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Steve Palmer's free Masters outright predictions and golf betting tips: Our top tipster has a 22-1 headline selection for Augusta National
Free golf tips, best bets and predictions for the Masters at Augusta National. Plus a 50-1 Rory McIlroy betting offer
When to bet on the Masters
By 12.40pm on Thursday
Where can I watch the Masters
Live on Sky Sports Main Event and Golf from 2pm on Thursday
Steve Palmer's Masters predictions
Justin Thomas
4pts each-way 22-1 bet365
Jon Rahm
4pts each-way 14-1 bet365, Hills
Min Woo Lee
2pts each-way 40-1 Paddy Power
Will Zalatoris
1.5pts each-way 50-1 bet365
Nicolai Hojgaard
1pt each-way 150-1 bet365
Rory McIlroy is aiming to finally get over his Augusta National hoodoo and both Paddy Power and Sky Bet have provided enhanced offers for those wishing to support him at the Masters this week.
Paddy Power are offering new customers 50-1 for McIlroy to make the cut while Sky Bet will pay 50-1 if he makes a first-round birdie.
Claim your Paddy Power or Sky Bet offer here.
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Steve Palmer's Masters preview
McIlroy mania has reached fever pitch in Masters week, with punters clamouring to support the man who has already won at two iconic venues this year, but the weight of golfing history is set to press firmly down on his shoulders again.
This week will be the 11th time Rory McIlroy has arrived at the Cathedral of Pines praying for golfing immortality. Completing the final leg of a career Grand Slam of Majors at Augusta would put him alongside Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as members of that elite club, but it seems likely to prove too much of a mental hurdle once more.
McIlroy's victories at Pebble Beach and Sawgrass were impressive and there appears to be a new-found discipline about his course-management, but the 35-year-old's desperation for a Green Jacket provides an enormous psychological challenge.
It is more than a decade since McIlroy last won a Major at the 2014 US PGA and it seems likely that a fifth Major success is required in either the US PGA, US Open or Open before the Northern Irishman has the confidence and composure to claim the prize he craves above all others.
Nobody since Sarazen in 1935 delivered the final leg of a Slam at Augusta. Back then, the Masters was in only its second year, lacked status, and Sarazen did not even know the significance. It was a retrospectively awarded Slam. McIlroy, in contrast, has to do it amid much greater fanfare and pressure in the age of the internet and relentless scrutiny.
Only Tiger Woods has completed a career Grand Slam in the last 59 years. Sam Snead tried to win the US Open from 1949 to 1977 to complete the Slam, but failed. Arnold Palmer tried to win the US PGA from 1962 to 1994 to complete the Slam, but failed. Tom Watson tried to win the US PGA from 1982 to 2014 to complete the Slam, but failed.
Phil Mickelson has been trying to win the US Open since 2014 to complete the Slam, but has never bettered 28th place. Jordan Spieth has been trying to win the US PGA since 2017 to complete the Slam, but he has failed. The professional game has never been stronger – and the fields have never been so deep – so it is tougher than ever to access the Grand Slam gang.
McIlroy's best golf at Augusta has come when his winning chance has gone. He has played better than anyone else this year, but remains a human, not a robot, and only hopeful romantics will be taking the short odds. Memories of last summer's US Open near-miss will inevitably fog McIlroy's brain if he is leading down the stretch on Sunday.
Scottie Scheffler will also be fighting against history. Only Jack Nicklaus has ever won three Masters in four years. Not even Woods could manage that feat and nobody since Woods in 2002 has retained the Masters title.
Scheffler has been less convincing this year than last – frustrated and short-tempered on the course – so the outright value lies deeper in the Masters betting this time.
Steve Palmer's top tip
Justin Thomas 22-1
Playoff glory in the 2022 US PGA Championship has been followed by a victory drought for Justin Thomas, but there have been hugely encouraging signs over the last seven months, making the former world number one a huge Masters title threat.
A closing 65 at the Tour Championship in September was followed by second place in the Zozo Championship, before Thomas became a father in November. He signed off for 2024 with third spot in the Hero World Challenge and has been a leaderboard regular on the PGA Tour this year, twice finishing second, including last time out in the Valspar Championship.
Even on the occasions he has failed to contend, there have been flashes of brilliance including a closing 63 in The Sentry and a course-record 62 at Sawgrass, and his approach-play is back to the standard which made him a 15-time PGA Tour champion.
Given the strides Thomas has made with his putting this season – he is 40th for strokes-gained-putting on the PGA Tour and first for putting average – there is every reason to believe this will be the year he finally holes enough on the Augusta dancefloors to claim a Green Jacket. His greens-in-regulation numbers at Augusta are typically excellent and this masterful iron-player is equipped to convert chances this time.
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Next best bet
Jon Rahm 14-1
The Majors season was difficult for Jon Rahm last year, who had just switched to LIV Golf and was subjected to excruciating interrogation in pre-tournament media conferences. The role of defending Masters champion, hosting the Tuesday dinner, added to the pressure for the unsettled Spaniard and it was no surprise to see him quickly tailed off.
Rahm did not even get to tee off in the US Open due to a toe infection and seventh place in the Open in July was a decent effort to end a disappointing Majors campaign. This term, having adjusted to his LIV schedule, a 30-year-old Rahm seems calmer and much more dangerous.
Rahm commented at the Open last year that his wife Kelley was having “not the easiest pregnancy”, then described a “dark two months” at the LIV Chicago media conference in September, so those complications doubtless added to his challenging 2024. His daughter, Alaia, arrived safely at the end of September, relaxing Rahm for 2025.
Consistently on LIV leaderboards, swinging superbly, churning out greens in regulation, this proven Augusta performer should be in the thick of things throughout. Rahm made 14 birdies in 54 holes at difficult Doral in LIV Miami last week. He played the 17th hole in six over par, but it was a generally impressive warm-up spin. He has completed 17 LIV events (withdrew during LIV Houston last June with the toe problem) and never finished outside the top ten.
Justin Thomas and Jon Rahm To Finish In The Top 5: 23/1
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Other selections
Min Woo Lee 40-1
Will Zalatoris 50-1
Nicolai Hojgaard 150-1
Min Woo Lee, thriving with an experienced new caddie, is riding the crest of a wave after his PGA Tour breakthrough in Houston – and that perfect warm-up spin should be followed by a bold Masters performance. This awesome driver, also blessed with an amazing short game, has improved his approach-play lately, making him the complete package for Augusta, where he finished 14th on debut in 2022.
Lee is hitting his irons significantly higher this year, a project undertaken with coach Ritchie Smith, so has the ideal angle of attack to firm, fast Augusta greens. Lee has gained strokes on approach in four of his last seven starts and was 15th in this category in Houston. He broke a finger the week before last year's Masters, and was battling flu, but still managed 22nd place.
Lee, fifth in the 2023 US Open, has quickly shown he has the class to handle Major arenas, while the same can be said of Will Zalatoris, who has posted a runner-up finish in every Major bar the Open. The Californian, who boasts Masters form figures of 2-6-9, contended at Sawgrass last month until a horrible bounce into water at the 14th hole in round three resulted in a quadruple bogey. This excellent ball-striker appears to be peaking for the Masters and could follow Adam Scott's example by becoming Masters champion using a broom-handle putter. Zalatoris putts better at Augusta than anywhere else.
Shane Lowry and Sepp Straka are hitting their irons superbly and are tempting options, but the final vote goes to Nicolai Hojgaard, who finished 16th on his Masters debut last year. The Danish dude is a phenomenal driver, his approach-play has been impressive this year, and his putting has been decent. The three-time DP World Tour champion has made the cut in his last seven Majors and is going off at a massive price due to missing cuts at less suitable venues last month. With room off the tee at Augusta, the 24-year-old powerhouse can showcase his talent, as he did when eighth on the generous fairways of the Mexico Open at the end of February.
Min Woo Lee & Will Zalatoris To Finish In The Top 20: 6/1
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Course guide for the Masters
- Course Augusta National, Augusta, Georgia
- Prize money $20m ($3.6m to the winner)
- Length 7,555 yards
- Par 72 - four par-five holes; ten par-fours; four par-threes
- Field 95 The cut The top 50 players (plus ties) qualify for the final 36 holes
- Highest-ranked players in field (world ranking in brackets) Scottie Scheffler (1), Rory McIlroy (2), Xander Schauffele (3), Collin Morikawa (4), Ludvig Aberg (5)
- Course records - 72 holes 268 Dustin Johnson (2020) 18 holes 63 Nick Price (1986), Greg Norman (1996)
- Course winners taking part Bernhard Langer, Fred Couples, Jose Maria Olazabal (twice), Mike Weir, Phil Mickelson (three times), Zach Johnson, Angel Cabrera, Charl Schwartzel, Bubba Watson (twice), Adam Scott, Jordan Spieth, Danny Willett, Sergio Garcia, Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson, Hideki Matsuyama, Scottie Scheffler (twice), Jon Rahm
- When to bet By 12.40pm on Thursday
- When to watch Live on Sky Sports Main Event and Golf from 2pm on Thursday
- Time difference Georgia is five hours behind the UK and Ireland
- Last week – Texas Open 1 B Harman (90-1), 2 R Gerard (66-1), T3 M McNealy (45-1), A Novak (70-1), T5 B Cauley (50-1), C Kim (150-1), P Fishburn (200-1), T Olesen (125-1), R Hisatsune (125-1), C Ramey (350-1), T Hoge (80-1)
- Course type Parkland
- Course overview Home of the Masters since 1934, Augusta is the only Major venue which is used every season, typically in the spring. The 2020 (Covid-delayed) edition was in November. The course demands accurate iron shots to the fastest greens in golf. Avoiding three-putts is challenging given the severity of the undulations. Sound course management is required to find the easiest spots from which to putt. Three par-five holes – the second, 13th and 15th – have been lengthened over recent years, making them more difficult to reach in two shots. In the wake of Hurricane Helene last autumn, four greens were re-seeded and relaid, so there is potential for fresh pin positions. Trees were lost around the par-three 16th hole, but it presents the same challenge. The benign weather forecast probably means Augusta bigwigs will set the greens up as firm and fast as possible to keep a check on scoring
- The story of last year Scottie Scheffler fended off Ludvig Aberg, Collin Morikawa and Max Homa to win a second Masters title, cruising home by four shots
- Weather forecast Heavy rain on Sunday and Monday softened up the track, but unbroken sunshine has followed. Sunny skies are expected for the vast majority of the tournament, with only Friday seeing some cloud. Relatively cool mornings should be followed by pleasant afternoons, with precious little wind throughout
- Type of player suited to the challenge Length is a significant advantage, with grass cut towards the tees and balls stopping quickly on generous fairways which are flanked by thin trees. Only two of the last 25 Masters have been won by a short-hitter (Mike Weir in 2003 and Zach Johnson in 2007). Powerhouses are able to attack the small targets with loft in hand. Accurate approaches to well guarded and undulating greens are the key to success
- Key attribute Accuracy
Steve Palmer's Masters key stat
The last 15 Masters winners were inside the top 30 of the world rankings at the time of their victory
Read more Masters previews from Steve Palmer:
The Masters 2025: Steve Palmer's guide to all 95 players in the Augusta National field
Masters first-round threeball tips and predictions: Don't miss Steve's 12-1 treble
Masters first-round leader predictions: 45-1, 50-1 and 90-1 tips for round one at Augusta National
Masters 72-hole match-bet predictions: MacIntyre poised for a big week
Masters specials predictions including a 200-1 tip
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For those looking for even more extensive golf coverage don't miss Palmer's extra pointers every Wednesday in the Racing Post newspaper.
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