Early favourites to win 2026 Masters: Rory McIlroy looks to match Tiger Woods against two in-form LIV stars 

The 2026 Masters is fast-approaching as the world’s best eye glory in the first major of the year.

Rory McIlroy is the defending champion at Augusta National following his incredible win last year.

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McIlroy produced a final round full of ups and downs before beating Justin Rose in a play-off to clinch glory and finally get his hands on a Green Jacket.

The Grand Slam champion will head back down Magnolia Lane looking for victory but will be up against golf’s greatest once again.

World number one Scottie Scheffler will have his sights on claiming a third Masters title while Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm are both in red hot form too.

Here’s the top five favourites heading into the 90th edition of the Masters Tournament.

Scottie Scheffler 4/1 

Two-time Masters champion Scheffler enjoyed another stellar year in 2025 and is still the undisputed best player in the game right now.

He claimed glory at The Open in the last major while also winning the PGA Championship last summer as he secured six wins in 2025.

He won the American Express in January and will be looking to join McIlroy in becoming a Grand Slam champion at the US Open in June.

He’d love to set himself up for another huge summer with a good showing at Augusta.

Scheffler was fourth in the Masters last year and has an incredible record in the event.

He will no doubt have a big say about the outcome of the tournament once more but the only slight doubt over Scheffler will be his form in recent weeks.

He has finished T12, T24 and T22 in his last three starts and has not played the recent tournaments in Texas due to the birth of his second child.

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Rory McIlroy 9/1 

There has not been a back-to-back Masters winner since Tiger Woods in 2001-02 but McIlroy will hope to change that this April.

The extra commitments of a Masters champion in modern times means it’s tricky for defending champions to win again 12 months on.

McIlroy will have plenty on his plate at Augusta but now he has broken his Masters duck, he may well kick on to more triumphs.

The five-time major champion knows Augusta arguably better than anyone in the field – barring Tiger Woods should he tee it up – and he’ll be able to play with a freedom he’s never had at the Masters before.

McIlroy wants to become the greatest European player in history and another Masters title would certainly aid that claim.

He has had a niggling back injury recently but should be fully fit again having not teed it up since The Players.

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Ludvig Aberg – 12/1

In his two Masters to date, Aberg has finished second and seventh and had a realistic chance of winning on both occasions.

The elegant Swede clearly has the temperament and skill to excel at Augusta but is without a win since the Genesis in February 2025.

He should have won The Players Championship in March but shot a final round 76 to see the title slip from his grasp.

He’ll want to hit back from that disappointment quickly as he looks to take a step forward in his career this summer.

Aberg certainly has a major-calibre game and will hope to produce his best for all four days in Georgia. 

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Bryson DeChambeau – 12/1 

DeChambeau is the most in-form player among golf’s elite heading to The Masters.

The American has claimed back-to-back wins on LIV, claiming glory in Singapore and South Africa in the new 72-hole format.

He has been brilliant, producing some elite level play at the most important moments to put himself in a great position ahead of the majors.

Like Aberg, DeChambeau has been right in the mix in the last two Masters as well as coming close to glory in the last three PGA Championships.

The two-time US Open champion needs a title in a different major to prove his game stands up to other top tests in golf.

And he will be brimming with confidence as he hopes to hit back from disappointment in recent years at Augusta and win.

McIlroy putting the Green Jacket on DeChambeau come Sunday evening would certainly be some storyline…

Jon Rahm – 12/1

Another LIV star in fine form is 2023 Masters champion Rahm.

The Spaniard clearly knows how to get it done at Augusta and has returned to form just in time.

In Rahm’s five LIV event this year he has finished fifth in Singapore, second in Riyadh, Adelaide and South Africa and won in Hong Kong. 

The Masters also has a lengthy history of repeat winners with 18 men having won at least twice.

Rahm’s off-the-course arguments over LIV fines and Ryder Cup eligibility may be a distraction this summer but he remains among the very best.