2026 Masters Round 1 updates: Justin Rose finds familiar territory — and foe

Your VERY early leaders at this Masters have 116 years between them.

Jose Maria Olazabal, 60, is at 2 under thru 3, and Angel Cabrera, 56, is 1 under thru 2 

A tradition unlike any other: Masters participants “hard launching” new partners at the Par-3 Contest. And we don’t mean golf partners. 

The latest reminder that ANGC takes its rules seriously: on Wednesday, 1989 Open Championship winner Mark Calcavecchia was reportedly tossed from the property for phone usage, according to Golfweek’s Adam Schupak.

“I’ve got nothing negative to say about Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters, so I think we should literally hang up right now,” Calc told Schupak.

Our first birdie! Japan’s Naoyuki Kataoka just made a 4 at the par-5 2nd. 

Kevin Hart, the comedian, caddied for Bryson in the Par-3 Contest yesterday.

Bryson said afterward, “He was telling me as we were walking down some of the fairways, he was like I didn’t realize it was like this all the people looking down on you, seeing every little detail of what you’re doing, and then just how technical you guys are, how strategic you are, how thoughtful you guys are, and how much control you have with your golf ball. He was mesmerized by it.”

Still, KH should prob stick to stand-up…

Some tee times to keep an eye on today:

9:55 a.m.: Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood, Akshay Bhatia

10:07 a.m.: Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schauffele

10:31 a.m.: Rory McIlroy, Cameron Young, Mason Howell*

1:20 p.m.: Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose, Brooks Koepka

1:44 p.m.: Scottie Scheffler, Robert MacIntyre, Gary Woodland

Enjoyed this from the 2017 champion yesterday…

REPORTER: Are there any shots, any holes that you think of like, hey, I really have to dial in the mental preparation for this shot?

SERGIO GARCIA: Yeah, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18.

Impressive commitment to the bit

I like P-Reed this week. Easy to forget no player on the planet had a hotter late-January-into-early February than Reed, who in three consecutive starts in the Middle East won twice and finished runner-up in a playoff, all in the midst of his LIV Golf departure. He cooled off in two South Africa starts since then, but I still expect him to be a major threat at ANGC, where since 2018 all he’s done is win once and record four more top-10s.

Reed said earlier this week he thinks only 10-12 players have a legitimate chance to win this week. Presumably he thinks he’s one of them.  

5 players now on the course who have finished at least one hole, including Max Homa — nary a single birdie yet! I don’t expect that to last. 

Jack, Gary and Tom were asked what change they’d make to Augusta National if given the opportunity. Watson, not missing a beat: “I’d fill in the creek in front of the 12th green.” Watson was joking, of course. The room cracked up. 

Aaron Rai won the Par-3 Contest yesterday but 8-year-old Frankie Fleetwood stole the show. I wandered down to the course to watch Frankie try to reach the 9th green, a shot that is 120 yards, all carry over water. After Frankie splashed his first attempt, the patrons seated on the hillside behind the green began crying out for Frankie to take another lash, kind of like when concert-goers implore a band to play one more song at the end of a show. Frankie obliged but came up just short again. The gallery still roared with approval. You can bet Frankie will be back for another go in ’27, a couple of inches of taller and a few yards longer. Frankie forever!      

After the opening tee shots, Jack, Gary and Tom were shuttled to the press building where they’re now addressing the media. When those three giants convene on the same dais, it always makes for one of the most entertaining pressers of the year. Jack joked about having his son, Jackie, tee up his ball for him and trying to avoid taking out a patron when he let his drive fly. 

Hello, friends! Grab your coffee and pimiento-cheese creamer, because one of golf’s holy days is upon us: the opening round of the 2026 Masters. Jack, Gary and Tom let the ceremonial tee shots fly on what is cool, perfect morning here at Augusta National, and three groups are already on the course in earnest. Let’s do this. 

The 2026 Masters officially begins with the Honorary Starters Ceremony Thursday morning. Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Tom Watson will hit ceremonial tee shots, with coverage beginning at 7:30 a.m. ET on Masters.com.

What’s it like flying with Gary Player to the Masters? We found out

The horse they call Double Grand Slam is in last place. Gary Player is not pleased. He sits back in his chair and crosses his arms.

“This isn’t looking good,” he says under his breath.

From his hotel room in San Antonio, the 90-year-old Hall-of-Famer is glued to his laptop as the TAB Empress Club Stakes unfolds in South Africa. He has a plane to catch, but first, he must see if his prized filly can pull off a miracle.

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You can watch Round 1 of the 2026 Masters on TV via ESPN from 3-7:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, but the online coverage starts much earlier.

Here’s the extensive streaming schedule for Masters Day 1:

Honorary Starters: 7:30 a.m. (Masters.com, Masters App)
Masters On the Range: 8:30-10-30 a.m. (Masters.com, Masters App, Paramount+)
Featured Groups: 9:15 a.m.-7:30 p.m. (Masters.com, Masters App, Paramount+, Prime Video, ESPN App, DirecTV)
Featured Holes (4, 5 and 6): 8:45 a.m.-3:30 p.m. (Masters.com, Masters App, ESPN App)
Featured Holes (Amen Corner, 11, 12 and 13): 10:45 a.m.-6 p.m. (Masters.com, Masters App, Paramount+, Prime Video, ESPN App, DirecTV)
Featured Holes (15 and 16): 11:45 a.m.-7 p.m. (Masters.com, Masters App, Paramount+, Prime Video, ESPN App, DirecTV)
Round 1 Prime Video Coverage: 1-3 p.m. (Prime Video)
Round 1 ESPN Telecast: 3-7:30 p.m. (ESPN App)
Full Round 1 Stream: 1-7:30 p.m. (Masters.com, Masters App)

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‘A little emotional’: Rory McIlroy’s Masters Champions Dinner delivered

AUGUSTA, Ga. — On Tuesday evening of Masters week a year ago, Rory McIlroy had a dinner date at Augusta National with Justin Rose and a few club members. As McIlroy eased his car down Magnolia Lane toward the clubhouse, he spotted a collection of green-jacketed past Masters winners enjoying cocktails on a second-floor balcony, which McIlroy instantly recognized as the warm-up act for the Champions Dinner. Awkward moment for a guy who’d famously been chasing his own green jacket for 16 years? Yes, quite awkward. “I’m like I don’t want to valet, get out, they’re going to see me and it’s going to be weird,” McIlroy said Tuesday.

McIlroy has avoided any such weirdness at this year’s Masters, because five days after his dinner with Rose, he, of course, won the Masters, earning him a lifetime invitation to the game’s most exclusive soiree. It’s not an honor McIlroy has taken lightly, as evidenced in part by the thought and care he put into his role as the 2026 dinner host. On his menu: bacon-wrapped dates that were a nod to one of his mother’s favorite dishes; yellowfin tuna carpaccio, inspired by the recipe from one of his favorite restaurants, Le Bernardin in New York City; wagyu steak that melts on your tongue; and a selection of wines that would excite even the most hardened connoisseur. “It ties back to experiences that I’ve had, but also wanted it to be something that all the other people in that room would enjoy as well,” McIlroy said.

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How Augusta National gets put to bed each night of the Masters

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Twenty-eight-year-old Norwegian lad Kristoffer Reitan was doing exactly what you would do, were you a rookie at Augusta National, early on in Masters week. 

It was 6:10 p.m. and the Masters Witching Hour was well in motion. Spectators were finally leaving the ground — fat, happy and even a bit drunk — and were replaced, as they are every day, by an army of volunteers, staffers, security and grounds crew scurrying about on duty. They wove around each other like worker ants.

Reitan was living his best life, blissfully unaware and at the center if it all, playing chip shots from the back side of 15 green. A group of six maintenance staffers waited in carts near the next tee, eager to redress the turf that took a beating all day. Eventually they were told Sorry, move on by a gallery marshal. So long as player(s) are on the course, their work must wait. 

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