The 15th hole, a year after it played to a record-high scoring average of 5.137 in the second round, was only slightly easier in Thursday’s opening round of this Masters, yielding a 5.121 clip.
Drive with Precision: Seventh hole holds field to just two birdies in opening round
The par-4 7th hole made it nearly impossible for players to finish their first nine unscathed at Augusta National Thursday. The 450-yard "Pampas" registered two birdies and witnessed nearly three dozen bogeys. In this "Mercedes-Benz Drive with Precision," the Live From crew breaks down why the field suffered so much to hit the fairway here.
Up Next
TOP HEADLINES
SIGHTS AND SOUNDS
McIlroy (67): Desire to win the Masters still very much there
Just because he's won the Masters doesn't mean Rory McIlroy doesn't want — badly — to win it again. He talks after his opening-round 67 at Augusta National.
Up Next
GOLFPASS FEATURED
Fred Ridley, chairman of Augusta National, reiterated the importance of sensible golf equipment regulation in his 2026 Masters press conference.
We scoured our GolfPass reviews to find courses that remind YOU of Augusta National.
This company is bringing simulator golf to major championships and America’s most prominent resort.
Learn from the best golfers and instructors in the world and enjoy benefits that golfers love.
LATEST
Straka saved par seven times and chipped in for eagle late in his round Thursday to grab a share of the lead at The Players. Whether he remained atop the leaderboard would not be determined until Friday morning.
Rory McIlroy teed it up Thursday at The Players Championship having only hit about a bag of practice balls since late last week. It showed in his performance.
Henley was getting lunch in the locker room when he was told by Ben Griffin that he needed to return for his round.
There is precious little room on TPC Sawgrass for distractions with disaster waiting around every dogleg, but Tommy Fleetwood could have been forgiven if he found himself distracted during Thursday’s opening round at The Players Championship.
Scheffler went back to old faithful Thursday at The Players – it just didn’t quite live up to that moniker.
PONTE VEDRA, Fla. – Justin Thomas is used to big comebacks around TPC Sawgrass.
Justin Thomas didn’t fare well in his return to competition at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, but he shot 68 in the opening round of The Players Championship.
TPC Sawgrass’ notorious No. 17 claimed a whole group’s balls during Round 1 of the 2026 Players Championship on Thursday. Gary Woodland, Cam Davis and Kevin Yu all saw their tee shots suffer a wet fate instead of hitting the island green.
Max Homa and Max Greyserman both had extreme scorecards in the first round of The Players Championship.
Here’s a look at adjusted tee times and groupings for the first round following a brief weather suspension.