The Masters tee times revealed as Rory McIlroy learns his group in title defence

Callum Vurley
Tue, 07 Apr 2026 16:58:38 +0000

Rory McIlroy now knows exactly who he'll be walking the fairways of Augusta with as he looks to defend his Masters crown.

The Northern Irishman will tee off at 3:31pm BST on Thursday alongside Cameron Young and amateur Mason Howell.

It's a fascinating threeball, with tournament organisers sticking to tradition by pairing the defending champion with the current US Amateur winner.

Howell is the youngest competitor in the entire field this week.

Young, meanwhile, arrives at Augusta in brilliant form – he's chasing the rare feat of winning both The Players Championship and The Masters in the same season, something only two golfers have managed before.

McIlroy's return to Georgia will be an emotional one after he finally completed the career Grand Slam in such dramatic fashion last year.

The world No 2 is now chasing history – he wants to become just the fourth golfer ever to successfully defend the Masters title.

Last year's victory came after a tense play-off against Justin Rose, sparking incredible scenes at Augusta National.

It wasn't straightforward, though. McIlroy missed crucial putts during regulation, much like he did at the US Open when two short misses on the 16th and 18th holes handed Bryson DeChambeau that major.

But at Augusta, he found a way to get it done when it mattered most.

The field this week features 91 golfers battling it out for the first major of the year.

World No 1 Scottie Scheffler finds himself on the opposite side of the draw to McIlroy, grouped with Scotland's Robert MacIntyre and former US Open champion Gary Woodland.

Justin Rose, who finished runner-up to McIlroy last year, has been paired with 2015 champion Jordan Spieth and five-time major winner Brooks Koepka.

Bryson DeChambeau will head out at 3:07pm BST alongside Xander Schauffele and Matt Fitzpatrick.

The Honorary Starters ceremony kicks off proceedings on Thursday morning at 12:25pm BST, with legends Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Tom Watson doing the honours.

The Masters tee times

1443 Dustin Johnson, Shane Lowry, Jason Day

1455 Patrick Reed, Tommy Fleetwood, Akshay Bhatia

1507 Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schauffele

1519 Hideki Matsuyama, Collin Morikawa, Russell Henley

1531 Rory McIlroy, Cameron Young, Mason Howell

1808 Jon Rahm, Chrs Gotterup, Ludvig Aberg

1820 Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose, Brooks Koepka

1844 Scottie Scheffler, Robert MacIntyre, Gary Woodland