Masters live leaderboard updates: Thursday tee times, pairings, where to watch

The 2025 season starts with a bang with the Masters Tournament, the very first of the year’s major golf tournaments, now underway at the Augusta National Golf Club, a world-tier golf venue. Like all golfers, Scheffler, the defending champion and world number one, is looking forward to this prestigious event. He triumphed at the last edition after besting Ludvig Aberg by four strokes, defending his title last week, and he seems to set himself as the favorite on pre-tournament predictions too.

This season’s cohort seems to boast unrivaled skill. World number two Rory McIlroy is arguably the most fascinating player in this fight; apart from the prize money, glory, and Masters championship, this will also get him a grand slam—something only a select few have accomplished in the history of golf. Other big names include Jon Rahm, last year’s champion, Hideki Matsuyama, the 2021 victor, and 2020’s champ, Dustin Johnson. All of the above will be competing to win the prestigious green jacket while further polishing their already stellar legacies.

As it has always been done, the Masters commenced with a team-off. The initial shots were once again given to three sport legends: Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson. Collectively, they have 11 green jackets and the Augusta patrons applauded as they formally commenced the tournament. Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley officially proclaimed the tournament open after Watson’s tee shot, which means four exhilarating days of competition were going to commence.

For fans of the match, ESPN began coverage at 3 p.m. ET. It can also be streamed on Masters.com, the Masters app, and Fubo which has a free trial for first time users. Those who are interested in more extensive coverage throughout the day can find some group and hole feeds on ESPN+, available to subscribers. With so many options available, fans will not miss any moments from the tournament.

The Thursday featured tee times included many of the crowd favorites. Zach Johnson started at 8:13 a.m. while he was followed by Collin Morikawa at 9:47 a.m. Phil Mickelson has been a crowd pleaser for a long time now, and today did not start at 9:58 a.m. while he was followed by Scottie Scheffler and Justin Thomas who took the course at 10:15 a.m. some notable pairings include Jordan Spieth at 10:26 am, Bubba Watson at 11:21 am, and then Rory McIlroy advanced the pack in the afternoon at 1:12 pm followed closely by Hideki Matsuyama and Bryson DeChambeau at 1:23 pm. Jon Rahm ended this strong line up at 1:34 pm.

In terms of conditions, Thursday started with near perfect spring weather with temperatures nearing 79 degrees and gentle winds throughout the day. Unfortunatly the weather forecast for the evening brought some mixed conditions as the Natioanl Weather Service warned of a 50% chance of rain during the night which would disturb the early rounds on Friday. Thankfully the amount of rainfall in question is predicted to be light, hovering between a tenth and a quarter inch.

The excitement attending the contest is evident and the fans are already thinking of the possible winners. BetMGM’s odds released on Wednesday showed Scheffler still ahead with the odds of +450. This is followed by McIlroy at +650 with Morikawa and Rahm each at +1400. DeChambeau trails soon after at +1600 where Ludvig Aberg, Justin Thomas, and Xander Schauffele complete the list of top contenders.

As the participants walk onto the exquisitely manicured fairways of Augusta, the audience is guaranteed an exhibition of unparalleled talent, exceptional planning, and unyielding composure. Together with the underlying narratives and the legends that are crafted, everything is bound to be magical for both dedicated fans and fresh faces over the ensuing four days.