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The year’s first major championship is here, and it’s staged on golf’s grandest stage of tradition in the game. The setting is fit for peak levels of drama, standoffs, and gossip and Augusta National is the definition of a fancy schmancy country club golf venue to fit the bill. The cast of characters is a wonderfully messy mix of the world’s best golfers who have taken two very different paths with careers and lives in recent months. The tension in the air is palpable as several LIV Golf Tour members are back playing in the same tournament as their PGA Tour counterparts.
After months of tee-throwing, spirited jabs, and snarky rebuttals at press conferences between the rival tour members, everyone in golf who wants to live in history converges at The Masters. The drama will surely get going on the driving range Monday, and ramp up with the annual champions dinner hosted by Scottie Scheffler on Tuesday night. Then, as players tee it up for real, the conversation turns to who can take down the first major of 2023. Will the PGA Tour’s unofficial commissioner Rory raise the trophy to complete the career Grand Slam and flip the bird to LIV Golfers? Or, will a LIV Golf member grab the most significant win of their career and change the landscape of the game? Let’s get to the major players on both sides and how they will fare:
Ninth Green at Nine?
Scottie Scheffler jokingly wedged in the Happy Gilmore reference in his champions dinner invite, but he absolutely put that energy out there for a potential feud to ensue on golf’s most hallowed grounds. Even with Scottie’s Masterful Menu, he put together you still can’t save the awkwardness about to ensue. With a whopping SEVEN LIV Tour Golfers represented annually at this dinner that you’re invited to for life, you have to figure the verbal sparring can’t be held back the entire night. Between Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed, and Sergio Garcia there’s not much filter at this point in time for any of them, and that’s less than half of the contingent representing the new offshoot tour on Tuesday night in the Augusta National clubhouse. There should be some sort of fireworks that emerge during tournament week, and I’m here for it.
LIV Golf Favorites at the Masters
Beyond the contingent of past Masters champions that will forever tee it up at Augusta National each April, there are other LIV Tour golfers that are still eligible via their past status and current world ranking which gets them at least one more shot at a Green Jacket in 2023. Defending champion at The Open Cam Smith leads the way at 18/1 odds amongst LIV golfers competing, followed closely by Dustin Johnson (22/1), and Brooks Koepka and Joaquin Niemann at 50/1 to win. You have to move pretty far down the board to find a struggling Bryson DeChambeau at 75/1 odds, and a thinner richer Phil Mickelson at 200/1, despite owning three green jackets.
Alex’s LIV Plays:
Dustin Johnson 22/1
Joaquin Niemann 50/1
Abraham Ancer 80/1
PGA Tour Favorites at the Masters
You don’t have to move your eyes anywhere along the board to find the Big Three of golf in 2023 atop the Masters betting odds to win. Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, and Rory McIlroy all sit around +750 or +800 to win, and lately, on the PGA Tour, it’s been mandatory to have at least one of the three on your card. Rahm has had close calls at Augusta, Scottie defends his title and Rory chases the career grand slam – storylines galore at the top of the mountain. After that we see a litany of Netflix “Full Swing” stars as potential green jacket recipients Justin THomas and Collin Morikawa have the look and the feel of a Masters champion, but haven’t gotten there yet. The two of them and Jordan Spieth all sit around +2000 in the second tier of contenders from the main tour.
Alex’s PGA Tour Plays:
Rory McIlroy 8/1
Justin Thomas 20/1
Will Zalatoris 25/1
Who to Take: LIV or PGA Tour at Augusta?
In the end, when it comes to the action on the course and which golfers are going to be most ready to contend, it’s the PGA Tour’s brass that is charging through the middle of their season and taking on many more competitive reps. You have to figure in the mental and physical stamina of 72 holes of major championship golf, and at this point, LIV golfers haven’t been testing their games the way they normally would have headed into a major championship season. I’ll still be sprinkling a couple of plays on past champions to contend, and my oh my would that be a storyline if one or more are contending to win. Overall, a majority of my picks will be leaning toward the PGA Tour’s top talent until the LIV elite can prove there isn’t any rust to shake off.
Golf FAQs
How do PGA Golf Majors Pools work?
In PGA Golf Majors Pools, member select six golfers to compete on a roster over the course of an event. The member with the best combined score from the six golfers wins.
Can you include all four majors into one pool?
Yes, but your commissioner can also customize these setting with RunYourPool. Pools can include up to all four majors, repicking golfers each time or adding bonus points for finishing positions
How do I assemble a roster?
Golfers are broken up in to six tiers, as members select one golfer per tier to be on their Major roster.
What happens to golfers who miss the cut?
Any PGA Player who does not make the cut will be given the highest score of Round 3 and Round 4, respectively.
What are the four golf majors?
The Masters is the first major of the season, in April. The PGA Championship and the U.S. Open follow, with the British Open ending as the final major.
How do PGA One and Dones work?
Members in a pool select one golfer to win a tournament, but can't pick that golfer again for the rest of the season. The member with the best score at the end of the season wins.
What is a PGA One and Done pool?
A PGA One-and-Done Pool is a contest similar to Survivor Pools, in which members can only select a golfer one time per season for events.
Which tournaments are played for PGA One and Dones?
Pool commissioners can set up the season for as many or as few tournaments as desired. Go crazy and do all of them! Or dial it back for the major events. As commissioner of a RunYourPool contest, you decide which events to play in!
How to run a weekly golf pool?
In order to run a golf pool, you must first crown yourself as Pool Commissioner. Begin by picking a game type like One and Done or Pick-X Pools. You'll want to establish rules before inviting friends, family, and colleagues to join. As commissioner, you make the rules and also need to enforce them equally and fairly.
How do golf Pick-X Pools work?
Members select a certain number of golfers per tournament, set by the pool commissioner. The member earns the total winnings that their selected golfer won for the tournament. Whichever member earns the most winnings over the duration of the season wins.
What is a golf Pick-X Pool?
A Pick-X Golf Pool calculates tournament winnings rather than strokes gained when deciding a winner. This amplifies the big name events that feature a higher prize purse.
How to run a golf pool?
How you decide to run a golf pool varies greatly depending on the game type. In each case, however, you'll want to determine the rules and settings before you begin inviting members to join you. You'll want to clearly establish how score will be kept, how tiebreakers work, and how winners are decided before anything else.
What is a prop bet?
Prop bets are any sort of pick or wager on a game that has nothing to do with the score or the final score outcome. Props can range from game types, to team types and even player types - such as who will score the game's first and last touchdowns? Other props, such as novelty or exotic, feature bets on things such as the coin flip or the Super Bowl Halftime Show.
How do Masters Prop Bets Pools work?
Pool members simply fill out a wide range of prop questions, each question worth a different value. Commissioners decide on the point value for each question, along with the amount of questions. Whichever member earns the most points based on corret answers wins the pool.
When is the Masters?
The Masters is typically in April and the first major of the golf season. The 2023 Masters is set for Thursday, April 6 and will run until Sunday, April 9.
Where is the Masters played?
The Masters is annually held at the Augusta National Golf Club located in Augusta, Georgia, USA.
