News and notes from Masters press conferences

AUGUSTA, Ga. – On Monday, Jordan Spieth compared the Masters to the Super Bowl.

It’s an apt comparison, and that makes Tuesday golf’s equivalent of Super Bowl Media Day.

The biggest names in the game will enter the Masters’ Press Building on Tuesday, the day when most of the pre-tournament press conferences will be held. Among the players who will visit with the media on Tuesday are Tiger Woods, Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy and Max Homa.

How does Woods feel as he pursues a record-tying sixth green jacket? Can McIlroy complete the career Grand Slam this week? Does Scheffler think he can become the fourth man to go back-to-back at Augusta National?

All those questions will be answered Tuesday. There are nine press conferences scheduled, with all of them squeezed into a six-hour window. The news comes quickly on this day, so check back early and often as we update this file with the biggest stories from Tuesday at the Masters.

'We never count Tiger out'

There is not a golf course that has meant more to Tiger Woods’ career than Augusta National. This year will be his 25th appearance at the Masters and Woods admitted Tuesday that his final start here is something that occasionally crosses his mind.

“I don’t know how many more I have in me,” Woods said in his pre-tournament press conference.

His five Masters titles are second-most in the tournament’s history, one behind Jack Nicklaus. Woods’ first Masters triumph was a 12-shot win in 1997. He became the third man to go back-to-back at Augusta National when he won in 2001 and 2002. And in 2005, he authored a dramatic victory with one of the most memorable shots in tournament history, his chip-in on the par-3 16th. Then in 2019 he completed one of golf’s great comebacks.

His fifth Masters win was inspirational. A sixth? That would border on miraculous. He said Tuesday that his mobility is “not where I would like it” but did say his game has made progress in the year since he returned to competitive golf at last year’s Masters.

“I'm very lucky to have this leg; it's mine,” Woods said Tuesday. “Yes, it had been altered and there's some hardware in there, but it's still mine. It has been tough and will always be tough. The ability and endurance of what my leg will do going forward will never be the same. I understand that.

“That's why I can't prepare and play as many tournaments as I like, but that's my future, and that's okay. I'm okay with that.”

Woods returns to the Masters this year after finishing 47th last year, when he was a surprise inclusion in the field as he recovered from the injuries he suffered in his single-car accident in 2021. That tournament was his first official event since he played the Masters in November 2020. This year, Woods was able to play his Genesis Invitational in February before arriving at Augusta National. He finished 45th in that field, including an opening-round 69 and a 67 in the third round.

Rory McIlroy, who played a practice round with Woods on Monday, said he “looks good.”

“If he didn’t have to walk up these hills and have all of that, I’d say he’d be one of the favorites,” McIlroy said. “I mean, he’s got all of the shots. It’s just that physical limitation of walking 72 holes, especially on a golf course as hilly as this.

‘We never count Tiger out, and he can do incredible things. But you know, you watch him on the range and you watch him hit chips and putts, and he's got all the aspects of the game that you need to succeed around this place. It's just the toll it takes on his body to compete over 72 holes.”

Rory eyes another bid at career Grand Slam

Rory McIlroy has experienced almost the entire spectrum of emotions at Augusta National. The only thing missing is the jubilation that would come from a victory, one that would make him the sixth player to complete the career Grand Slam.

“Look, nobody wants to win this more than me,” McIlroy said Tuesday morning.

Last year was his closest call, at least in terms of the final result. He finished second to Scottie Scheffler, and though he was five shots back before Scheffler’s inconsequential four-putt on the final green, McIlroy felt he was close enough to elicit the emotions that are conjured up by being in contention. He capped his final-round 64 with a hole-out from a greenside bunker, a shot that McIlroy celebrated with a display of pure joy. A photo of that reaction appeared on both sides of the interview room as he gave his pre-tournament press conference Tuesday.

“The only thing that I can say is that I proved to myself that I could do it,” he said. “As much as I didn't really get into contention, there was a part of me on that back nine last year that felt that I had a chance, and to play the way I did and to eagle 13 and to have those feelings, in my mind, anyway, I felt like it was a breakthrough.”

“So any time I see an image like that or the video of me and then Collin doing what he did, as well, sort of just brings back all those good vibes.”

McIlroy has seven top-10s in his past nine appearances at Augusta National. If there is a common theme among his recent play here, however, it is that he has been plagued by slow starts. In each of the past four years, he has shot over par in the opening round. He started last year’s Masters with consecutive 73s before shooting 64 on Sunday.

“It's a very difficult course to chase on. You start to fire at pins and short-siding yourself and you're missing in the wrong spots, it's hard to make up a lot of ground,” he said. “Say you shoot a couple over that first day, then you start having to chase just to make the cut or try to get yourself back in the tournament, that's when this golf course can really sort of step up and bite you. I think that's part of the reason.”

This year, McIlroy played 81 holes in the weeks leading up to the Masters, including an impromptu trip with Shane Lowry after McIlroy texted him to say, “Look, we're going to be practicing in Florida, why don't we just come up here for a day?”

McIlroy arrives at Augusta National after a promising showing at the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play. He finished third, beating defending champion Scottie Scheffler in the consolation match. That came after a missed cut at THE PLAYERS that caused consternation for McIlroy. He shot 76-73 and felt uncomfortable with his play off the tee, which is of the utmost importance this week. But he found a driver that fit him in the week between his tournaments at TPC Sawgrass and Austin Country Club, and he also was enthused with a switch from his mallet to a blade-style putter.

“The best way for me to feel like I'm in a good head space is to be as prepared as I possibly can be,” he added, “and I feel really prepared.”

Scheffler set to defend first major title

Scottie Scheffler insists life has not changed much since his victory at last year’s Masters. He likes to keep things simple, both on and off the golf course. He doesn’t get caught up in swing mechanics and he doesn’t get distracted by all the trappings that come with being the top player in the world.

His biggest splurge since becoming the Masters champion? A cold tub, he said.

“You would think that I'm a significantly different person than I was a year and a half ago, but when it comes to life at home, everything is still the exact same,” he said. “Nothing changes at home. I still have the same friends; I married the same girl I dated in high school. My family definitely doesn't treat me any different. It just so happens that we get to come to places like these on occasion and have fun.”

Scheffler is still driving the same car, a 2012 Yukon, that he was before his Masters win. He estimates it has about 190,000 miles on it now.

“I don't really put miles on it,” Scheffler said. “It's really all my dad. I drive like three places at home. I go to the golf course, where I work out and a restaurant that's usually within five minutes of the house. So all credit to my dad for those miles.”

Like last year, Scheffler arrives at the Masters as the No. 1 player in the world. He won the WM Phoenix Open, Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard and the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play leading into last year’s Masters. This year, he arrives at Augusta National after wins at the WM and THE PLAYERS, as well as fourth-place finishes in his two other title defenses.

Scheffler admitted in last year’s champion’s press conference that he cried before the final round at Augusta National, unsure if he was ready for the moment. With an additional year of experience, would Sunday morning look any different if he were to once again have a three-shot lead entering the final round?

“I don't know exactly how different it will be. … Maybe last year could be a bit different just because it was my first one,” he said. “But I think going into a weekend with a lead, I'll still be nervous. I'm still nervous playing at home. I don't know what the emotions will be, but hopefully I find out and I'll let you know.”

JT's propensity for birdies at Augusta

Justin Thomas has totaled 57 birdies or better across the past three Masters – tied for the most of any player.

It’s indicative of his willingness to be aggressive around Augusta National when the circumstances permit. He hopes that mindset, channeled correctly, can propel him to his first green jacket.

“You’re just going to have days when you’re in between clubs and you don’t have good lies, and you don’t have the right winds, the pin setup … there are just times where you need to be cautious or maybe aggressive but to a more conservative line,” Thomas said. “Then you’re going to have days where it just seems like every time you get out there, ‘Oh, this is a perfect 9-iron. Oh, this is a perfect 8-iron … I can cut this one perfectly into the pin.’

“I think when you have that, but also kind of getting a rhythm and your swing feels good and everything feels good, then I think you can attack and be a little bit more aggressive.”

Thomas’ 2023 season has been uneven by his standards; he stands No. 69 on the FedExCup, with just two top-10s in eight starts. But he’s coming off an encouraging T10 at the Valspar Championship, where he ranked fifth in the field in birdies. He has finished top-10 in two of his last three Masters starts, as well.

A flurry of birdies amidst the loblolly pines would expedite that upward trend.

“It is one of those places that the more you play it, the better you get to know it,” Thomas said. “Sounds like I need to make a lot less bogeys and doubles.”

Fitz building back from neck injury

Matt Fitzpatrick has “never had an injury like this.”

On the Friday of The Genesis Invitational, he felt a sensation down his shoulder and into his chest. He had previously hurt his neck in late January. He got an MRI in Los Angeles and was diagnosed with a bulging disk. It meant his speed training had to stop immediately.

“The timing of it put me straight behind the 8-ball,” Fitzpatrick said. “All of a sudden, the work I had done in the offseason just became nonexistent.”

Fitzpatrick has played through the injury but displayed uneven form; he finished T14 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, but followed with two missed cuts and then failed to advance from the group stage at the WGC-Dell Match Play.

As he readies for the Masters, the Englishman says he is “feeling better and getting there,” but readily admits his game is not 100% into the season’s first major.

“Certainly over the last two months, I’ve lost a lot of ground and definitely regressed quite a lot,” Fitzpatrick said. “We are back to the bottom again and just slowly trying to build it back up. Slowly getting there, but it’s just going to take time.”

Fitzpatrick has made eight prior starts at Augusta National, highlighted by a T7 in 2016. He admits this year feels a bit different, as he arrives as a major champion for the first time – Tuesday’s time at the podium serving as an example. “This is my first-ever press conference at the Masters, apart from when I was an amateur,” he said.

But when his 1:24 p.m. ET Thursday tee time approaches, alongside Collin Morikawa and Will Zalatoris, it’s business as usual.

“When I hit the ball now, I’m fine,” Fitzpatrick said. “PLAYERS was the first time that I could swing, drive it fully, and not feel it like in my backswing or follow-through … I just think it's trying to take it day-by-day and kind of just getting better each day.”

Tom Kim savors star-studded Monday practice round

Tom Kim’s first Masters has already been a memorable one.

The 20-year-old played a Monday practice round at Augusta National alongside Tiger Woods, Fred Couples and Rory McIlroy.

Last year, Kim became the first player since Woods to win twice on the PGA TOUR before turning 21 (Wyndham Championship, Shriners Children’s Open), launching his rise to stardom.

The affable South Korean joined his playing partners in simultaneously skipping balls across the water on the par-3 16th – an enduring Masters Monday tradition – his face stamped with wonder as the scene unfolded. That wonder was a microcosm of his day.

“It was a dream come true for me, really,” Kim said of the day. “I think my first memory of just watching golf was the (2005) Masters and Tiger winning it, and for me to be able to share my first official practice round with him was a dream come true, really. And to not just play with Tiger but to have Fred Couples and Rory join us, it was a dream.”

Kim has made 10 cuts in 11 TOUR starts this season, but he is without a top-25 since The American Express (T6) in January. He still holds a lofty spot in the FedExCup at No. 11 and will aim to build a strong result this week, alongside more life memories.

Woods’ chip-in birdie at the par-3 16th hole during the final round of the 2005 Masters, en route to a playoff victory over Chris DiMarco, is indelibly stamped in Kim’s mind. He described it as “probably my first memory.” He was just 2 years old at the time.

Fast-forward 18 years, he’s playing alongside Tiger on Masters Monday.

“Just the amount of work he does around the greens, it was really cool to see,” Kim said of Woods. “To pick which chip shots he was hitting and stuff like that, the positions he put himself in … he has years and years of knowledge here, some success, so I’m pretty sure there’s a reason why he’s there.”

After playing the back nine Monday, Kim wasn’t done. He walked the nine again, savoring the scene around Amen Corner. It’s that type of week.