The Masters 2026: Tournament guide

All you need to know ahead of the 90th edition of the Masters Tournament.

When is the Masters?

The Masters is the first of the four men's Majors this year and runs from Thursday, April 9 to Sunday, April 12.

There are three official practice days in the lead up, from Monday to Wednesday. The Par 3 Contest, the traditional curtain-raiser on the eve of the tournament, begins at midday local time on Wednesday.

As ever with the Masters, Augusta National Golf Club, a private club in Augusta, Georgia is the host venue. It’s the only one of the four men’s Major Championships that is played every year on the same course.

The tee times and groupings for rounds one and two will be announced on Tuesday, April 7.

How many players are in the field?

The Masters has the smallest field of the four men's Majors, with 91 players set to tee it up at this year's edition.

The winner of this week's Valero Texas Open on the PGA TOUR, if not already exempt, will earn a last-minute invite to join the field.

What is the format?

The Masters is a 72-hole individual strokeplay tournament contested over four rounds.

Who is playing?

The best players in the world will pursue the Green Jacket - to find out in full who will be playing at Augusta National, click here.

How many players make the cut?

Players must be in the top 50 places, counting ties, to make the 36-hole cut.

What is the Masters play-off format?

Unlike the other three Majors, the Masters features a sudden-death play-off if there is a tie after 72 holes.

The first play-off hole is the 18th and should that not determine a winner, players move to the tenth. Both holes run parallel to each other. This sequence is repeated until a champion is decided.

The last play-off was last year, when Rory McIlroy overcame Justin Rose.

Who is the defending champion?

McIlroy enjoyed one of the great moments in Masters and golf history 12 months ago when he finally slipped on the Green jacket to complete the career Grand Slam.

After famously losing a four-shot 54-hole lead in 2011 with a closing 80, the Masters had become - for outside observers at least - a fixation around McIlroy's career, one which only increased with his 2014 Open victory that left him one win from the Grand Slam.

He ended all that last year with his victory - an 11th attempt at the Grand Slam - that saw him join Ben Hogan, Gene Sarazen, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods in the men's game's most exclusive club.

What are some of the key storylines heading into the event?

Oddly, McIlroy is probably less of a story coming in now that he has the Grand Slam monkey off his back but as defending champion and arguably the biggest name in the game, he will still be the focus of much attention.

The man one place above him in the Official World Golf Ranking - and who has been at number one since May 2023 - is Scottie Scheffler. Last year's fourth-place Masters finish was the second in a run of 19 consecutive top tens including seven wins, two of which were Majors, but his recent form by his astronomical standards as slipped. Will he rediscover his mojo at an event he has won twice?

The past 12 months have seen new pathways open up to get an invite to Augusta National and six players are in the field after winning some of the game's most historic national opens. How will Chris Gotterup (Genesis Scottish Open), Marco Penge (Open de España presented by Madrid), Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen (Crown Australian Open), Casey Jarvis (Investec South African Open Championship), Tom McKibbin (Link Hong Kong Open) and Naoyuki Kataoka (Japan Open Golf Championship) fare?

Alongside those debutants, DP World Tour members Ryan Gerard, Harry Hall, Kristoffer Reitan and Sami Välimäki will all also be making their first trips down Magnolia Lane.

When is the Par 3 Contest?

First played in 1960 and won that year by Sam Snead, the Par 3 Contest has become a Wednesday tradition at the Masters.

Tournament participants and non-competing past champions are invited to participate in the Contest.

The nine-hole course is par-27, 1,090 yards.

In the history of the Contest, there have been 115 holes-in-one made, including a record nine in 2016.

Only Ben Crenshaw and Vijay Singh have gone on to win the Masters after winning the Par 3 Contest, with no player having ever won both at the same Masters.

What is also at play for DP World Tour members?

There are a total of 10,000 Race to Dubai ranking points to be played for, with 1,665 going to the winner assuming they are a DP World Tour member.

What is Amen Corner?

Amen Corner is the name for a three-hole stretch of the course beginning with the par four 11th hole, and including the par three 12th and par five 13th.

The holes are named White Dogwood (No. 11), Golden Bell (No. 12) and Azalea (No. 13).

The phrase, Amen Corner, was first used by Herbert Warren Wind in the 1958 edition of Sports Illustrated.

When is the Champions Dinner?

Better known as the "Champions Dinner", the Masters Club Dinner began in 1952 when defending champion Ben Hogan organised a dinner for all previous winners.

At that time, Hogan proposed the formation of a Masters Club, limited to only Masters Champions.

Honorary memberships were also extended to Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts. Bill Lane, Hord Hardin, Jack Stephens, Hootie Johnson, Billy Payne and Fred Ridley have subsequently been added as honorary members.

Each year, the defending champion selects the menu and acts as host for the Tuesday night dinner.

Defending Masters Tournament champion McIlroy has gone for an eclectic and interbational menu featuring Irish champ, Georgia peaches and onions and a fish dish from his favourite restaurant in New York.

How can I watch it?

Sky Sports has broadcasting coverage of the Masters in the UK.

For specific broadcast timings of all territories please check your local listings.

Free-to-air coverage is also broadcast on the Masters website, where viewers can watch every individual shot a few minutes after it happens and also catch coverage of select groups and holes.