Masters 2025: Monday’s rain hopefully paves approach for particular week

AUGUSTA, Ga. — There’s an outdated adage about marriage ceremony days that I like — when a pair exchanges their vows amid a downpour, it’s believed {that a} lengthy and wholesome marriage will observe. That applies to my very own dad and mom, who’ve been fortunately married for nearly three a long time now. Their marriage ceremony day featured nothing however rain, however the precipitation on that last Saturday in Might helped nurture the seeds of an attractive, loving household — one which I’m extremely fortunate to be part of.

Certainly, a wet marriage ceremony day is an indication of excellent luck for newlyweds.

Let’s hope the identical mantra applies to this week’s Masters Match.

It goes with out saying that one’s marriage ceremony day takes place firstly of a wedding, simply as Monday’s follow spherical at Augusta Nationwide indicators the arrival of a brand new Masters.

It’s a day for gamers to develop acclimated to the property, follow, and reply questions from the media. It’s additionally considerably of a relaxed setting, with excited patrons traversing the course, all whereas soaking within the landmarks that make this place so particular. Nothing compares to taking within the scenes round Amen Nook, or sitting within the spot the place Tiger Woods famously holed out from on the sixteenth gap 20 years in the past this week.

Indulging in Pimento Cheese sandwiches and having fun with a Crow’s Nest lager doesn’t disappoint both.

Augusta Nationwide Golf Membership/Getty Photographs

And but, Augusta Nationwide Golf Membership had no alternative however to droop play attributable to Monday’s inclement climate. It downpoured throughout Japanese Georgia on Monday, making it exhausting to see 50 toes earlier than you. Puddles developed throughout the course, forcing the membership to shut the property for the rest of the afternoon and disappointing many patrons who made the pilgrimage for Monday’s follow spherical. However the membership will honor Monday’s tickets for these unfortunate attendees sooner or later.

“We’re disillusioned our patrons couldn’t absolutely get pleasure from in the present day’s follow spherical, however the security of everybody at Augusta Nationwide is our highest precedence and was the figuring out issue within the determination to cancel,” mentioned Fred Ridley, the Chairman of Augusta Nationwide Golf Membership, in an announcement on Monday.

“We sit up for welcoming again our Monday patrons subsequent yr, in addition to celebrating a beautiful 89th Masters Match forward of us this week.”

Refunds can be supplied in Might, and people with Monday follow spherical badges can buy Monday tickets for the 2026 version.

Not all hope is misplaced regardless of the moist day.

And we are able to solely hope that Monday’s moist climate blossoms into one thing lovely.

In any case, there’s something particular about each Masters Match that has taken place within the years ending in ‘5.’

This has been the case from the very starting too.

The 1935 Masters, the event’s second version, featured the ‘shot heard around the world.’ Gene Sarazen, who turned one in all 5 gamers to win the profession Grand Slam, holed out from 235 yards with a 4-wood on the par-5 fifteenth gap to match Craig Wooden at 6-under par. The 2 gamers then completed their last rounds knotted at 6-under, and Sarazen defeated Wooden in a 36-hole playoff the next day by 5 strokes.

Twenty years later, in 1955, Cary Middlecoff, one of many best gamers the PGA Tour has ever seen, received his lone Masters title. Middlecoff shot a 7-under 65 through the second spherical, which included a then-record 31 on the opening 9. He finally coasted to a seven-shot victory over Ben Hogan, who had received a pair of Inexperienced Jackets in 1951 and 1953.

Then, in 1965, Jack Nicklaus received his second Inexperienced Jacket by a whopping 9 pictures, with Gary Participant and Arnold Palmer sharing second place honors. Nicklaus additionally set the event scoring report at 17-under par, leaving the nice Bobby Jones in disbelief. After Nicklaus received, Jones famously mentioned, “He performs a sport with which I’m not acquainted.” Nicklaus relied on his beautiful energy and deft contact across the greens to dominate Augusta Nationwide.

Ten years later, in 1975, Nicklaus received once more in what many name the best Masters of all-time. The Golden Bear fought off Johnny Miller and Tom Weiskopf as he holed a 40-footer for birdie on the sixteenth inexperienced to finally win by one. Watching these three gamers — one of the best on the planet on the time — battle one another down the stretch continues to be talked about to today.

1985 noticed Bernhard Langer win his first Inexperienced Jacket. Langer, who will say goodbye to taking part in in The Masters competitively this week, turned solely the second European to overcome Augusta. His long-time pal and Ryder Cup confidant, Seve Ballesteros, turned the primary European participant to win The Masters in 1980.

In 1995, Ben Crenshaw overcame the longest of odds to win his second Inexperienced Jacket. The day earlier than he arrived at Augusta, Crenshaw served as a pall-bearer at Harvey Penick’s funeral.

Penick, Crenshaw’s longtime mentor and coach, posthumously guided him to a one-shot victory over Davis Love III. He birdied the sixteenth and seventeenth holes to change into the thirteenth participant to win a number of Masters titles. Understandably, Crenshaw let the tears circulation on the 18th inexperienced, leaving an indelible picture that may stay on endlessly.

In fact, the 2005 Masters Match produced probably the most well-known pictures in event historical past. Going through a fragile chip-shot from over the sixteenth inexperienced, Tiger Woods held a one-shot lead however appeared destined to offer a shot again to the sector and drop right into a tie with Chris DiMarco. After which, someway, someway, Woods holed the chip, as his Nike golf ball simply fell into the underside of the cup, eliciting the nice Verne Lundquist to say, “In your life! Have you ever ever seen something like that!?”

We didn’t see something prefer it earlier than, nor have we seen something prefer it since. One way or the other, that shot will have fun its twentieth anniversary at this yr’s Masters Match, which, fairly frankly, is the primary reminiscence I’ve of watching The Masters with my dad.

This shot can be why the sixteenth gap will endlessly be my favourite, not solely due to Woods but in addition due to Lundquist, one in all my favourite broadcasters. Lundquist can be missed this yr.

After which, in 2015, Jordan Spieth received The Masters in dominating trend, opening with an 8-under 64. He by no means appeared again. Spieth finally completed at 18-under par, which tied the 72-hole scoring report on the time, as Spieth received his first of two main championships that yr at Augusta. He then went on to win the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay that June, narrowly missed a playoff at St. Andrews at The Open in July, after which completed runner-up to Jason Day on the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits in August. Spieth had an unbelievable season, coming near profitable the Profession Grand Slam, and it began at Augusta.

Quick ahead to the current, and the 2025 Masters Match has arrived with many intriguing storylines. Can Scottie Scheffler win for the third time in 4 years? Will Rory McIlroy full the profession Grand Slam? What about Xander Schauffele, who has received two of the final three main championships? Will a LIV Golf star win one other main? Can Phil Mickelson flip again the clock and run up the leaderboard, like he did in 2023? How a few younger star like Ludvig Åberg? The chances are infinite.

However we are able to solely hope that Monday’s rain blossoms into an amazing event, identical to the showers that always result in a contented marriage.

Jack Milko is a golf employees author for SB Nation’s Taking part in By. Comply with him on X @jack_milko.