EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsAUGUSTA, Ga. -- We are just 18 holes into the 90th playing of the Masters, and the tournament is already delivering at a high level.A favorable forecast leading into the week has set the stage for a firm and fast Augusta National, one that appears prepared to weed out the pretenders from the contenders and potentially deliver one of the best versions of this major championship.Through one round, the leaderboard is already stacked with some of the best golfers in the world as well as players who have had recent success here. Five of the top 10 finishers in last year's event find themselves inside the top 10 again, and four of the top five in the world, per Data Golf (as well as five of the top 10 in the Official World Golf Ranking), are part of the group of only 18 players under par.With a golf course that should only get tougher over the next three days, here's what we're watching heading into the second round.Which players have the best shot at staying near the top of this loaded leaderboard?Paolo Uggetti: There has not been a proper defense of the green jacket since Tiger Woods won in 2001, a year after winning his second Masters.After an opening-round 67 -- good enough to hold a share of the lead at 5-under -- Rory McIlroy is ready to try to accomplish a repeat as well.The score Thursday is one McIlroy thought was almost undeserved. He hit only five of 14 fairways and said he probably should have landed at 2 under. That he was able to score as well as he did regardless exemplified the kind of confidence the five-time major winner has in his game right now and the kind of freedom he possesses after finally securing the grand slam last year."I said this when I came in on Tuesday: I think winning a Masters makes it easier to win your second one. I do," McIlroy said. "I think it's easier for me to make those swings and not worry about where it goes when I know that I can go to the Champions Locker Room and put my green jacket on and have a Coke Zero at the end of the day."Must be nice. More than just his energy, McIlroy has come to relish this tough style of golf that requires shot shaping, spin control and the right combination of aggression and patience. As this tournament gets harder, it would be shocking to see him not contend on the weekend. He's not the only one who thinks so."By the way, Rory may never lose this thing again after last year," Fred Couples said Thursday. "I said that on about the 12th hole to my caddie."The same goes for Scottie Scheffler, who played his C game Thursday and still shot 2 under, as well as Justin Rose, who followed up his near Masters victory last year with a round of 70. too. Both know exactly what it takes to win here and are unlikely to fade.Patrick Reed already has a green jacket and has been playing some of the best golf in the world this year, notching two wins on the DP World Tour. Reed also had a top-10 finish last year, and there will be no lack of experience or getting ahead of himself."When I won in '18, it was the first year I actually fully bought into just taking it day by day and shot by shot," Reed said. "I think that's what my recipe is, because when you get to the first major, you're always going to put too much pressure on yourself, you're always going to grind a little harder."Finally, a quiet round of 70 from two-time major winner Xander Schauffele should not be ignored. Schauffele has flown slightly under the radar after a disappointing 2025, but he has three top-10 finishes in 2026 and has had incredible form here at Augusta. In eight starts, he has five finishes inside the top 10."Kind of just got to hang in there," Schauffele said. "Anything can happen on this property, especially the way it's playing."How did the course play Thursday, and what could we see for the rest of the tournament?Mark Schlabach: During the opening round, Patrick Reed, the 2018 Masters champion, broke a tee trying to repair a ball mark on the 17th green.Jason Day, playing in his 15th Masters, noticed the "tinge of purple" on the No. 1 fairway, a sign that the Augusta National course is starting to get firm, bouncy and fast.Chris Gotterup, who is making his debut in the first major of the season, averaged a whopping 363 yards off the tee because the ball is rolling so far on firm fairways.High temperatures are predicted to reach the mid-80s on Saturday and Sunday, and relative humidity is dropping to 20-30% each afternoon, which means it's going to stay dry."You already know it's going to get crusty," said Reed, who opened with a 3-under 69. "You know it's going to get fast, and it's going to take a lot of patience. You're going to have to hit the ball solid and put the ball in the right spots. When you do, be patient and try to minimize errors."Shane Lowry, who carded a 2-under 70 on Thursday, predicted it might be the "toughest Masters we've played in a while.""You look at the forecast," Lowry said. "They can do whatever they want with the golf course this weekend. I think over the last few years, we've had a day every year where it's been raining or it's been heavy rains. It's kind of helped us a little bit, but I think before the week is out, it's going to get very, very crusty around here."Day said Augusta National can make the course as difficult as it wants in the current conditions."If they want [single] digits to win, it'll be baked out and fast, and guys will be kind of spewing on themselves out there," said Day, who posted a 3-under 69. "Be really difficult."Uggetti: A perfect example of what players are talking about above is what happened today on the 13th green. Earlier in the day, McIlroy had to lay up on the par-5 and left himself a 60-yard pitch on a downslope to the hole. McIlroy was able to generate enough spin to put the ball past the hole and keep it on the green. He made the ensuing birdie putt, which kicked off a run of three straight birdies.A few hours later, Scheffler and Gary Woodland played the hole and left themselves 62 and 39 yards respectively for their pitches. But even as they clipped their shots well off the turf, the greens had already gotten firmer and less receptive. Instead of holding, both of their balls rolled off the back left of the green and suddenly a birdie hole had turned into a grind for par."When the greens get that firm, you really have to think about where the best miss is, and distance control is very important, but also, like, different -- missing it left, missing it right," McIlroy said. "So when the greens do get firm like this, it makes it a much more tactical test, and you really have to think about things."McIlroy pointed out that the wind will be relatively tame the rest of the week, but the golf course? That's only getting tougher. Buckle up.Who had the most disappointing first round?Uggetti: There was a lot of hype surrounding Jon Rahm heading into this week, and with good reason. The Spaniard had notched a win and five top-5 finishes in five events on LIV. He appeared to be rounding into form at just the right time to compete for a second green jacket and spoke with much positivity about his game after taking a proper offseason to work on "bad habits."Yet Rahm delivered another dud Thursday, shooting a 6-over 78 and putting himself 11 shots behind the first-round leaders.It would be easy to attribute Rahm's mediocre play at the majors in recent years to his decision to leave for LIV. And while maybe there's a kernel of truth there, it is also a crutch. The bottom line is that Rahm does not belong in the conversation with Scheffler and McIlroy as one of the top players in the game.His game is not sharp enough to compete at an Augusta that's firm, fast and getting harder. Rahm himself noted earlier this week that his win at the Masters had come during a version of the tournament in 2023 that was wet and soft where surviving the elements was more important than hitting the kinds of shots that this week will require."If I had to say what was really good in 2023 that is probably getting towards that level again hopefully is my iron game," Rahm said Tuesday. "I hit my irons really well."On Thursday, a frustrated Rahm lost over a stroke to the field with those irons as well as a shocking 3.62 shots to the field with his putting -- he three-putted four times! -- the third-worst mark of the entire field. Even though he could bounce back Friday and make the cut, he effectively shot himself out of the tournament after just 18 holes.Schlabach: After winning back-to-back tournaments in the LIV Golf League, Bryson DeChambeau was a popular pick to win his first green jacket this week.Last year, DeChambeau played in the last pairing with McIlroy in the final round and tied for fifth at 7 under. It was his second straight top-10 in the Masters. It seemed that he had finally figured out the code for Augusta National.That wasn't the case Thursday. He carded a 4-over 76 and is already nine strokes behind the leaders.After making the turn at even par, things fell apart for DeChambeau on the par-4 11th. He hit his approach shot into the right greenside bunker. He needed three swings to get out, resulting in a triple-bogey 7.DeChambeau said he hit his second shot 12 yards farther than he wanted. He also said the bunker was softer than he anticipated.The Crushers GC captain will have to go low Friday. He hit eight of 18 greens and nine of 14 fairways.It was his worst opening round since he carded a 7-over 78 in the first round of The Open at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland in July 2025. He went 16 under over the final 54 holes and tied for 10th at 9 under."Just going to give what the golf course gives me," DeChambeau said. "I have to try to hit my irons better. I drove it left numerous occasions. You know, everybody has an ability for weird things to happen, and today I just did not have my irons under control, which is weird. It's been good coming into it [the week].What other golfers have work to do Friday to make the cut?It's a loaded leaderboard with many of the world's best golfers within striking distance.But there are more than a handful of familiar names who are in danger of missing the 36-hole cut, which is projected at 4 over par or better (38.4%) by Data Golf.Two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson, Sungjae Im, Nicolai Hjgaard and DeChambeau are right on the projected cut line. Patrick Cantlay, Harry Hall and Maverick McNealy are 5 over, and Min Woo Lee, Fred Couples and Rahm are 6 over.Hall planned wholesale changes after going 37-40 in his first Masters round."I'm going to change my driver," he said. "I'm going to put two drivers in play tomorrow, different ones. I'm putting a new putter in play and going to figure [it] out on the range. I don't think I spin my irons enough either. I went into a spinnier ball this week, but I still can't stop it on a dime like I need to. So, I probably need to add to my irons or do something to compete in these majors."Former Open Championship winner Brian Harman is 7 over, and Robert MacIntyre is 8 over.
