“Hello, friends”. Golf is back! More importantly, The Masters is back! Not the make-shift November COVID Masters, but the actual April Masters. The REAL Masters. Tiger Woods shook the planet two years ago when he won. But he was non-comital to Jim Nance and the rest of the golf world last weekend when he stated on national television during the Genesis Invitational, a tournament that he hosts, that he was not sure if he could be ready by April to swing a club again. Woods just came off back surgery number 5, and seemingly desperately wants to play again this season, but health comes first.
The 2021 Masters kicks off from Augusta National Golf Club on April 8. Dustin Johnson is your defending champion, at of course the COVID-caused November Masters, and hopes to carry that recent momentum into April.
Johnson is the number one ranked player in the world and is the 6-1 favorite to repeat according to the latest Masters odds as provided by SportsLine over at CBSSports.com. This same computer model also hit a whopping six majors entering the weekend, including Patrick Reed’s 2018 Masters win. SportsLine simulated the 2021 Masters event 10,000 times, and the results were unexpected.
In most models four-time major champion and one of the top favorites in April, Brooks Koepka failing to crack the top 10. Koepka has been inconsistent save for his win at Phoenix earlier this month, failing to hit fairways off the tee.
In another surprise, Daniel Berger, a 40-1 long shot makes a strong run, and most experts say he’s got a much better chance to win it all than his odds imply. Berger has been hot since the tour resumed last June, with two victories, five top-three finishes, and seven top-tens.
2021 Masters odds
Dustin Johnson 6-1
Jon Rahm 10-1
Rory McIlroy 10-1
Brooks Koepka 11-1
Bryson DeChambeau 11-1
Justin Thomas 11-1
Xander Schauffele 16-1
Patrick Reed 25-1
Jordan Spieth 25-1
Patrick Cantlay 25-1
Tyrrell Hatton 28-1
Collin Morikawa 30-1
Webb Simpson 33-1
Hideki Matsuyama 33-1
Tony Finau 33-1
Harris English 40-1
Paul Casey 40-1
Tiger Woods 40-1
Matthew Wolff 40-1
Jason Day 40-1
Sungjae Im 40-1
Bubba Watson 40-1
Daniel Berger 40-1
Viktor Hovland 40-1
Tommy Fleetwood 45-1
Justin Rose 50-1
Cameron Smith 50-1
Joaquin Niemann 50-1
Adam Scott 50-1
Scottie Scheffler 50-1
Louis Oosthuizen 60-1
Cameron Champ 66-1
Rickie Fowler 66-1
Matthew Fitzpatrick 66-1
Shane Lowry 66-1
Sergio Garcia 66-1
Abraham Ancer 66-1
Will Zalatoris 66-1
Marc Leishman 80-1
Russell Henley 80-1
Francesco Molinari 80-1
Phil Mickelson 80-1
Jason Kokrak 80-1
Carlos Ortiz 80-1
Robert Macintyre 80-1
Si-Woo Kim 100-1
Lee Westwood 100-1
Gary Woodland 100-1
Dylan Frittelli 125-1
Christiaan Bezuidenhout 125-1
Corey Conners 125-1
Ian Poulter 125-1
Billy Horschel 125-1
Sebastian Munoz 125-1
Kevin Kisner 125-1
Matt Kuchar 125-1
Matt Wallace 125-1
Henrik Stenson 125-1
Danny Willett 125-1
Kevin Na 125-1
Zach Johnson 150-1
Erik van Rooyen 150-1
Ryan Palmer 150-1
Bernd Wiesberger 200-1
Hudson Swafford 200-1
Brendon Todd 200-1
Brandt Snedeker 200-1
Lanto Griffin 200-1
Mackenzie Hughes 200-1
C.T. Pan 200-1
Victor Perez 200-1
Would it be great for Tiger to be there? Absolutely. But whether Tiger shows up or not, it’s Masters time again. And I couldn’t be happier. “Hello, friends”. <Insert CBS Masters Theme here in your head> See you in April!
