Who will win The Masters? Betting tips and tournament picks

Everything you need to know ahead of the year’s first major

Hideki Matsuyama celebrates winning The Masters (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

The world’s eyes return to the Augusta National as The Masters gets underway this week.

Hideki Matsuyama defends the Green Jacket but all eyes will be on Tiger Woods this week as the five-time champion prepares to make his first competitive appearance since his horrific car crash last year.

Woods is still understandably seen as an outsider to win, with Jon Rahm the favourite with the bookmakers. However, he is very closely followed by Justin Thomas, Cameron Smith and new world No 1 Scottie Scheffler.

Rory McIlroy is still aiming to complete the career grand slam while Jordan Spieth is chasing a first major since his resurgence to form. Brooks Koepka and Collin Morikawa are both considered strong contenders to add to their major haul too.

Here is everything you need to know:

When is it?

The Masters is held over four days at Augusta National Golf Club in the state of Georgia, beginning on Thursday 7 April and concluding on Sunday 10 April.

How can I watch it online and on TV?

Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch all of the action from The Masters on Sky Sports, with coverage across the weekend on the Main Event and Golf channels. Sky subscribers can stream The Masters via Sky Go,

For the first two rounds on Thursday and Friday, featured groups will be shown from 2pm BST, before full coverage begins at 7.30pm.

Coverage of Round Three on Saturday starts at 7.30pm while the final round will be shown live from 6.30pm.

The BBC will also show highlights at the end of each day’s play, starting at just after midnight BST on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday morning. They will also be available on the BBC iPlayer.

Previous Winners:

• 2021: Hideki Matsuyama
• 2020: Dustin Johnson
• 2019: Tiger Woods
• 2018: Patrick Reed
• 2017: Sergio Garcia

Picks

Favourites

Scottie Scheffler - It’s impossible to look past Scheffler in current form, having won three of the last five events he’s appeared in, including the WGC Match Play. The new No 1 has enjoyed going under the radar with all the attention on Woods but nobody in the world is in better form.

Cameron Smith - The Players’ champion has a brilliant record at Augusta, with three top-10 finishes in four appearances, and is in the best form of his career.

Outsiders

Will Zalatoris - The young American finished second last year on his Masters debut and has enjoyed a brilliant start to his career on the PGA Tour, with top-10 finishes at the PGA Championship and the US Open too.

Tommy Fleetwood - The Englishman has never won on American soil but has enjoyed an uplift in form recently and has twice finished in the top-20 at Augusta. He’s also had two second-place finishes at a major.

Odds

Jon Rahm 11/1

Justin Thomas 12/1

Cameron Smith 14/1

Scottie Scheffler 14/1

Dustin Johnson 16/1

Collin Morikawa 18/1

Brooks Koepka 20/1

Viktor Hovland 20/1

Jordan Spieth 20/1

Rory McIlroy 20/1

Xander Schauffele 22/1

Patrick Cantlay 22/1