GOLF: McIlroy arrives at Augusta unburdened as Scheffler leads Masters odds

AUGUSTA, Georgia – Rory McIlroy arrives at Augusta National Golf Club this week as the defending Masters champion and, for the first time in over a decade, free from the constant questions about when he will complete the career Grand Slam.

Talk of McIlroy winning the Masters had become an April tradition in the golf world, but now the Northern Irishman can enjoy a new sense of relief as he drives down the picturesque Magnolia Lane that leads to the Augusta National clubhouse.

“I’d like to start this press conference with a question myself,” McIlroy said with a smile shortly after his Masters triumph. “What are we all going to talk about next year?”

McIlroy, who endured both heartbreak and near misses at the Masters before 2025, showcased his grit and talent last year by overcoming a topsy-turvy final round with a birdie at the first playoff hole to secure his breakthrough victory.

Now 36, McIlroy, the sixth man in history to complete the career Grand Slam and whose best result this season has been a runner-up finish at Riviera, will attempt a rare Masters repeat.

No player has won the Masters in consecutive years since Tiger Woods in 2001-02. Before that, only Nick Faldo (1989-90) and Jack Nicklaus (1965-66) managed the Augusta double.

Top-Ranked Scheffler Eyes Third Masters Title

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who is seeking a third Green Jacket in the last five years, holds the shortest odds of any golfer in the field. Scheffler increased his career major tally to four with wins at the PGA Championship and British Open in 2025 and has never finished outside the top 20 in his six Masters starts.

Scheffler, who opened the season with a four-shot victory in his first event, withdrew from his Masters tune-up in Houston—not due to injury but because of the impending birth of his second child, who arrived last week.

He arrived at Augusta National on Sunday with his wife and two sons, having last competed three weeks ago at the Players Championship, where he tied for 22nd place.

With no players capable of completing the career Grand Slam this week, the pressure shifts to high-profile golfers still chasing an elusive Green Jacket. That group includes LIV Golf’s Bryson DeChambeau, Justin Rose—the man McIlroy beat in last year’s playoff—and two-time major winner Xander Schauffele.

DeChambeau Arrives at Augusta in Top Form

DeChambeau, a two-time U.S. Open champion who finished a Masters career-best fifth last year, is in strong form, having won each of the last two LIV events in Singapore and South Africa.

At last year’s Masters, it was DeChambeau’s short game that let him down. This year, he will need precise distance control with his irons if he hopes to become the first golfer to win a Green Jacket while competing for LIV.

Rose, enjoying a late-career renaissance, recorded 10 birdies in his final-round 66 to reach the playoff with McIlroy in 2025, becoming one of nine players to finish runner-up at Augusta National at least three times.

The 45-year-old Englishman has 15 top-25 finishes in 20 Masters starts and earlier this year captured his 13th PGA Tour win with a wire-to-wire victory at Torrey Pines.

Schauffele and Rahm Among Other Contenders

Schauffele, who has finished inside the top 10 at Augusta National in five of the past seven years, is coming off a year-long recovery from a rib injury and remains one of the game’s most complete players.

Spaniard Jon Rahm, who won his second major at the 2023 Masters before joining LIV eight months later, arrives with strong form this season. Rahm has a win and three runner-up finishes on LIV this year and leads the circuit’s season-long individual standings.

For the second consecutive year, five-time champion Tiger Woods will miss the Masters, stepping away to seek treatment after pleading not guilty to a DUI arrest stemming from a rollover crash.

-Reporting by Frank Pingue; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne/Reuters