Masters 2012: Preview, Tee Times, & More for Thursday

The top players in the world will descend upon Augusta National this week for the season's first major: The Masters.

With big names like Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, and Phil Mickelson headlining the elite field, this year's Masters should be electrifying to watch.

Hunter Mahan is red hot after his recent victory at the Shell Houston Open last week so look out for him. Of course, Tiger will always be a factor at the majors, but even more so now, after his win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Luke Donald and Rory McIlroy have traded punches throughout their rivalry. Both have captured a victory in 2012 and have also claimed the world No. 1 ranking.

The young guns, like Keegan Bradley and Bubba Watson, have put on great performances all season long and should give the veterans a run for their money this week.

On Thursday, the top players in the world will tee off in the first round. Let's take a look at the pairings and tee times set for the first round:

Tee time		Player	Player	Player
7:50 a.m.		Craig Stadler	Brendan Steele	Tim Clark
8:01 a.m.		Jose Maria Olazabal	Robert Garrigus	Randal Lewis
8:12 a.m.		Larry Mize	Paul Lawrie	Anders Hansen
8:23 a.m.		Ross Fisher	Ryan Palmer	Harrison Frazar
8:34 a.m.		Ben Crenshaw	Robert Karlsson	Bryden Macpherson
8:45 a.m.		Adam Scott	Bo Van Pelt	Martin Kaymer
8:56 a.m.		Steve Stricker	Padraig Harrington	Stewart Cink
9:07 a.m.		Aaron Baddeley	Kyung-Tae Kim	Lucas Glover
9:18 a.m.		Kyle Stanley	Jason Day	Bill Haas
9:29 a.m.		Trevor Immelman	Rickie Fowler	Justin Rose
9:40 a.m.		Tom Watson	Johnson Wagner	Hideki Matsuyama
10:02 a.m.		Matt Kuchar	Geoff Ogilvy	Y.E. Yang
10:13 a.m.		Gary Woodland	Henrik Stenson	Alvaro Quiros
10:24 a.m.		Charl Schwartzel	Keegan Bradley	Kelly Kraft
10:35 a.m.		Tiger Woods	Miguel A. Jimenez	Sang-Moon Bae
10:46 a.m.		Luke Donald	Francesco Molinari	Nick Watney
10:57 a.m.		Scott Verplank	Sean O’Hair	Gonzalo Fdz-Castano
11:08 a.m.		Mark O’Meara	Chez Reavie	Martin Laird
11:19 a.m.		Sandy Lyle	Simon Dyson	Corbin Mills
11:30 a.m.		Ian Woosnam	Edoardo Molinari	Kevin Chappell
11:41 a.m.		Louis Oosthuizen	Mark Wilson	Graeme McDowell
11:51 a.m.		Zach Johnson	Ian Poulter	Patrick Cantlay
12:14 p.m.		Kevin Na	Fredrik Jacobson	Ben Crane
12:25 p.m.		John Senden	Jonathan Byrd	Paul Casey
12:35 p.m.		Bernhard Langer	Jason Dufner	Charles Howell III
12:47 p.m.		Mike Weir	Brandt Snedeker	Webb Simpson
12:58 p.m.		Vijay Singh	Lee Westwood	Jim Furyk
1:09 p.m.		Thomas Bjorn	Scott Stallings	Rory Sabbatini
1:20 p.m.		Fred Couples	Darren Clarke	Ryo Ishikawa
1:31 p.m.		David Toms	K.J. Choi	Sergio Garcia
1:42 p.m.		Angel Cabrera	Rory McIlroy	Bubba Watson
1:53 p.m.		Phil Mickelson	Hunter Mahan	Peter Hanson

For more information about tee times and pairings visit: http://tourreport.pgatour.com/2012/04/03/pairings-released-phil-out-last-in-first-round/

Live Coverage:

Thu: ESPN: 3p-7:30p

Fri: ESPN: 3p-7:30p

Sat: CBS: 3:30p-7p

Sun: CBS: 2p-7p

(All times Eastern)