Que the soothing piano sounds — the Masters is back.
With the azaleas in full bloom, golf’s best field has descended on Augusta National in what is the most anticipated Masters tournament in history.
For the first time since 2015, Tiger Woods is returning to golf’s hallowed grounds to compete for his fifth career green jacket. The 14-time major champion has looked phenomenal during his return from spinal-fusion surgery and is fully healthy entering the year’s first major for the first time since 2013.
But Woods isn’t the only star golfer who likely will be in contention come Sunday, so here are five golfers who have a chance to take home the green jacket.
Tiger Woods:Â Let’s start with the man everyone is talking about. Woods knows Augusta National arguably better than anyone in the history of golf. Even when he was fighting both his health and his game, Woods always performs at the Masters. In 2015, Woods showed up at Augusta having not played competitive golf in two months and tied for 17th. He has 13 top 10s in 18 starts at Augusta and has finished outside the top 25 just once. His game has been sharp of late, as Woods has carded back-to-back top 10 finishes in his last two starts.
Phil Mickelson: Woods isn’t the only legendary golfer who has had a resurgent season in 2018. Mickelson won for the first time in almost five years at the WGC-Mexico Championship in March and is second on tour in strokes gained through the first three months of the season, trailing only world No. 1 Dustin Johnson. The 47-year-old’s putter has been on fire, and when Lefty has the flat stick working, he’s hard to beat.
Justin Rose:Â Rose was so close to his second major title in 2017, losing to Sergio Garcia in a playoff to miss out on the green jacket. 2018 could be the Englishman’s year, though. Rose has 13 top 10s in 16 starts this season and has been brilliant at Augusta in his career. He has the best score relative to par at the Masters since 2011, and the most birdies and eagles since 2012. He also has the best Par-4 scoring average and greens in regulation percentage at the Masters in the last five years. He’ll be there on Sunday.
Jordan Spieth:Â Three weeks ago, Spieth looked lost and frustrated. But he appeared to get his confidence back last week at the Shell Houston Open and comes to a place he has owned in his career. Spieth has played 16 rounds at Augusta and led or co-led after eight of them. His average single-round score at Augusta is 70.4, which would be the best in Masters history for those who have played at least 25 rounds. He’s simply brilliant at the Masters.
Rory McIlroy:Â Is this the year? After three straight back-door top 10s, the Northern Irishman can complete the career grand slam with a win this week. He trails only Rose in birdies since 2012 and has played the Par 5s in 52-under-par in his career at Augusta. Oh, and he has the fourth-best scoring average in Masters history. If he can get off to a good start, the weekend will be fun for Rory.
