For anyone who’s never been to the Masters, it truly is an experience and a tradition unlike any other, and part of that is because there’s so much to watch, to take notes of — things that, by themselves aside from the actual game of golf taking place, could easily draw your attention in.
While walking the course Thursday afternoon, several things caught my attention regarding the overall ambiance of the 88th Masters’ opening round.
TIGER WOODS STILL A DRAW
In fact, although well past his prime, just his name alone is still a draw. As his 3:54 p.m. first round tee time approached on Thursday, the first tee was already teeming with patrons trying to catch a glimpse of the five-time Masters champion teeing off for his 26th start at Augusta National. Woods got his first big cheer of the day before he even approached the tee. It happened when his name card was placed at the top of his three-man grouping, signaling his soon arrival. Once his name placard went up, a boisterous cheer erupted from the crowd of patrons. Woods started the day strong with a birdie on 1 and par at 2 — only the second time in his career that’s he’s carded such a start. A solid crowd followed him through the better part of his first four rounds before tapering off a bit as sunlight began to wane. Woods’ first round was halted after hole No. 13 due to darkness, and he and his group that included Jason Day and Max Homa finished round one from 14 at 7:50 a.m. Friday and Woods carded a 1-over 73. Woods was slated to tee off for round two Friday at 10:18 a.m.
WOODS WASN’T BEST IN HIS GROUP
Even though Tiger’s time as an obvious favorite in major tournaments has passed, there’s still plenty of people who want to see the “Big Cat” win. Which makes it easy for a non-diehard golf fan to ignore the fact that Max Homa, by far, played the best golf out of the Woods-Day-Homa trio. Homa carded a 5-under 67 first round which put him in T3 position with Nicolai Hojgaard, just two strokes back from round one leader Bryson DeChambeau. So while Woods will be fighting to make the round two cut, Homa is actually positioned to contend for the board’s top spot with DeChambeau and Scottie Scheffler.
WINDS WERE NOT A GOLFER’S FRIEND
The word for the day, regardless of who it came from, was patience. But that’s typically the case for a golfer when you’re dealing with the kind of swirling winds that permeated Augusta National Thursday. It stayed steady at about 20-25 miles per hour with gusts that hit as high as 40 at certain points. And it was a kind of swirling wind that made conditions more than tough.
“The wind was all over the place,” Woods said at the end of his partial round Thursday. “It was one of the most tricky days that I’ve ever been a part of. It was hard to get a beat not only on what direction it was gig, but the intensity, and it kept switching all over the place, and then you had to — the timing was affecting putts on the greens. It was a very difficult day.
Both DeChambeau and Scheffler echoed similar sentiments regarding the wind, and both of them cited the word “patience” as the rule of the day. Ryan Fox, who finished T7 after a strong round one start Thursday, called it “awkward.”
“Ten, 11, 12 [Thursday] were really tough,” Fox said. “Straight into the wind. I think we played 10 and 11 in and out of the left, which is, especially on 10, a pretty awkward wind for that hole.”
If weather forecasts hold true, the wind will continue to be a factor for Friday’s second round. Though sunny skies and temps in the mid 70s should prevail, the National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory for the area until Friday evening at 8 p.m. Winds are expected to be from the West at 15 to 20 mph with gusts around 40.
A 1-OVER CUT EXPECTED
After the first round officially came to a close Friday morning even as other golfers were simultaneously starting their second round play, the projected cut for the weekend is 1 over with 53 players currently in position to keep playing Saturday. The top 50 players and ties will make the weekend cut after Friday night’s second round action. And if that projection holds true, it keeps notable names like Woods, Brooks Kopek, Phil Mickelson and 2023 Green Jacket winner Jon Rahm in play, while players such as 2015 champion Jordan Spieth, 2021 champion Hideki Matsuyama and 2024 Par 3 champion Rickie Fowler out of contention.
HOW TO WATCH
You can still catch live streaming action at the Masters’ website, along with keeping abreast of the leaderboard throughout Friday’s second round. ESPN’s live coverage of begins at 3 p.m. EDT.
