Woods' 26th Masters appearance "6th 'green jacket' possible"

"I can still win," says Tiger Woods (49, USA), the "Emperor of Golf", as he goes for his sixth green jacket. Woods will tee off in the first round of the 88th Masters Golf at 1:24 p.m. ET (2:24 a.m. PT) alongside former world No. 1 Jason Day (AUS) and six-time PGA Tour winner Max Homa (USA). This will be his 26th appearance. His odds of winning are somewhere between 100-1 and 150-1. He first competed in this event as an amateur in 1995 and is making his 26th appearance this year. He made 23 cuts last year, tying him with Gary Player (South Africa) and Fred Couples (USA) for the most cuts made in a tournament, and if he makes 24, he will set a new record. The Masters is Woods' first Tour event in seven weeks after withdrawing with flu symptoms during the second round of the Genesis Invitational in February.

"Woods is preparing with the same pre-tournament routine he did in 2019, the last time he won the Masters," Golfweek wrote. He warmed up on the driving range on the afternoon of the 7th, picked up four clubs and checked his play around the greens. He played the back nine with Will Zalatoris (USA) on his first official practice day. He also played the first nine holes with Fred Couples (USA) and Justin Thomas (USA). "It was only nine holes, but he didn't hit a bad shot," said Couples. However, thunderstorms and rain were forecast for the area on Nov. 11, which could prove difficult for Woods, who still has a leg from a car accident two years ago. "Hopefully the weather will cooperate on Thursday. It's not going to be like last year," Woods said.

World No. 1 and tournament favorite Scotty Schauffler (USA) will tee off on the first hole at 11:42 p.m. ET with Rory McIlroy (NI) and Xander Schauffele (USA). Last year's winner, Yon Rahm (Spain), is paired with Matt Fitzpatrick (England) and Nick Dunlap (USA). South Korea's Joo-hyung Kim will tee off at 2:36 a.m. on Wednesday with "Major Hunter" Brooks Koepka (USA) and last year's defending champion Brian Harman (USA). Kim made his first appearance at the Masters last year, finishing tied for 16th. 2020 Masters runner-up Sungjae Im (KOR) will be paired with Patrick Reed (USA) and Kurt Kitayama (USA), while Byung-hoon Ahn, returning to the Masters after a four-year absence, will be lined up alongside Lucas Glover (USA) and Harris English (USA).