Who can win the Masters after Thursday’s leaderboard

The 85th Masters started with a track that was much more firm and fast than the 84th version. Greens were tough to hold, balls were running much more quickly into the second cut, and a dried out Augusta National made life much more difficult for the field.

Everyone is currently chasing Justin Rose, who posted a how-did-he-do-that 65 for a four-shot lead after 18 holes. The 2013 US Open winner has come close at Augusta before, finishing second in both 2015 and 2017. For a 10-hole stretch from No. 8 to No. 17, he had an eagle, seven birdies and two pars. That’s -9 on a course where no one else could break -3 for the day.

But there were plenty of players that shot themselves in the foot as well. One of the early favorites in Bryson DeChambeau is +4. Lee Westwood was a chic pick, and he’s at +6.

But one player that put themselves in position is Jordan Spieth, despite a triple-bogey seven on the Par 4 9th. He finished at -1 thanks to a rare eagle yesterday on the slippery 15th, and is in the Top 10 after his win in four years last week at the Valero Texas Open.

There’s not a ton of names the casual golf fan would recognize on the leaderboard, but you’ll hear plenty about Will Zalatoris soon. The 24-year-old from Wake Forest has been a Korn Ferry Tour champion, and this course sets up perfectly for his game. His -2 shows he might be in contention here all week, and his sixth-place finish at the 2020 US Open shows he’s been in position before.