last two outings after being lights out since the BMW in late September 2024. He finished T3 at the Masters last year for his best finish at Augusta National. If the ownership projection comes down on Fleetwood, I may go to him as a pivot from a very popular Shane Lowry at $8,800.
Shane Lowry ($8,800) See above.
Russell Henley ($8,400) See above.
Robert MacIntyre ($8,000) See above.
Corey Conners ($7,900) has gained over 6.8 strokes tee-to-green in each of his last four tournaments while being more consistent with the putter. He had three straight top-10s at the Masters from 2020 to 2022 and is in the type of form that should see him hang around the top of the leaderboard.
Wyndham Clark ($7,700) is an upside play at this price. He is coming off a T5 at the Houston Open, and he has been very good off the tee in each of his last two starts, even with his WD at The Players Championship. The U.S. Open winner has the type of upside you can’t ignore at this price. Mix him in if you can.
Sepp Straka ($7,600) is one of my favorite plays this week. He has gained over four strokes on approach in each of his last four tournaments and has had an incredible year so far. He has made the cut in all three tries at Augusta National and gained over 6.5 strokes from tee to green at the Masters in 2025.
Patrick Reed ($7,300) has been rounding into form coming into the Masters. He has had three top-10 finishes in his last four tournaments while gaining strokes on approach in each tournament. He has made the cut in every Masters since his win in 2018 and has had four top-12 finishes since his win.
Daniel Berger ($7,100) has gained more than 1.5 strokes from tee to green in every tournament since his T2 at the Phoenix Open. I always thought Berger would be a perfect fit for this golf course, but he hasn’t had a top-10 since his first trip here in 2016. Hopefully, now that he’s healthy again, he will find the form he needs to contend here.
Maverick McNealy ($7,100) has had a great season since breaking through with his win at the RSM Classic. He struggled on the Florida swing but looks to be back in form after a T3 at the Valero Texas Open. He gained over 10 strokes combined from tee to green in his last two outings. This is McNealy’s first trip to the Masters, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he finished with a top-20.
Sergio García ($7,100) is in incredible form coming into this Masters. He won LIV Hong Kong in March and has had two other top-four finishes since. He is back to being dominant from tee to green, which bodes well for his chances this week. Don’t sleep on Garcia.
Keegan Bradley ($7,000) hasn’t missed a cut at the Masters since 2014 and has two straight top-25 finishes. He is having a really nice 2025 season and would be looking even better if he hadn’t lost over 12 strokes putting combined at the Valero Texas Open and the Genesis Invitational.
Phil Mickelson ($6,700) is playing well coming into this week with two top-six finishes in his last three tournaments. He is driving it well, gaining over two strokes off the tee in three of his last four tournaments. Mickelson never ceases to amaze when it comes to the Masters, so don’t be surprised if he is among the leaders this week.
Taylor Pendrith ($6,700) is a debutant who could surprise this week with how he can get it going from tee to green. Around the green has been a struggle for Pendrith this year, but he has gained more than a stroke off the tee in nine of his last 10 tournaments while gaining strokes on approach in four straight. He gained over 11 strokes combined with his putter over his last two tournaments.
Lucas Glover ($6,600) is flying under the radar with some incredible form. He has gained over 16.7 strokes combined from tee to green in his last two tournaments. He tied his best finish at the Masters in 2024 with a T20 finish and gained over 3.4 strokes on approach. Laurie Canter may have more upside with his driver at the same price, but I can’t ignore Glover’s form.
Denny McCarthy ($6,500) has five top-18 finishes in his last six starts and is absolutely on fire with his putter, gaining over 20 strokes combined over his last three tournaments. He has gained over two strokes on approach in five of his last six tournaments and has made the cut once here.
Harris English ($6,500) has gained over two strokes off the tee in each of his last two outings, and he has been lights-out with his putter as well. He has made the cut at the Masters in four straight tries and has two top-22 finishes. The former Georgia Bulldog should be pretty popular at this price.
Kevin Yu ($6,300) is a wild-card pick based on my model and how he has performed from tee to green lately. He has gained over 4.1 strokes from tee to green in five of his last six tournaments. He has four top-18 finishes over that same time frame. He struggles with his putter, but his ball-striking form could see him surprise this week.
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(Photo of Rory McIlroy: Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images)
