Masters preview: Rory McIlroy’s quest, the fight for No. 1 and Phil Mickelson takes a pass

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This article was published 06/04/2022 (1635 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

April always brings plenty of exciting moments on the sports calendar, but there is no more iconic theatre than Augusta National Golf Club. And the return of Tiger Woods, just 14 months after a car crash that almost cost him his right leg, has generated the most Masters buzz in recent memory. But what about, well, everyone else? Here are six more storylines to watch, starting Thursday.

Rory Slam

This will mark Rory McIlroy’s eighth attempt to complete a career Grand Slam. He has won four major tournaments in all (the 2011 U.S. Open, 2012 and 2014 PGA Championship, and 2014 Open Championship) but the Masters has eluded him. His best result at Augusta National is fourth in 2015. He missed the cut at last week’s Valero Texas Open (the first time in eight years that he’s teed it up the week prior to Augusta) and at the last Masters. However, he’s also notched six top-10 results in his last eight trips around the storied layout. Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen are the only golfers who have won all four.

Looking out for No. 1

Scottie Scheffler recently ascended to No. 1 in the world rankings after his third win in five starts on the PGA Tour. However, there’s volatility at the top. Several golfers have a mathematical chance of taking Scheffler’s spot, including Cam Smith, Patrick Cantlay, Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa and Jon Rahm, who has finished inside the top 10 in each of the last four Masters.

Course tweaks

There were no changes to Augusta National in 2020 and 2021, but two holes have been lengthened this year. The par-4 11th is 15 yards longer, while the par-5 15th will play 20 yards longer. Mounds have also been recontoured on 11 fairways, making the area surrounding the green more penal. “Overall, I think it’s going to play tougher than it has in previous years,” McIlroy said about the 11th hole, “and it was already one of the toughest holes on the course.”

Major droughts

Some young stars already have major championship pedigree (Morikawa, the 25-year-old world No. 3, has won two of the last seven majors) but others are still looking to break through. At 25, Scheffler has not finished outside the top 20 in any of the last six majors, but has yet to win one. Other notables without a major: Hovland (ranked No. 4), Cantlay (No. 5 and the reigning FedExCup champion) and Xander Schauffele (No. 10, with a pair of recent top-three Masters finishes).

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Where’s Phil?

Phil Mickelson, a three-time winner, won’t be in the Masters field for the first time since 1995, and didn’t attend Tuesday’s champions dinner. Past champions have an open invitation, but Mickelson has stepped away from the game since some controversial comments about a new Saudi-backed rival golf league. His name was removed from entry list on March 21. Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said Wednesday that the club did not “disinvite” Mickelson, who texted Ridley in “late February, early March” to pull out.

The Canadians

Corey Conners, Mackenzie Hughes and Mike Weir will form the Canadian contingent, just like last time. Weir is the only Canadian ever to don the green jacket, in 2003. On Wednesday, Weir and Hughes were co-winners of the annual Par 3 contest, which was cut short by bad weather.

Adam Stanley is an Ottawa-based contributor to the Star’s Sports section and the host of golf podcast Next Round’s On Me. Follow him on Twitter: @adam_stanley