The lush greens, the blooming azaleas, the soft soothing voice of Jim Nantz, the most beautiful weekend in golf is upon us. It's Masters week!
For four glorious days, the best golfers in the world will attempt to tailor their own green jacket and win the first major of 2023. Winning the Masters places you in an exclusive club of champions and while those reading this will likely never play the Augusta National course let alone win there, some may become victorious at the sports book.
It's time to bet the Masters.
The first two rounds are Thursday, April 6 and Friday, April 7 with coverage all day on the Masters app and ESPN. The final two rounds are Saturday, April 8 and Sunday, April 9 with overage on the Masters app and CBS. Plenty of time for you to snuggle up on the couch, find your favorite throw pillow and enjoy the calmness of competition.
On April 6, 88 golfers will tee off at different times throughout the day aiming to complete all 18 wondrous holes with the least amount of swings possible. As we know in golf, the lowest score wins. They'll then do it all over again on Friday before facing the dreaded cut.
After Friday, the bottom half of the leaderboard is sent home with their tails between their legs and are cut from the field. The final 44 players move on to play the course both Saturday and Sunday, and after 72 arduous holes a winner is crowned and dons a sharp green jacket for the rest of their life.
There are a myriad of bets one can make during the weekend giving you endless players to root for. Whether you are picking the overall winner or picking whether someone will get a hole-in-one. Let's break down all the ways to win at betting the Masters.
Picking who will nab the green jacket as Sunday concludes is a very tough bet to hit as there are so many viable options and so many ways it can go wrong. However, the odds are in your favor. Even a bet on the heaviest favorite would still multiply your winnings by eight.
Here are some studs to focus on.
Rory McIlroy
McIlroy, famously, has never won the Masters tournament but he has come very close. He has six top-10 finishes in his past as well as four victories at golf's other majors. Rory has been chasing Augusta for a long time. With him being the face of the PGA Tour, could it be his time to complete the career grand slam?
Cam Smith
Smith had a Herculean 2022. He won three tournaments, including a major, and was voted the PGA player of the year. Then, he left the PGA, joining the Saudi backed LIV golf tour and turning his back on traditional professional golf. He is still competing at the Masters, as are many LIV golfers, and has made it known that he does not appreciate the commentary surrounding the competition at LIV. He is that tour's best chance at winning a major this year and this will be the first test of how his sharp his game has remained since leaving the PGA.
Will Zalatoris
The 26-year-old out of San Francisco looks like a pencil, but don't underestimate him. His game is solid and he has come SO CLOSE to glory at the majors. Three times he has finished second at golf's biggest events, including a playoff loss at last year's PGA Championship. If you enjoy betting on the bridesmaid, take a gander at Willy Z.
There are other tons of other bets to make outside of picking a champion.
Matchup Bets
Whittle the field down to a simple one-on-one competition. FanDuel lists many Tournament Match Bets that pit one golfer versus another and you're tasked with picking who will have a better weekend. It's a great way to root for a favorite golfer of yours without needing them to beat the entire field. Just one similarly talented foe.
Make the Cut
As we explained above, after Friday's round concludes, half of the field is sent home packing. Pick a golfer to survive that slaughter and you could be winning money before the weekend. While many of the favorites at heavily favored to make the cut, pick a fun underdog to root for. Survive through the struggle!
Winning Region
Feel like dusting off your American Flag shorts and rooting for the homeland? The Masters has you covered. Pick that the champion hails from the USA and you get a slew of golfers to root for including Jordan Speith, Collin Morikawa, and The Big Chef Scottie Scheffler. They're all now a part of your team as you're rooting for someone, anyone from the US to come out on top. Go Sports!
Speaking of fun Americans to root for...
FanDuel has a whole section dedicated to Tiger Woods bets. Even though the old sabertooth is past his prime, his roar still makes the field shudder. Tiger turned back the clock in 2019 to win this very tournament in grand fashion and could be in line to do the same.
Here are some of the fun Tiger bets.
Tiger to win the Masters
Plain and simple, this is a bet that the weekend ends with Tiger nabbing his 16th major and sixth green jacket. The world would also tilt on its axis and all the world's problems would be solved. It's a longshot.
Tiger to lead after Round 1
Don't feel like waiting til Sunday for your bet to cash? Take Tiger (or any other golfer) to be the leader after Thursday's round concludes. While the Round 1 leader might not hold onto the belt after the weekend is done, it's always fun to hope your guy gets out of the gate fast while the murmurs of a historic run begin.
Tiger makes a hole-in-one +6500
Sometimes one shot is all you need. This would be a fantastic, if otherwise an unlikely outcome. As this viral clip breaks the internet you can gloat amongst your friends for the rest of your life. "Hey, remember when Tiger hit that hole in one at the 2023 Masters? Yeah, I had that."
With our bets placed and our players picked, Thursday can not come soon enough. I'll be dreaming every night til then for Jim Nantz to give us one last Hello friends.