Thursday, Friday Masters featured groups, tee times

Pairings for the Masters’ first two rounds never disappoint, and the heavyweight groupings for the 90th Masters that begins Thursday offer a smorgasbord of goodies.

Rory McIlroy and Cameron Young, Nos. 2 and 3 in the world, play together. Tournament favorite Scottie Scheffler goes off with Robert MacIntyre and Gary Woodland. Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Fitzpatrick and Xander Schauffele just might be a preview of the champion. A don’t-miss group includes Jon Rahm, Chris Gotterup and Ludvig Aberg.

On and on, intrigue everywhere. It’s hard to go wrong with all the big guns on hand.

A closer look

The Masters really “starts” with the biggest names teeing off mid-morning, and that wave begins at 9:55 with Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood and Akshay Bhatia in the spotlight. The DeChambeau trio follows at 10:07 with Hideki Matasuyma, Collin Morikawa and Russell Henley at 10:19.

McIlroy, Young and U.S. Amateur champion Mason Howell start at 10:31. Viktor Hovland, Patrick Cantlay and Alex Noren follow 12 minutes later.

U.S. Open champion J.J Spaun, who won last week’s PGA Tour event in San Antonio, joins Tyrell Hatton and Maverick McNeely at 12:56 p.m. Then, Rahm, Gotterup and Aberg begin their long-ball show at 1:08, and Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose and Brooks Koepka follow. Justin Thomas goes out with Ben Griffin, a three-time winner since the last Masters, at 1:32. Scheffler, the new dad who already owns two green jackets, begins his quest for No. 3 at 1:44.

Dustin Johnson, the Columbia native who set the tournament record in winning in the 2020 Masters, starts at 9:43 with Shane Lowry and Jason Day. Johnson came from behind in the final round to beat Lowry in the 2016 U.S. Open.

Clemson graduate Jacob Bridgman, who won the Genesis this year and leads the FedEx standings, begins his first Masters at 12:27 with former Sergio Garcia and Aaron Rai. Former Wofford star Andrew Novak, in his first Masters, tees off at 11:15 alongside Tom McKibbin and Brian Campbell.

Thursday Masters tee times

Featured groups in bold

• 7:40 AM John Keefer, Haotong Li
• 7:50 AM Naoyuki Kataoka, Max Homa, Carlos Ortiz
• 8:02 AM Jose Maria Olazabal, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Aldrich Potgieter
• 8:14 AM Angel Cabrera, Sami Valimaki, Jackson Herrington
• 8:26 AM Charl Schwartzel, Max Greyserman, Ryan Fox
• 8:38 AM Vijay Singh, Matt McCarty, Rasmus Hojgaard
• 8:50 AM Kurt Kitayama, Kristoffer Reitan, Casey Jarvis
• 9:02 AM Bubba Watson, Nicolas Echavarria, Brandon Holtz
• 9:19 AM Cameron Smith, Sam Burns, Jake Knapp
• 9:31 AM Keegan Bradley, Ryan Gerard, Nick Taylor
• 9:43 AM Dustin Johnson, Shane Lowry, Jason Day
• 9:55 AM Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood, Akshay Bhatia
• 10:07 AM Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schauffele
• 10:19 AM Hideki Matsuyama, Collin Morikawa, Russell Henley
• 10:31 AM Rory McIlroy, Cameron Young, Mason Howell
• 10:43 AM Viktor Hovland, Patrick Cantlay, Alex Noren
• 11:03 AM Samuel Stevens, Sungjae Im
• 11:15 AM Andrew Novak, Tom McKibbin, Brian Campbell
• 11:27 AM Mike Weir, Wyndham Clark, Mateo Pulcini
• 11:39 AM Zach Johnson, Michael Kim, Nicolai Hojgaard
• 11:51 AM Danny Willett, Davis Riley, Ethan Fang
• 12:03 PM Adam Scott, Daniel Berger, Brian Harman
• 12:15 PM Fred Couples, Min Woo Lee, Fifa Laopakdee
• 12:27 PM Sergio Garcia, Aaron Rai, Jacob Bridgeman
• 12:44 PM Harry Hall, Corey Conners, Michael Brennan
• 12:56 PM J.J. Spaun, Maverick McNealy, Tyrrell Hatton
• 1:08 PM Jon Rahm, Chris Gotterup, Ludvig Aberg
• 1:20 PM Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose, Brooks Koepka
• 1:32 PM Sepp Straka, Ben Griffin, Justin Thomas
• 1:44 PM Scottie Scheffler, Robert MacIntyre, Gary Woodland
• 1:56 PM Harris English, Marco Penge, Si Woo Kim

Friday Masters tee times

Featured groups in bold

• 7:40 AM Samuel Stevens, Sungjae Im
• 7:50 AM Andrew Novak, Tom McKibbin, Brian Campbell
• 8:02 AM Mike Weir, Wyndham Clark, Mateo Pulcini
• 8:14 AM Zach Johnson, Michael Kim, Nicolai Hojgaard
• 8:26 AM Danny Willett, Davis Riley, Ethan Fang
• 8:38 AM Adam Scott, Daniel Berger, Brian Harman
• 8:50 AM Fred Couples, Min Woo Lee, Fifa Laopakdee
• 9:02 AM Sergio Garcia, Aaron Rai, Jacob Bridgeman
• 9:19 AM Harry Hall, Corey Conners, Michael Brennan
• 9:31 AM J.J. Spaun, Maverick McNealy, Tyrrell Hatton
• 9:43 AM Jon Rahm, Chris Gotterup, Ludvig Aberg
• 9:55 AM Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose, Brooks Koepka
• 10:07 AM Sepp Straka, Ben Griffin, Justin Thomas
• 10:19 AM Scottie Scheffler, Robert MacIntyre, Gary Woodland
• 10:31 AM Harris English, Marco Penge, Si Woo Kim
• 10:51 AM John Keefer, Haotong Li
• 11:03 AM Naoyuki Kataoka, Max Homa, Carlos Ortiz
• 11:15 AM Jose Maria Olazabal, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Aldrich Potgieter
• 11:27 AM Angel Cabrera, Sami Valimaki, Jackson Herrington
• 11:39 AM Charl Schwartzel, Max Greyserman, Ryan Fox
• 11:51 AM Vijay Singh, Matt McCarty, Rasmus Hojgaard
• 12:03 PM Kurt Kitayama, Kristoffer Reitan, Casey Jarvis
• 12:15 PM Bubba Watson, Nicolas Echavarria, Brandon Holtz
• 12:32 PM Cameron Smith, Sam Burns, Jake Knapp
• 12:44 PM Keegan Bradley, Ryan Gerard, Nick Taylor
• 12:56 PM Dustin Johnson, Shane Lowry, Jason Day
• 1:08 PM Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood, Akshay Bhatia
• 1:20 PM Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schauffele
• 1:32 PM Hideki Matsuyama, Collin Morikawa, Russell Henley
• 1:44 PM Rory McIlroy, Cameron Young, Mason Howell
• 1:56 PM Viktor Hovland, Patrick Cantlay, Alex Noren

Champions dinner menu fit for a King

One of the most exclusive dinners anywhere will feature a menu worthy of the Campbell Soup’s advertising pitch from another era: Yum, Yum Good!

In one of the Masters’ most endearing traditions, past champions gather Tuesday night to reminisce, swap tales and enjoy a feast. Part of the tradition: The menu is selected and paid for by the previous year’s champion, in this case Rory McIlroy.

Neither Tiger Woods (five Masters titles) nor Phil Mickelson (three) will attend, but McIlroy, the host for the evening, said neither will be forgotten.

Neither will the meal be forgotten by those who earned the privilege to attend.

On the menu:

Appetizers include Peach and Ricotta Flatbread (Balsamic, Hot Honey, Basil), Rock Shrimp Tempura (Creamy Spicy Sauce), Bacon-Wrapped Dates (Goat Cheese, Almonds) and Grilled Elk Sliders (Caramelized Onion Jam, Roasted Garlic Aioli)

First Course will be Yellowfin Tuna Carpaccio (Foie Gras, Toasted Baguette, Chives)

Main Course offers a choice of Wagyu Filet Mignon or Seared Salmon with Traditional Irish Champ, Sauteed Brussels Sprouts, Glazed Carrots with Butter Brown, Crispy Vidalia Onion Rings

Dessert will be Sticky Toffee Pudding (Vanilla Ice Cream and Warm Toffee Sauce)

Drinks include 2015 Salon “S,” Brut, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, Champagne, 2022 Domaine Leflaive, Batard-Montrachet, Puligny-Montrachet, Burgundy, 1990 Chateau Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac, Bordeaux, and 1989 Chateau d’Yquem, Sauternes, Bordeaux.

Sounds delicious — and expensive.

Thursday’s start

A trio of Hall of Famers who collectively won 11 Masters — Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Tom Watson — again will fill the traditional honorary starters’ role and hit the tournament’s first shots at 7:25 a.m. on the No. 1 tee.

The trio has combined for 140 Masters appearance and has filled the honorary starters’ role together since 2022.

Nicklaus holds the longest stater tenure, beginning in 2010. Player followed in 2012 and Watson in 2022.

The custom of having Honorary Starters began in 1963 with Jock Hutchison (1963-1973) and Fred McLeod (1963-1976) performing the duties. Byron Nelson (1981-2001, non-consecutive), Gene Sarazen (1981-1999), Ken Venturi (1983), Sam Snead (1984-2002), Arnold Palmer (2007-2016), Nicklaus (2010-present), Player (2012-present), Lee Elder (2021) and Watson (2022-present) have continued the tradition.

How to watch, stream the Masters this week

In addition to daily streaming on Masters.com and the Masters app

Thursday, Round 1

Amazon Prime: 1-3 pm

ESPN: 3-7:30 pm

Friday, Round 2

Amazon Prime: 1-3 pm

ESPN: 3-7:30 pm

Saturday, Round 3

Paramount Plus: Noon-2 pm

CBS and Paramount Plus: 2-7 pm

Sunday, Round 4

Paramount Plus: Noon-2 pm

CBS and Paramount Plus: 2-7 pm

This story was originally published April 9, 2026 at 6:18 AM.