AUGUSTA — Rory McIlroy must like the view from the top of the Masters leaderboard. McIlroy is exactly in the same spot as he was when he completed the Grand Slam in 2025, winning his first green jacket.
McIlroy opened defense of his Masters title on Thursday, shooting a five-under 67 despite hitting only 5 of 14 fairways. Sam Burns shares the lead with McIlroy after his round of 67 featured an eagle on the 2nd, as well as three birdies on the second nine.
Thursday’s opening round featured the good, the bad and the ugly. Here’s a closer look at how a firm and fast Augusta National tested the best players in the world.
GOOD: Sam Burns opens with a 67
If you ask fans to name the Best Players Without a Major, Sam Burns might not be in their top three—but there aren’t a ton of major-less players still in their primes with more PGA Tour wins than his five.
The 29-year old shot his best round at Augusta National, a 5-under 67, to share the early lead with McIlroy.
As he often does, Burns played practice rounds this week with his good friend Scottie Scheffler. And as he often does, he got questions about the world No. 1 after his own good play. Doesn’t that get old? A green jacket of his own would help. —John Schwarb
BAD: Tommy Fleetwood’s second nine
After matching the best first nine score of his Masters career with a 4-under 32, Fleetwood’s game took a turn for the worse on the second nine. Fleetwood recorded bogeys on Nos. 10, 12, 16 and 18 sandwiched around a birdie on the 14th. Fleetwood was tied for the lead at one point but finished at 1-under 71.
There’s always been a debate about the best player without a major, and Fleetwood is at the top of that list. Fleetwood, who got his first PGA Tour win at the 2025 Tour Championship, has top-10 finishes in majors and is an elite ball-striker. However, it’s time to close the deal in a big tournament. —John Pluym
UGLY: Bryson DeChambeau’s triple bogey on 11
Last year, DeChambeau found himself in the final pairing with McIlroy. But he shot a 3-over 75, and faded with a 4-over finish over his final 16 holes, primarily due to fast greens and a double bogey on the 11th hole.
DeChambeau fell victim again to the 11th hole in the opening round on Thursday. After hitting his tee shot down the middle on the par-4, 520-yard hole, DeChambeau put his approach into the right-hand bunker. After two failed bunker shots, he finally got his ball out on his third attempt and then two-putted for his triple bogey.
Some of us golf experts thought DeChambeau might have learned his lesson from playing in the final round in 2025. You can’t win the Masters in the opening round, but you can lose it with triple bogeys. DeChambeau finished his round with a 4-over 76. —John Pluym
GOOD: Kurt Kitayama’s birdie barrage
The 22nd-ranked player in the world posted an opening-round 69, and is very much in contention.
Kitayama posted eight birdies, including four over a five-hole stretch (Nos. 6–10). Kitayama could have found himself in the lead if not for a costly double bogey on the 12th.
Kitayama has a pair of PGA Tour victories, winning the 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational and the ’25 3M Open. —John Pluym
Patrick Reed looks over a putt on the opening hole of the Masters. Reed made a pair of eagles on Nos. 2 and 8 to ignite a 3-under 69 in the opening round. | Grace Smith-Imagn Images
BAD: Patrick Reed’s bogey on 15
The 2018 Masters champion was tied for the lead after 14 holes at 4 under, and looked to be in prime position on the par-5 15th in the middle of the fairway.
But then Augusta National put the brakes on Reed, whose second shot bounced off the back of the firm green and rolled into the water along the par-3 16th. Reed rebounded to salvage a bogey after a terrific chip to within a few feet; he almost saved far. But the damage was done.
Earlier in the round, Reed became the second player in Masters history to make two eagles over his first nine holes (Nos. 2 and 8); Henrik Stenson also did it in 2012. Reed finished his round with a 3-under 69.
The last player in a Masters to make two eagles in one round was McIlroy in last year’s third round. —John Pluym
UGLY: LIV Golf’s Thursday at Augusta
As we say at every major in this space, golf’s biggest events will continue to be a referendum on LIV Golf—and Thursday was a disaster. DeChambeau shot 76 after taking three swipes in the greenside bunker at 11, Jon Rahm turned in his worst Masters round ever with a 78 and not a single LIV’er broke par. Yes, conditions were tough and will get tougher, but 16 players managed to post a red number in Round 1, and none of them call LIV Golf home.
And to add insult to all those bogeys, Patrick Reed continues to play great after leaving the Saudi-backed circuit. —John Schwarb
GOOD: Hitting driver … off the pine straw?
Golfers know it takes a certain amount of guts (and skill) to hit a driver off the deck. So, what does it take to hit a driver off the pine straw at Augusta National? Pick your own adjective, but this shot on No. 2 from Si Woo Kim was sweet. —Jeff Ritter
Rory McIlroy struggled off the tee, hitting only 5 of 14 fairways in the opening round. | Erick W. Rasco/Sports Illustrated
BAD: A not-so-good driving performance
McIlroy is a Grand Slam champion. He’s also defending his Masters title this week. And he’s been known to hit his driver all over the place at Augusta National. Remember the drive off a cabin during the final round of the 2011 Masters? While leading by one stroke, his tee shot on the par-4 10th hooked left, hitting a tree and ricocheting toward the private white guest cabins used by members.
McIlroy had a few wild drives on Thursday, too, becoming just the second player in the tournament’s last 10 years to shoot 67 or better in one round despite hitting five or fewer fairways. Hideki Matsuyama 2021, Round 3, five fairways hit) is the other.
McIlroy’s driving performance didn’t seem to bother him, talking about his 5-under round to ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt: “I’ll probably go up there [champions locker room], have a drink and put my green jacket on.” —John Pluym
UGLY: Jon Rahm’s double-bogey 7 at the 13th hole
The 2023 Masters champion was going back enough, having shot 40 for the first nine holes. The back-nine par-5s at least offered a chance to make up some ground. But Rahm’s drive found the penalty area to the left off the tee, and it didn’t get much better from there. He missed the green with his third after a penalty stroke, pitched onto the green and then three-putted from 30 feet for a 7. —Bob Harig
Masters honorary starters Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus shake hands after Thursday’s ceremonial opening tee shots. | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images
GOOD: The ceremonial opening tee shots
Another Masters tradition that never disappoints. Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson struck their tee shots at 7:25 this morning, playfully jabbing at each other but still swinging it quite well for men of their age. It’s hard not to feel sentimental and contemplate the passage of time while seeing those champions together again. —Jeff Ritter
BAD: Cameron Young’s three consecutive bogeys on Nos. 5-7
It was a shaky 73 from the reigning Players champion, who entered this week on the short list of favorites. Young’s power-and-touch combo should play well at Augusta, but he was 4 over through 11 holes and did well to finish at 1 over. He’s not out of it, but this was not a great start. —Jeff Ritter
UGLY: Trio falls victim to 80s in 18
Carlos Ortiz, Naoyuki Kataoka and Aldrich Potgieter went out early and probably wished they had stayed in bed.
Potgieter shot an 84 in a round that featured five bogeys, four double bogeys, one birdie and eight pars. Kataoka matched Potgieter’s score with a round that had six doubles, four bogeys, two birdies and five pars. And Ortiz, who started off bogey, double, bogey, bogey and double to finish with an 80, played reasonably well after the poor start, with a pair of birdies and three bogeys over his final 11 holes.
The worst official 18-hole score in Masters history? Amateur Charles Kunkle’s 23-over par 95 in the 1956 final round. Unofficially, Billy Casper shot a 106 in 2005 (age 73) but withdrew without signing his scorecard. —John Pluym
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