Only Six Players Can Win the Masters? This Stat Says So

The Masters is right around the corner, so it’s time to start diving into the stats to see if we can predict the winner. Augusta National Golf Club emphasizes driving distance, ironclad approach play, and elite short game.

To put it plainly, you need to be clicking on all cylinders to have any hope of slipping on the green jacket come Sunday afternoon.

So, that’s where we’ll start.

Normal Sport’s Kyle Porter tweeted a notable Masters stat on Monday that caught my eye: 10 of the last 12 champions were at 1.7 Strokes Gained: Tee to Green or better in the three months leading into April. The only exceptions were Patrick Reed in 2018 and Hideki Matsuyama in 2021.

Six players currently fit the criteria: Collin Morikawa, Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, Joaquin Niemann, Shane Lowry, and Tommy Fleetwood.

Here’s a look at each player’s most recent finishes on their respective tours and their last three Masters finishes.

Collin Morikawa

Collin Morikawa. Masters 2024. (Photo: Getty Images)

Last five PGA TOUR finishes: T-10 (PLAYERS), 2nd (Arnold Palmer Invitational), T-17 (Genesis Invitational), T-17 (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am), and 2nd (The Sentry)

Last three Masters finishes: T-3 (2024), T-10 (2023), and 5th (2022)

Rory McIlroy

Rory McIlroy. Masters 2024. (Photo: Getty Images)

Last four PGA TOUR finishes: 1st (PLAYERS), T-15 (Arnold Palmer Invitational), T-17 (Genesis Invitational), and 1st (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am)

Last three Masters finishes: T-22 (2024), MC (2023), and 2nd (2022)

Scottie Scheffler

Scottie Scheffler. Masters 2024. (Photo: Getty Images)

Last five PGA TOUR finishes: T-20 (PLAYERS), T-11 (Arnold Palmer Invitational), T-3 (Genesis Invitational), T-25 (WM Phoenix Open), and T-9 (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am)

Last three Masters finishes: 1st (2024), T-10 (2023), and 1st (2022)

Joaquin Niemann

Joaquin Niemann. Masters 2024. (Photo: Getty Images)

Last four LIV Golf finishes: 1st (Singapore), T-12 (Hong Kong), 1st (Adelaide), and T-33 (Riyadh)

Last three Masters finishes: T-22 (2024), T-16 (2023), and T-35 (2022)

Shane Lowry

Shane Lowry. Masters 2024. (Photo: Getty Images)

Last five PGA TOUR finishes: T-8 (Valspar Championship), T-20 (PLAYERS), 7th (Arnold Palmer Invitational), T-11 (Cognizant Classic), and T-39 (Genesis Invitational)

Last three Masters finishes: T-43 (2024), T-16 (2023), and T-3 (2022)

Tommy Fleetwood

Tommy Fleetwood. Masters 2024. (Photo: Getty Images)

Last five PGA TOUR finishes: T-16 (Valspar Championship), T-14 (PLAYERS), T-11 (Arnold Palmer Invitational), T-5 (Genesis Invitational), and T-22 (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am)

Last three Masters finishes: T-3 (2024), 33rd (2023), and T-14 (2022)