The Masters 2015: Complete TV and Live Stream Guide for Opening Round
The opening major of the year finally gets under way on Thursday as the 2015 Masters kicks off with Bubba Watson looking to defend his title from last year.
Watson is amongst a number of fancied challengers with Adam Scott, Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth and Jason Day, but Rory McIlroy is the clear favourite.
Tiger Woods will inevitably be the centre of much attention during the week after a recent loss of form, and his opening round will be heavily scrutinised to assess his chances of competing for a fifth green jacket.
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While the Masters can certainly not be won on Thursday, a strong start is key at Augusta. Here is all the television and live streaming information for the opening day's play in Georgia.
Date: Thursday, April 9
TV Info: Live on ESPN (US) from 3 p.m. ET and on Sky Sports 4 (UK) from 7 p.m. BST.
Live Stream: Available via ESPN Player and Sky Go. The Masters is offering a CBS Sports live stream of Amen Corner—holes No. 15 and No. 16—and two featured groups each day. Schedule is available at Masters.com.
McIlroy Looking to Make History
World No. 1 and winner of 2014's final two majors, the 25-year-old McIlroy can join an elite group of five this week if he completes a career Grand Slam with a first Augusta victory.
Along with Woods, only Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen have completed such a feat since the Masters began in 1934.
He is bidding to join golf's true elite and would also become one of only four players to win three consecutive majors should he triumph at the 2015 Masters, per GolfMagic.com:
However, Augusta has not been kind to McIlroy in the past. His eighth-place finish last year is his best return at the Masters, while Georgia was also the venue of his 2011 collapse when leading in the final round.
Furthermore, the quality of the competition is such that McIlroy will have to be at his very best if he is to slip on the famous green jacket come Sunday evening.
The 21-year-old Spieth is in fantastic form, fresh from a tied second place in last week's Houston Open—he lost to J.B. Holmes in a playoff—which followed second place at the Valero Texas Open and victory at the Valspar Championship in March.
That is some serious momentum to take into the first major of the year, especially considering the youngster comes to Augusta having tied for second place in 2014.
Dustin Johnson is also in fine form, the 30-year-old having placed sixth at the Houston and Texas Opens following his victory in March's WGC-Cadillac Championship in Florida.
Australian duo Day and Scott—2013's winner—will likely also be in with a shout, the former having fallen just short in both 2011 and 2013, finishing tied second and third respectively.
Scott will be hoping his reversion to the long putter, per PGA Tour, can help him around the notoriously tricky greens at Augusta:
Of course, much of the hype during the week will surround 14-time major winner Woods, his presence at Augusta having been in doubt until very recently:
He has been in rotten form so far in 2015, but the 39-year-old can never be discounted given his incredible history at major tournaments.
A decent opening round from Tiger will have Augusta abuzz with a potential first Woods major since 2008, but it seems highly unlikely given his recent travails.
McIlroy is the man to beat, the history-maker, but he needs a fine start on Thursday or else he could be left behind by a high-quality field.
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