AUGUSTA NATIONAL — Tiger Woods occupies the first broadcast power slot on the opening day of the 2023 Masters, setting out at 10.18am local time (3.18pm UK) alongside Xander Schauffele and Viktor Hovland.
Rory McIlroy goes out in the penultimate group at 1.48pm (6.48pm) alongside rising stars Tom Kim and Sam Burns. McIlroy follows the group led by defending champion Scottie Scheffler, Max Homa and Sam Bennett at 1.36pm (6.36pm).
Kevin Na, one of 18 LIV Golf League players in the field, gets the action under way at 8am (1pm) in a two-ball with former winner Mike Weir. Tommy Fleetwood, Jordan Spieth and Tony Finau bring the day to a close, teeing off at 2pm (7pm).
Here are all the tee times for the first day at Augusta on Thursday 6 April:
Kevin Garside’s tips to win the Masters 2023
- Jon Rahm 9-1
- Cameron Smith 22-1
- Cameron Young 28-1
- Brooks Koepka 40-1
- Tommy Fleetwood 66-1
Read Kevin’s full list of predictions here
Thursday tee times in full:
All times BST
12.40pm Gary Player (Honorary Starter) Jack Nicklaus (Honorary Starter) Tom Watson (Honorary Starter)
- 1pm: Mike Weir, Kevin Na.
- 1.12pm: Vijay Singh, Scott Stallings, Matthew McClean (A).
- 1.24pm: Sandy Lyle, Jason Kokrak, Talor Gooch.
- 1.36pm: Fred Couples, Russell Henley, Alex Noren.
- 1.48pm: Adrian Meronk, Kevin Kisner, Louis Oosthuizen.
- 2pm: Larry Mize, Min Woo Lee, Harrison Crowe.
- 2.12pm: Sergio Garcia, Kazuki Higa, Keith Mitchell.
- 2.24pm: Patrick Reed, Adam Svensson, Sahith Theegala.
- 2.36pm: Shane Lowry, Mackenzie Hughes, Thomas Pieters.
- 2.48pm: Bubba Watson, Seamus Power, Mateo Fernandez de Oliveira.
- 3.06pm: Abraham Ancer, Chris Kirk, Keegan Bradley.
- 3.18pm: Tiger Woods, Viktor Hovland, Xander Schauffele.
- 3.30pm: Adam Scott, Patrick Cantlay, Kurt Kitayama.
- 3.42pm: Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm, Cameron Young.
- 3.54pm: Hideki Matsuyama, Cameron Smith, Sungjae Im.
- 4.06pm: Jose Maria Olazabal, Cameron Champ.
- 4.18pm: Charl Schwartzel, Taylor Moore, Aldrich Potgieter.
- 4.30pm: JT Poston, Francesco Molinari, Bryson DeChambeau.
- 4.42pm: Bernhard Langer, Mito Pereira, Ben Carr.
- 4.54pm: Danny Willett, Gary Woodland, Brooks Koepka.
- 5.12pm: Sepp Straka, Harold Varner III, Kyoung-Hoon Lee.
- 5.24pm: Phil Mickelson, Tom Hoge, Si Woo Kim.
- 5.36pm: Billy Horschel, Harris English, Ryan Fox.
- 5.48pm: Zach Johnson, Jason Day, Gordon Sargent.
- 6pm: Brian Harman, Joaquin Niemann, Tyrrell Hatton.
- 6.12pm: Dustin Johnson, Corey Conners, Justin Rose.
- 6.24pm: Matthew Fitzpatrick, Collin Morikawa, Will Zalatoris.
- 6.36pm: Scottie Scheffler, Max Homa, Sam Bennett.
- 6.48pm: Tom Kim, Rory McIlroy, Sam Burns.
- 7pm: Jordan Spieth, Tommy Fleetwood, Tony Finau.
Analysis: Inside Augusta National – where LIV Golf tensions are already simmering
By Kevin Garside, i‘s chief sports correspondent
AUGUSTA NATIONAL — What is Greg Norman’s cohort of loyal LIV golfers camped around the 18th on Sunday when set against golf’s royal couple? The appearance of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy at the 10th tee early on the first morning of Masters week might have been at the behest of the old order. “Go out there and show them what real power looks like.”
Woods and McIlroy walked from the clubhouse through the chill morning air alongside Tom Kim and Freddie Couples. The effect on the galleries mingling casually about the adjacent putting green and first fairway was immediate, and it wasn’t Couples or Kim pulling them in. Like iron filings in the presence of a magnet, they slid helplessly towards the biggest draw in golf.
The major powers have moved heaven and earth to maintain their hegemonic grip on the game in the face of LIV’s Saudi-backed insurgency. And central to that strategy is holding on to Woods and McIlroy. Whilst they have these two in tandem they have legitimacy.
