Golf Masters 2023: Augusta National Qualifiers & Tournament Overview

Golf Masters 2023: Augusta National Tournament Overview

By Blake Roberts Founder & Editor in Chief Updated: 28 March 2023

Blake Roberts Founder & Editor in Chief

Blake Roberts is the founder of Betting.US and is currently heading the creative team as Editor in Chief. Born and raised in Morgantown, West Virginia, Blake is a great sports fan, with football and basketball being his favorite. He’s our trusted voice for all betting-related matters.

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Augusta National Masters: The Entrants & The Field

The Augusta National Masters, like the other Masters and PGA Championships, is an invitational tournament. Hence, there will be no qualifying tournaments held in Augusta. Golfers ranked in the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) will receive their invitations and makeup about half the field. The other 40-50 golfers will have to match the pre-set criteria of the tournament to receive their respective invites.

It is undoubtedly one of the most prestigious golf tournaments on the calendar, with a purse of $15 million. The 87th edition of the edition seems exciting and promising for several reasons. One of them will be the intense competition amongst the world’s best golfers in an effort to get that coveted green jacket around themselves. Another reason is the potential participation of five-time Masters Champion Tiger Woods.

The 47-year-old featured in the Genesis Open in February and finished T45. Woods has already clarified that he will only focus on the majors after his surgeries. Last year, the Masters veteran aimed to play all four majors and competed in three. This year, the target is back to four majors and probably a couple more tournaments if Woods is fit enough. His first could be the Augusta National Masters, where he will be up against extremely tough competitors.

The biggest competitor is World Number one, Scottie Scheffler, who won the previous edition of this tournament by three strokes over World Number three, Rory McIlroy. That was Scheffler’s first-ever Masters’ title in a tournament where Woods stole the spotlight as he made his first PGA Tour appearance two years after the dreaded car accident. A similar situation is expected this time, but Scheffler will not be bothered about the limelight as long as he gets to defend his title.

The 26-year-old will look to replicate last year’s performance, where he started off by shooting a 69 in R1 and then a 67 in R2. In R3 and R4, Scheffler recorded scores of 71, thereby finishing ten under par and winning his first major. In the same year, Scheffler nabbed victories at WM Phoenix Open, the Arnold Palmer Invitational Tournament, and the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play to consolidate his position at the summit of the OWGR.

This year, the World Number one has already defended his WM Phoenix Open title after winning the 2023 edition in February. Scheffler finished with a final score of -19 ahead of surprise package Nick Taylor and World Number two Jon Rahm, who has been in scintillating form this year. The momentum is with Scheffler as he will come into the Masters after winning The Players Championship, dubbed the fifth major, earlier this month.

While Scheffler has bagged two titles this year, Rahm has won three tournaments and will aim to nab his second major in Augusta. The Spaniard won the Tournament of Champions at the Kapalua Plantation Course in January, finishing with a total score of -27. Later that month, the World Number two clinched his second title of the year after emerging victorious in The American Express Tournament at the PGA WEST Private Clubhouse & Golf Courses.

After finishing third in Phoenix, Rahm bounced back in the Genesis Open at the Riviera Golf Course, finishing with a total score of -17 to clinch victory. Hideki Matsuyama will be amongst the perennial contenders alongside Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas. Matsuyama has won only one major title. That came when the Japanese won the 2021 edition of the Augusta National Tournament, becoming the first Asian-born player to win the Masters.

The challenging layout at Augusta National suits Matsuyama’s gameplay. He is still the only Asian-born player to win this tournament. However, that could change if World Number 18 Im Sung-Jae brings his A-game to the carpet and goes all the way. In 2020, the South Korean finished T4 with Justin Thomas, five shots behind Dustin Johnson, Dylan Fritelli, and Paul Casey, who all tied for first place

The Masters has produced surprise winners in the past and could do the same again if World Number eight Will Zalatoris goes all the way. 2023 is a promising year for the 26-year-old who was a runner-up in two majors last year. In total, Zalatoris has finished second in three majors in the past two years. This year could be the one in which Zalatoris can take the extra step and finally touch the summit at a major.