With The Masters right around the corner, players are attempting to round into form with the Green Jacket in mind.
Every tournament is played with Augusta National looming in the background. When Cam Young won The Players, he said he was working towards The Masters, and Bryson DeChambeau said this month is dedicated to the year’s first major.
And that’s why the recent performances from the world’s best players have been so eyebrow-raising.
LIV Golf stars DeChambeau and Rahm have been on top of their game. DeChambeau has won two straight events, and Rahm has finished in the top two in four of his five tournaments this year, winning LIV Hong Kong.
Meanwhile, world number one Scottie Scheffler has been off his game for a month, finishing outside the top 20 in his last two events, and Rory McIlroy has not met the standard he set at the start of last year, finishing The Players T46 as he nurses a back injury.
With that in mind, LIV players have positioned themselves to dominate at Augusta.
Rahm and DeChambeau told why they are more likely to win The Masters than Scheffler and McIlroy
PGA Tour players won all four majors in 2025, as Scheffler won The Open and the PGA Championship, McIlroy won The Masters, and JJ Spaun won the US Open. But this year, Smylie Kaufman expects either Rahm or DeChambeau to stop that trend.
Especially considering McIlroy’s recent injury, which saw him withdraw from the Arnold Palmer Invitational, and with Scheffler’s wife expecting to give birth soon.
He said on The Smylie Show,” There’s been so much to nitpick about Scottie’s game that he’s just not quite where he was the last couple years and throw in that he’s probably had a kid.0
“ I don’t know if one if it’s happened or if it’s going to happen. You throw in the birth of a child, which we know how difficult, challenging and amazing all that is.
“Throw in Rory’s back, not playing before Augusta. Now you throw in Jon Rahm, who has had an incredible start to the year on the LIV Golf Tour. I thought he played well in the majors last year.
“And then Bryson, whom I was moderately impressed with watching it at the Ryder Cup, I wasn’t overly impressed, but clearly playing some good golf this year, and has gosh, he and even the one that Anthony Kim won he was in that final group with him.
“So, he’s clearly playing some solid golf at a place that should suit his game, or I think he’s figuring out Augusta a little bit more. Where do I sit with those two over these two? Kind of like the kind of like these two over here a little bit more right now.”
There are still some weeks to go before The Masters, but so far, it’s advantage to LIV.
Why Jon Rahm will win The Masters this year
Rahm’s path to a second Green Jacket at the 2026 Masters is paved by his elite consistency. He won the LIV Individual title last year despite not winning a single event, but this year he’s returned to winning ways and still tops the standings.
This elite form puts him in great stead to dominate The Masters, at a course that he is well suited to. At Augusta, Rahm’s greatest weapon remains his superior long-iron play and his ability to fade the ball into tucked pins, a requirement for navigating the treacherous back nine.
As a past champion, Rahm knows exactly how to navigate the undulating greens, and he’s proven that he’s built to handle the pressure, which has broken so many players in the past.
With McIlroy injured as defending champion and Scheffler struggling, Rahm is perfectly positioned to snatch his crown back.
