Two-time U.S. Open champion Curtis Strange kicked off ESPN’s annual Masters media call on Monday by pointing out that the top two players in the world are sucking up most of the oxygen in the room. World No. 2 Rory McIlroy already has won twice, including the Players Championship just a couple of weeks ago, and looks as poised as ever to end his 11-year major drought and complete the career Grand Slam at Augusta National next week. Scottie Scheffler may be winless this season, but he’s not far removed from last year’s brilliance and having won the Masters two of the last three years, he remains the man to beat.
“I'm looking forward to the Rory-Scottie show,” Strange said. “OK, that's the end of conversation. Let's leave now.”
Could it really be that simple, or has Xander Schauffele dusted off enough rust to win three of the last four majors contested? Is Collin Morikawa, who has two runner-up finishes this season, ready to grab a third leg of the career Grand Slam? Can Justin Thomas or Jordan Spieth end victory droughts in dramatic fashion? Is Ludvig Aberg, a Masters runner-up in his debut last year, ready to be a major champion? And what of the LIV players – major winners Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka and Cam Smith think they would look good in green, Joaquin Niemann could be a threat for a first major and Jon Rahm, Dustin Johnson and Patrick Reed are among the past champions seeking a second green jacket? So many scenarios indeed, but it still left ESPN’s Andy North to pose the following question to Strange: “This is just for me. If you had Scottie and Rory, would you take them against the rest of the field? I think they're playing that well, that that's not that crazy."
Strange didn’t take long to ponder his answer. “It's much like the question with Tiger against the field back when he was winning everything. It's probably a bad bet, but I'd have to go with it just because,” Strange said with a smile.
“For dinner, it's worth it,” North added.
The Golf Channel conducted its own media call on Tuesday and one of the reporters posed North’s question to analysts Paul McGinley and Brandel Chamblee.
“Good question,” McGinley said. “I would go with Rory and Scottie. I do. I think if Rory beats Scottie, he has a great chance of putting on the Green Jacket.”
Chamblee laughed that McGinley had turned the question from one of the players vs the field to both but under that scenario Chamblee didn’t hesitate either. “I would agree with Paul there, yes,” he said.
There are 96 golfers in the 2025 Masters field, including amateurs and past champions, with one more invitation to go to the winner of this week's Valero Texas Open if they're not otherwise exempt.
The pundits have spoken. Who would you take: Scottie and Rory or the field?
This article originally appeared on Golfweek:
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