(Corrects size of field to 88 in third para)
By Frank Pingue
AUGUSTA, Georgia (Reuters) -Former champion Mike Weir hit the first shot at the Masters as the Canadian set off in the opening round alongside LIV Golf’s Kevin Na on Thursday at a cloudy Augusta National where defending champion Scottie Scheffler had a late tee time.
After golfing greats Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson hit ceremonial tee shots, Weir, competing 20 years after his Masters win, got his day started with a poorly struck ball that went left of the fairway at the par-four first hole.
Weir is playing with one of the 18 LIV Golf players in the 88-player field at the year’s first major, a group that includes former Masters champions Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Bubba Watson, Patrick Reed and Charl Schwartzel.
Tournament favourite and world number one Scheffler, bidding to become the fourth player to repeat as Masters champion, will go out in the third-last group at 1:36 p.m. ET (1736 GMT) with Max Homa and amateur Sam Bennett.
“I feel pretty good. Game’s in a good spot,” Scheffler said on Wednesday. “I liked the way I was swinging it the first couple of days here, just the practice rounds … and I’m ready for the tournament to start.”
Among the other high-profile groups will be the 10:42 a.m. ET trio of reigning PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas, 2021 U.S. Open winner Jon Rahm, and world number 14 Cameron Young.
Rory McIlroy, seeking a win this week to complete the career Grand Slam of golf’s four majors, is due to go out in the day’s penultimate group at 1:48 p.m ET with Sam Burns and South Korea’s Tom Kim.
Tiger Woods, making only his second start this season given his limited schedule after a February 2021 car crash, is scheduled to tee off at 10:18 a.m. ET with fellow American Xander Schauffele and Viktor Hovland.
Woods, who defied the odds at the 2019 Masters when he returned from spinal fusion surgery to win a fifth Green Jacket, is now trying to push the envelope again.
The 15-times major winner said this week he does not know how many more Masters tournaments he has left and while his game and endurance are better than a year ago his body aches more.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Augusta, Georgia; Editing by Ken Ferris)
