AUGUSTA, Ga. — Cameron Smith, who made Masters history last November as the first player to shoot four rounds in the 60s at the Augusta National Golf Club, will be part of one of the marquee groups in the first and second rounds when he will play with last week’s Valero Texas Open winner Jordan Spieth and defending PGA champion Collin Morikawa.
Smith, Spieth — who won the 2015 Masters — and Morikawa will be the last group to tee off in Thursday’s first round at 2 p.m., and will begin the second round at 10:54 a.m.
Players Championship winner Justin Thomas is in the group before Smith, Spieth and Morikawa, and will play with Tony Finau and Louis Oosthuizen at 1:48 p.m. on Thursday and 10:42 a.m. on Friday.
The group before that will be Bryson DeChambeau, Adam Scott and Max Homa, at 1:36 p.m. on Thursday and 10:30 a.m. on Friday.
The Masters will begin with the traditional ceremonial tee shots at 7:45 a.m. on Thursday, hit by past champions Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, plus Lee Elder, the first African-American to play in the tournament.
The first group of competitors will follow at 8 a.m. with the duo of Hudson Swafford and Michael Thompson.
Defending champion Dustin Johnson will play with Players runner-up Lee Westwood and U.S. Amateur champion Tyler Strafaci at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday and 1:36 p.m. on Friday. Another key group will be two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson, four-time major champion Brooks Koepka and Viktor Hovland, at 10:06 a.m on Thursday and 1:12 p.m. on Friday.
Billy Horschel, who won the WGC Dell Technologies Match Play two weeks ago, will play with Tyrrell Hatton and Ryan Palmer at 1 p.m. on Thursday and 9:48 a.m. on Friday.
