Masters Field 2015: Tee Times, Odds and Predictions for Favorites and Sleepers
The PGA Tour's first major of the season, the esteemed Masters tournament, tees off on Thursday at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia.
Bubba Watson is the defending champion heading into this year's tournament; he also took home a green jacket. He will face strident challenges from the rest of the field—perhaps most notably from Jordan Spieth, the most in-form golfer in the PGA right now, and Rory McIlroy, the top-ranked player in the world, per OWGR.com.
For those looking for some more guidance on who to watch in this tournament and when, here are the Round 1 and 2 tee times and available odds for the 2015 Masters.
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| Rory McIlroy | 11-2 |
| Jordan Spieth | 8-1 |
| Bubba Watson | 10-1 |
| Jason Day | 14-1 |
| Dustin Johnson | 16-1 |
| Henrik Stenson | 18-1 |
| Phil Mickelson | 18-1 |
| Adam Scott | 20-1 |
| Jimmy Walker | 22-1 |
| Patrick Reed | 28-1 |
| Justin Rose | 33-1 |
| Matt Kuchar | 33-1 |
| Rickie Fowler | 33-1 |
| Tiger Woods | 33-1 |
| Brandt Snedeker | 40-1 |
| J.B. Holmes | 40-1 |
| Lee Westwood | 40-1 |
| Sergio Garcia | 40-1 |
| Billy Horschel | 50-1 |
| Lee Westwood | 50-1 |
| Jim Furyk | 60-1 |
| Hideki Matsuyama | 66-1 |
| Keegan Bradley | 66-1 |
| Paul Casey | 66-1 |
| Ryan Palmer | 75-1 |
| 7:45 a.m. | 10:52 a.m. | Charley Hoffman, Brian Harman |
| 7:56 a.m. | 11:03 a.m. | Larry Mize, Danny Willett, Byron Meth |
| 8:07 a.m. | 11:14 a.m. | Tom Watson, Gary Woodland, Camilo Villegas |
| 8:18 a.m. | 11:25 a.m. | Mike Weir, Ben Crane, *Corey Conners |
| 8:29 a.m. | 11:36 a.m. | Vijay Singh, Russell Henley, Darren Clarke |
| 8:40 a.m. | 11:47 a.m. | Jose Maria Olzabal, Brendon Todd, Kevin Na |
| 8:51 a.m. | 12:09 p.m. | Jonas Blixt, Kevin Streelman, Stephen Gallacher |
| 9:02 a.m. | 12:20 p.m. | Patrick Reed, Keegan Bradley, Ian Poulter |
| 9:13 a.m. | 12:31 p.m. | Miguel Angel Jimenez, Lee Westwood, Anirban Lahiri |
| 9:24 a.m. | 12:42 a.m. | Bubba Watson, Justin Rose, *Gunn Yang |
| 9:35 a.m. | 12:53 p.m. | Adam Scott, Dustin Johnson, *Antonio Murdaca |
| 9:57 a.m. | 1:04 p.m. | Morgan Hoffmann, Steve Stricker, Matt Every |
| 10:08 a.m. | 1:15 p.m. | Ben Crenshaw, Bill Haas, Jason Dufner |
| 10:19 a.m. | 1:26 p.m. | Webb Simpson, Hideki Matsuyama, Paul Casey |
| 10:30 a.m. | 1:37 p.m. | Charl Schwartzel, Joost Luiten, Sangmoon Bae |
| 10:41 a.m. | 1:48 p.m. | Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy, Ryan Moore |
| 10:52 a.m. | 1:59 p.m. | J.B. Holmes, Martin Kaymer, Brandt Snedeker |
| 11:03 a.m. | 7:45 a.m. | Ian Woosnam, Erik Compton, Marc Leishman |
| 11:14 a.m. | 7:56 a.m. | Trevor Immelman, Kevin Stadler, *Scott Harvey |
| 11:25 a.m. | 8:07 a.m. | Ben Martin, Robert Streb, Cameron Tringale |
| 11:36 a.m. | 8:18 a.m. | Sandy Lyle, Seung-Yul Noh, *Bradley Neil |
| 11:47 a.m. | 8:29 a.m. | Bernhard Langer, Bernd Wiesberger, Geoff Ogilvy |
| 12:09 p.m. | 8:40 a.m. | Zach Johnson, Jim Furyk, Ernie Els |
| 12:20 p.m. | 8:51 a.m. | Angel Cabrera, Louis Oosthuizen, *Matias Dominguez |
| 12:31 p.m. | 9:02 a.m. | Mark O'Meara, Chris Kirk, Shane Lowry |
| 12:42 p.m. | 9:13 a.m. | Padraig Harrington, Ryan Palmer, Thomas Bjorn |
| 12:53 p.m. | 9:24 a.m. | James Hahn, Mikko Ilonen, Hunter Mahan |
| 1:04 p.m. | 9:35 a.m. | Matt Kuchar, Brooks Koepka, Graeme McDowell |
| 1:15 p.m. | 9:57 a.m. | Jordan Spieth, Henrik Stenson, Billy Horschel |
| 1:26 p.m. | 10:08 a.m. | Fred Couples, Branden Grace, Thongchai Jaidee |
| 1:37 p.m. | 10:19 a.m. | Luke Donald, Victor Dubuisson, John Senden |
| 1:48 p.m. | 10:30 a.m. | Tiger Woods, Jamie Donaldson, Jimmy Walker |
| 1:59 p.m. | 10:41 a.m. | Jason Day, Sergio Garcia, Rickie Fowler |
Note: Odds courtesy of Odds Shark and updated as of April 8 at 4 a.m. ET.
Predictions
Favorite: Rory McIlroy
There is perhaps some concern spreading among the ranks of McIlroy acolytes after the Northern Irishman's recent comments on his waning passion for the old game.
“I would be dishonest if I said my love of golf now is as big as it was," he said, via Golf Digest's John Strege. “I don't love golf as much as when it was just pure joy to get on to the course to play. When I was a kid, if I spent a day away from the game, I couldn't wait to get back. Now I can’t wait for a week off.”
While those comments are discouraging, don't expect McIlroy to adopt a let-it-lie attitude for the Masters. There is too much at stake for him here. McIlroy has yet to don a green jacket. A win here would not only afford him those verdant duds, but also complete the illustrious career Grand Slam.
This is indeed a big dream of his, per his Twitter account:
A good group can also get the competitive juices flowing, and McIlroy is paired with the one and only Phil Mickelson for the first two rounds. McIlroy hasn't played much on the PGA Tour this year, so look for him to play some excellent golf but falter late and fall just shy of the Masters.
Prediction: T4
Favorite: Jordan Spieth
Spieth has been an absolute juggernaut over the past few months. He's finished in the top 10 in seven of his last nine PGA events, securing wins at the Hero World Challenge in December and Valspar Championship on March 15.
He came tantalizingly close to winning the Shell Houston Open on April 5, but he had to settle for second after a masterful charge from J.B. Holmes ended with the latter winning in a three-way playoff that also featured Johnson Wagner.
Still, it's not as if a lack of confidence doomed Spieth in the Houston Open. He exuded swagger out on the course late, per ESPN's Jason Sobel:
The 21-year-old Spieth was in position to win the Masters late last year as a first-timer in the event, but some crucial mistakes down the stretch cost him and he finished tied for second. Spieth rues the missed chances but feels that he knew how to play the course then, a feeling that will likely carry over into this year.
"But in my mind, I was playing the best through whatever it was, 60 holes, 62 holes, and had an opportunity to continue that the next 10 or 11 holes and didn't quite close it out," he said, via USA Today's Nancy Armour. "So it was very disappointing, because I felt like the golf course was going to play into my hands."
Don't be surprised if he erases last year's disappointment by winning the Masters.
Prediction: Winner
Sleeper: Paul Casey
If you're looking for someone a bit farther down the PGA pecking order to make a surprise run this year, don't skip over Paul Casey. Ranked No. 44 in the world heading into the Masters, per OWGR.com, Casey has enjoyed some fine results at Augusta in his career and is playing some swell golf as of late.
| Northern Trust Open | P2 | 278 | -6 |
| The Honda Classic | T3 | 275 | -5 |
| WGC-Cadillac Championship | T38 | 292 | 4 |
| Arnold Palmer Invitational | Cut | 143 | -1 |
| Shell Houston Open | 9 | 276 | -12 |
Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee considers him an under-the-radar player this year:
Casey has missed the cut three times at the Masters in his career, but when he does make it to the later rounds, he usually performs quite well. Casey has finished in the top 11 three times and tied for 20th in 2009.
The par fives are key at Augusta, and Casey's 31st-ranked driving distance and 1.32 total strokes gained bode well for him this year, per PGATour.com.
It's been quite some time since Casey has had a good Masters tournament, but he can draw from a wealth of experience and his recent form has him in line for a strong result at Augusta this year.
Prediction: T10
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