9 underdogs to watch at the 2025 Masters

The tradition unlike any other is back.

Augusta National will play host to 95 of the top golfers on the planet this weekend, and only one will don the famous green jacket early Sunday evening.

All eyes are on reigning champion Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and two-time major winners Jon Rahm and Xander Schauffele and a couple of other household names.

But we're here to tell you about the nine golfers you may not be familiar with who may make some noise in Georgia this weekend.

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Shane Lowry

Shane Lowry is no stranger to major tournament success. He has finished in the top four in each major, including a victory at the 2019 Open Championship and a second-place finish in the 2022 Masters.

Last year was up and down, but he managed sixth-place finishes in both the PGA Championship and Open Championship. This year, he’s off to a hot start.

In seven events, he has three top-10 finishes, including a runner-up behind his buddy Rory McIlroy at Pebble Beach. The only time he’s finished outside the top 20 was when he missed the cut as the Farmers Insurance, and he finished tied for 39th at The Genesis.

Since then, he’s finished tied for 11th, seventh, tied for 20th and tied for eighth. He ranks in several important analytics that are key for Augusta: fourth in shots gained tee-to-green, sixth in shots-gained approach the green and 24th in SG around the green.

Russell Henley

Augusta National hasn’t typically been kind to Russell Henley. Outside of his fourth-place tie in 2023, he’s finished outside the top 20 in five of his other eight times at the course.

But he ended the majors hot last year, finishing tied for seventh at the U.S. Open and fifth at the Open Championship. His performance was good enough for a Presidents Cup appearance, and he carried it over with an incredible win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational with the help of a hole-out eagle from the trap on 16.

Henley has made the cut in all seven of his tournaments this year and has four top-10 finishes. He ranks 16th in SG tee-to-green and around the green and 22nd in SG approach the green.

J.J. Spaun

J.J. Spaun just went toe to toe with Rory McIlroy at the Players Championship, and although the playoff didn’t go his way, it was quite an effort.

Spaun has another runner-up this season as the Cognizant and tied for third at the Sony Open in Hawaii. His other events have not gone too well, but it’s no secret he can find himself near the top if he gets it going.

Spaun ranks second in SG approach the green (behind only Collin Morikawa) and seventh in SG tee-to-green. He’s a sneaky pick and one to keep an eye on.

Robert McIntyre

Robert McIntyre is riding high. His last four finishes have gone tied for sixth, missed cut, tied for 11th and ninth. He ranks fifth in SG tee-to-green, with the top four of Morikawa, McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler and Lowry combining for nine major championships. 

He also ranks eighth in SG off the tee, 21st in SG approach the green, and sixth in greens in regulation percentage.

It would be a stunner if he were to win it all because his putter isn’t too friendly, but his driver and iron game could get him hovering around moving day.

Will Zalatoris 

Should Zalatoris really be considered a sleeper if he’s competed three times at the Masters and finished in the top 10 in each of them?

At a course like Augusta National, which eats up some of the best golfers in the world, Zalatoris clearly knows how to tame it. However, he hasn’t had the best start to the 2025 season by his standards, though he’s been a top-50 finisher in each event he’s played thus far.

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Corey Conners

Conners is riding high heading into Masters week, finishing with three top-10 finishes in his recent events. And given the necessity to strike the ball well at Augusta, Conners is one of those players who could climb the leaderboard right away in this year’s first major.

Through his seven Masters, Conners has finished in the top 10 in three of them.

Akshay Bhatia

The sweet-swinging lefty is quickly becoming a superstar on the PGA Tour, and he could cement that title if he makes a run at the green jacket this week. Last year, Bhatia tied for 35th in his first Masters tournament, and given his top-10 finishes at The Players (tied for 3rd), Genesis Invitational (tied for 9th) and Mexico Open (9th), he’s playing great golf at the moment on a course that should be soft this week for easier scoring.

Sepp Straka

Making his fourth Masters start this week, Straka, the 13th-ranked golfer in the world, had his best finish last year when he came in 16th. But his last three tournaments have seen him finish 11th, fifth and 14th, respectively. He also won The American Express this year, so he’s playing great golf heading into the week.

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Tom Kim

Kim is not playing his best golf right now, missing the cut in two of his last four tournaments, including the Valero Texas Open. In the two cuts he did make, he finished tied for 36th and tied for 42nd.

However, Kim has done well at Augusta National in his two tournaments. He finished tied for 16th in his debut in 2023, and tied for 30th in 2024. And his final round last year saw a 66, which was the low score of the day by two strokes.

If he can cut down on approach mistakes, Kim has a chance to contend Sunday.

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