The wait ends. Nineteen months after the most recent Masters, the best in the world are ready to tee it up again at Augusta National -- in the fall for the first time. The place looks different. It sounds quieter. But will it play different? If so, does it give anyone (looking at you, Bryson DeChambeau) an advantage? And what about the defending champion, some guy named Tiger Woods?
We go through all the big questions leading into a very different Masters:
1. What do you expect from Tiger?
Bob Harig: More than we have seen to date in 2020. Augusta National has a way of bringing out the best from Tiger, even when he has struggled. Does that mean winning? Unlikely. You doubt Tiger at your own peril, but I'm not even sure he can contend based solely on his 2020 track record. But who would be surprised if there were a couple of low rounds?
Michael Collins: This is where the shoulder-shrug emoji would go. Is anyone going to be surprised if he finds a way to get a top-five finish? I doubt it. But in the same breath, would anyone be surprised if he's not around for the weekend? Same answer! I think it's safe to say that no one (sane) expects him to defend his title and win another green jacket this week. That would be a surprise. Expect Tiger, like everyone else, to be disappointed in Mother Nature if we get the rain that is in the forecast. That's a safe bet.
Mark Schlabach: I followed him for nine holes in a practice round on Monday, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by how dialed-in his game looked, especially when it came to his irons and chipping. He was still a little bit erratic off the tee, which can be adjusted. Overall, Tiger looked to be in a good place physically and mentally, which wasn't the case at a couple of major championships last year. He didn't play well in the cold weather at the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black and was out of sorts at the Open Championship at Royal Portrush as well. No one's going to like the rain and wind at Augusta this week, but I'm certain Tiger will be enjoying 70-degree temperatures in November. That being said, he hasn't played much golf -- and certainly not much good golf -- during the pandemic, so I'd be surprised if he's in contention.
Ian O'Connor: Lord knows. His play this year would tell you that there's no chance, but this is the one course and the one major where Tiger always has a chance. Unless his back completely gives out, I honestly believe Tiger will have a shot at the Masters through his late 50s. But this time around I'll go with a back-door top-15.
Nick Pietruszkiewicz: So I made a big mistake Monday. I watched him play a few holes. Everything looked smooth, as it usually does any time he steps on the grounds at Augusta National. But there is zero evidence to suggest he's going to be a factor this week. Honestly, I see a make-the-cut-on-the-number scenario and then a decent weekend to back-door into the top 20.
2. For months, we've wondered what the new-look Bryson DeChambeau will do to Augusta National. So what do you think will happen?
Harig: He is going to kill the ball off the tee and have an insane number of short approach shots. He should birdie all the par-5s, which means he's effectively 4 under to start each day. But there's a lot more to golf than the tee shot. DeChambeau does not win every week. He still has to put the ball on the correct spots on the greens and make putts. And when he misses a green, he's got to be able to chip well. It would be a surprise if he were not on the leaderboard, but a victory is far from guaranteed.
Collins: Augusta National is a second-shot golf course. That saying "Drive for show, putt for dough" probably originated at Augusta National. It will be great watching Bryson hit drives places no one has been before, but if you think that's why he'll win, you don't understand the nuances of the course. I still think Bryson will play great and have a chance to win, but his putter will be why he doesn't win, not his driver.
Schlabach: I picked him to win, which might be a mistake because of his reckless regard for the bad things that can happen at Augusta National. If the bad weather does come in, I think his newfound length is going to give him a sizable advantage over the rest of the field. Not only his length off the tee but also the high trajectory of his shots. He's getting more than 300 yards of carry, which might be a big factor if it rains and the course gets soft. Guys like Cameron Champ and Matthew Wolff hit it far, too, but they hit the low screamers that roll out when a course is firm. DeChambeau's height off the tee will allow him to cut corners that others can only dream about. Of course, he'll have to chip and putt well to win.
O'Connor: Hey, it might be November 2020, but this is a one-man home run derby from the summer of 1998, minus the PEDs. Bryson is going to be a ton of fun to watch, and who wouldn't want to see him airmail the par-4 third green with a 3-wood? But he hasn't finished inside the top 20 in three previous Masters. DeChambeau will be there on Sunday, but I think he'll fall just short with the putter and then return in five months as the favorite.
Pietruszkiewicz: He's going to be hitting the ball to places nobody dreamed possible. Sure, you can say a young Tiger Woods hit wedges all over the property and had short irons in his hands as he attacked par-5s in the early 2000s. But that was a different Augusta National. That was before the green jackets moved tees and added length. This is different. DeChambeau is going to hammer the ball over any tree and bunker in his path. Will he win? Maybe, maybe not. Will the conversation about technology and dialing the ball back get ramped up based on what he does to the old place this week? Absolutely.
3. What player has an advantage with no patrons on the property this week?
Harig: In general, those who have not been in contention often, especially at a major championship. The established players are used to the roars, the noise, the pressure of performing amid all the pandemonium. Someone like Matthew Wolff is a great example. He's played in two major championships and been in the top five in both. Neither had spectators. It's not to say he couldn't do it with them, but it certainly makes the task easier.
Collins: It will help any player who's never won a major or won a major with no spectators. The buzz and electricity that major championship weekends bring are now talked about by players who've experienced them and admit there's a big difference. Everyone will tell you that it will help Rory McIlroy, but that isn't true. Rory's demons are in his own head and have nothing to do with a crowd. But guys who've been there with a crowd but couldn't close, if they get there again, will feel different without the crowd.
Schlabach: I think it helps DeChambeau more than anyone because now he can truly hit anywhere he wants -- without having to worry that his ball is going to be in the middle of a gallery of patrons or sitting on a thin lie on trampled turf. For example, take the 18th hole. Almost every player tries to avoid the two bunkers at the left elbow. DeChambeau plans to carry his tee shot over the bunkers and far left of them into an area where patrons would normally be congregated. Unless his tee shots end up in azaleas or pine trees, he can basically swing as hard and fast as he wants without much risk.
O'Connor: I guess the obvious answer would be either Collin Morikawa or DeChambeau, since they're the only two players in the field who have proved they can win a major in an empty house. But I think it's Rory McIlroy. That Augusta National monkey on his back is bigger than the one on DeChambeau's, and he needs a different environment -- a calmer environment -- to steady his nerves and just let it happen.
Pietruszkiewicz: Rory McIlroy. There's so much noise around him at this place because of the 2011 meltdown when he shot a final-round 80 and the never-ending talk about how this is the final piece of the career Grand Slam puzzle. There isn't as much noise this time -- and, if he's in contention, there will be barely any noise as he tries to secure a green jacket.
4. What are you most curious to see in this first-ever fall Masters?
Harig: What will the back nine on Sunday be like if it is a close, competitive Masters? Will there still be the same tension, the same vibe? How will players traverse Amen Corner and the par-5s? It will be so much different without the roars.
Collins: I want to hear players talk about the course on Saturday night before the final round. I want to see Tiger put the green jacket on someone Sunday late afternoon. I want to see how low scores get if big rain comes in on Thursday and Friday. I want to see players execute shots around greens they never would have tried in April. I want to see what social media does when Patrick Reed's name is at the top of the leaderboard.
Schlabach: It's not going to be nearly as dramatic or electric as 2019, even if Tiger were to somehow win his sixth green jacket. The patrons make Augusta National so special as much as the course and tradition, and it's just not going to be the same without tens of thousands of them here on the weekend. I'm just glad they figured out a way to play the 2020 Masters -- even if it's in November without patrons.
O'Connor: Just how the course looks this time of year, and how the relative silence sounds on Sunday. I was lucky once to play Augusta National (or to get played by Augusta National), and to stand near the 18th green later in the afternoon, without a single soul in sight. I'll never forget the power of that solitude and silence.
Pietruszkiewicz: There are old-school leaderboards dotting the property. But you don't need them on Sunday. You hear the leaders. The roars echoing off those towering pines let the field know who just made eagle and who just went for a swim in Rae's Creek. The Masters always brings drama, but how will it look and feel and (not) sound is what has me most curious.
5. What player might surprise everyone and steal the green jacket come Sunday afternoon?
Harig: Webb Simpson. He's not exactly a sleeper, but Webb has not typically fared well at the Masters -- until last year. He quietly tied for fifth, 2 shots back of Tiger Woods. He never felt he was really in the tournament on the final day, but he played in the second-to-last group, had a great view of Tiger's victory and might just bring that karma with him this year.
Collins: There are no sleepers in an event with this few players and a 50-man cut. No one is talking about Patrick Reed. He could very easily be the man Tiger is slipping the green jacket on Sunday night.
Schlabach: I'm not sure if a four-time major champion is a surprise, but I'm very surprised by how much Brooks Koepka is flying under the radar this week. He hasn't played much golf because of lingering hip and knee injuries, but he says he's healthy and feels great. He played pretty good golf until the final few holes in Houston last week. He was in contention on Sunday at the Masters last year, until he hit a water ball on the 12th. I can promise you one thing: No one is more sick of hearing about DeChambeau than Koepka.
O'Connor: Matt Kuchar. Just because it's a surreal year, and because everyone has given up on Kuchar, at 42, ever winning a major, and because he's very consistent at Augusta -- since 2012 he's finished between third and 12th at the Masters five times.
Pietruszkiewicz: Does Rickie Fowler count? Well, he should. He still hasn't won a major. He's got only one tournament victory in the past three years. In his past four events, he has gone, in reverse order, T-57, T-28, missed cut, T-49. But, really, one of these days he has to do it ... right? Much like in my position on McIlroy, the quiet of Augusta might be what he needs.