2026 Masters Preview: The Lock, the Longshot, and the LIV Fade

Written By Christian Griffith

Patrick Reed, a Masters Golf Tournament Favorite

Look, trying to pick a winner at Augusta is basically like trying to win a legal battle against a Fortune 500 company—you’re probably going to lose, but we do it anyway because we’re obsessed with the grind (and that sweet, sweet potential payout).

With a field of 93 (maybe 94 if the Valero Texas Open produces a miracle) ready to take on the cathedral in the pines, here is the lowdown on who’s looking hot and who’s not for the 2026 Masters.

The "Bet the House" Pick: Collin Morikawa

CBS Sports’ Ross Kelly is banging the drum for Collin Morikawa, and honestly, it’s hard to disagree. Yeah, he just WD’d from Valero, but the man treats Augusta National like his personal playground. He’s got more top-25s there than at any other major, and he just snapped a winless drought at Pebble Beach earlier this year. If his irons are dialled in, a Green Jacket isn’t just a dream—it’s an appointment.

The "Safety First" Play: Patrick Reed

I know, I know—USA TODAY’s Jon Hoefling is usually a total "dunce" with his picks. But even a broken clock is right twice a day. He’s pointing out that Patrick Reed has finished in the top 12 in five of his last seven starts at the Masters. Love him or hate him, the guy knows how to scramble around these greens. If you’re looking for a "lock" to make the cut and hang around the first page of the leaderboard, Reed is your guy.

The "Avoid at All Costs" Fade: Tyrrell Hatton

Brady Kannon is sounding the alarm on Hatton, and the stats back it up. Augusta is about precision and patience—two things that don't exactly mesh with Hatton’s recent "volatility" on the LIV circuit. He’s currently ranking 44th in scrambling and 33rd in GIR. In a field this elite, those numbers are a one-way ticket to a Friday afternoon flight home.

How to Park Yourself on the Couch

Don't miss a single blade of grass. The 2026 Masters Tournament kicks off Thursday, April 9th:

  • Thursday/Friday: Start your morning on Masters.com at 7:30 a.m. ET for the Honorary Starters. Then, catch the early action on Prime Video (1 p.m.) before switching to ESPN (3 p.m.–7:30 p.m.).

  • The Weekend: The real drama happens on Paramount+ (12 p.m.–7 p.m.) and CBS (2 p.m.–7 p.m.).

Christian Griffith

Christian Griffith lives, eats, sleeps, and drinks artificial intelligence [AI], digital marketing, brand advertising, and communications strategy on a daily basis.

His career has been deeply entrenched in branding, web development, internet marketing, online advertising, and creative strategy since 1997, but believes AI and big data to be the biggest advancements to hit business in a lifetime.

After 25 years in executive leadership, Christian Griffith left his last gig as SVP of Digital Strategy at Atlanta ad agency, Freebairn and Company, to start his own shop in 2015 called Live for a Living. A wildly successful 10-year run with Live for a Living opened the doors to an additional venture focused squarely on the advantages that AI brings to business. Now, with the 2025 launch of Kai Daddy Digital, he's helping clients get a serious edge by using cutting-edge AI and big data digital strategies on the marketing platforms that have proven to work for over a decade.

Christian loves being daddy to daughter, Kai, first and foremost, leaning into challenging fitness-type events and extreme sports for fun after that. In 2018, Christian ran 3,142 miles across the USA, New York to San Francisco, in an effort to raise $1 million for the prevention and treatment of child sexual abuse.

In 2025, Christian launched 5-Minute Fitness, a program as he calls it, “to eliminate all barriers to fitness training success,” targeting at-risk individuals such as the sedentary or over-40 crowd. As of this writing, he has over 600 members.

https://liveforaliving.com
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