AUGUSTA, Ga. — Here are my picks for this week’s Masters at August Nationals, which begins Thursday
Xander Schauffele
He’s won seven times on th✤e PGA Tour and is seeking his first major. He’s finished in the top 10 in ⛎majors 11 times, and seven of those have been in the top six, six in the top five.
He’s ready and in a good head space.
This week is his time.
Scottie Scheffler
It’s difficult to pick ꦡagainst him ꦕconsidering he won the 2022 Masters and enters this week as the No. 1 ranked player and he’s won two of his past three starts with the one non-win a runner-up.
He looks almost infallible as the leader in almost every ball-striking statistic on the PGA Tour🐭.
Brooks Koepka
You cannot ignor🅷e Koepkꦬa as the sport’s top big-game hunter when it comes to majors.
He finished runner-up last year, hisℱ second runner-up at the Masters.
He’s alreadꦕꦡy bagged two U.S. Opens and three PGA Championships.
Maybe this is his time at Augusta.
Jon Rahm
The defending champion comes to Augusta as a member of LIV Golf and 🍬will have a chip on his shoulder for the criticism he’s gotten 🗹for making the jump for the money.
Will Zalatoris
He was runner-up at the 2021 Masters, and after a year of back surgery and rehab, he entere🌌d the week with solid results — T13, T2 and T4 earlier in the 🐭year.
He played with Tiger Woods on Mo🍸nday and picked his brain.
Ludvig Aberg
Sure, this is his first Masters and no first-timer has🐬 won sin♏ce Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979.
But this 24-year-old Swede is good.
He🌃 led the Valero field in Strokes gained: tee-to-green last week ꩵand has performed well in pressure situations, as evidenced by his Ryder Cup debut last fall.