US Masters Friday Betting Tips: 3-ball action for day 2 at Augusta

The 90^th edition of The Masters got off to a thrilling start on Thursday, leaving us with a leaderboard that sets the stage for an all-timer at Augusta National.

Star tipster Jamie Worsley has taken a look at the day 2 tee times and has two 3-ball angles to consider in his US Masters Friday Betting Tips article...

*You can bet on the tournament and check out the latest US Masters 2026 Odds over on betfred.com

Leaderboard after round one:

T1 – Rory McIlroy (-5)

T1 – Sam Burns (-5)

T3 – Patrick Reed (-3)

T3 – Jason Day (-3)

T3 – Kurt Kitayama (-3)

T6 – Scottie Scheffler (-2)

T6 – Xander Schauffele (-2)

T6 – Justin Rose (-2)

T6 – Shane Lowry (-2)

Despite injury concerns in the build-up, reigning champion Rory McIlroy got off to a flyer yesterday, firing six birdies on his way to a five-under 67 to claim a share of the first-round lead.

It’s a fantastic start for the Northern Irishman – who has cut a notably relaxed figure this week – and positions him perfectly as he aims to become just the fourth player to retain the Green Jacket, which would see him follow in the footsteps of Jack Nicklaus (1965, 1966), Nick Faldo (1989, 1990), and Tiger Woods (2001, 2002).

Sam Burns is the man who sits alongside Rory at the top after producing the standout tee-to-green performance of the opening day. A long-time contender at last year’s U.S. Open, Burns hasn’t quite got going in 2026 and has yet to really fire at Augusta in four visits. He’ll be hoping to stay hot with the irons if he has designs on entering the weekend in an equally handy position.

The in-form Patrick Reed headlines the trio of players in 3^rd place, providing the ideal platform for a serious run at a second Green Jacket. Alongside him is Jason Day, who appears to have picked up where he left off with his top-10 in Houston two weeks ago, whilst 150/1 outsider Kurt Kitayama is just two off the pace after a field-leading approach display helped him make an incredible eight birdies on Thursday.

Naturally, the eye is drawn to the high-class major-winning foursome in 6^th place: world No. 1 and two-time Masters winner Scottie Scheffler, two-time major champion Xander Schauffele, last year’s runner-up Justin Rose, and 2019 Open Championship winner Shane Lowry.

With the likes of Tommy Fleetwood, Hideki Matsuyama and Brooks Koepka not too far behind, the leaderboard is packed with heavyweights and lays the groundwork for another action-packed day.

For all the quality at the top, there were plenty of players who were undone by the brilliantly exacting test that Augusta National provides.

LIV’s Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau – among the top four in the betting at the start of the week – both looked undercooked after their questionable preparation. With just two birdies between them, they shot rounds of 78 and 76 respectively and will need huge improvements just to make the weekend.

Bob MacIntyre showed he maybe still doesn’t have the patience required to conquer Augusta, looking frustrated throughout on his way to recording an eight-over 80. The almost equally well-fancied Min Woo Lee also failed to get anything going, picking up a solo birdie in a round of 78.

It really was a compelling day of golf and with the course conditions only getting faster and firmer over the coming days, we are in for a treat at Augusta National.

SELECTIONS

Market leaders: Rory McIlroy 11/4, Scottie Scheffler 7/2, Xander Schauffele 8/1, Sam Burns 10/1, Justin Rose 14/1, Patrick Reed 16/1, Tommy Fleetwood 18/1

Although shortening in price, pre-event favourite Scottie Scheffler is now second in the betting in the wake of Rory McIlroy’s fabulous start.

This week’s headline selection Xander Schauffele has moved into third-favourite following an extremely encouraging opening round. Meanwhile, joint-leader Sam Burns is now 10/1 after starting the week at 80s.

Xander wasn’t the only pre-tournament pick that has seen his price shorten. Kurt Kitayama (put up at 150/1) is now into 30s after an excellent first round. Meanwhile, Hideki Matsuyama and Adam Scott opened with steady level-par rounds to hit the top 20.

With that, I’m going to leave the outright betting alone at this stage and have instead come up with three 3-ball selections for some added interest on day two.

Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen to beat Jose Maria Olazabal & Aldrich Potgieter

Jose Maria Olazabal won this experience versus youth battle on Thursday, but I think Denmark’s Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen can turn the tables today. He actually performed slightly better than the Spanish veteran on the back nine, where his long game looked sharper, and with Aldrich Potgieter all over the place for his 12-over 84, he should take the beating in this 3-ball.

Whilst two-time Masters champion Olazabal is making 37^th appearance, this is Neergaard-Petersen’s debut and just the second start for Potgieter, who missed the cut as an amateur in 2023. That experience showed early doors, as Olazabal went out in 34 on the front nine and led the way, beating his playing partners by four (Neergaard-Petersen) and 10 shots (Potgieter) in the process.

The 60-year-old slowed down on the back nine, giving away four shots over his final five holes and though Potgieter’s scoring improved coming in, his long game was chaotic. The Danish youngster failed to make a single birdie but hit the ball considerably better than both throughout, he just needs to see a couple of putts drop to gain some confidence on the greens.

Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen has been solid enough during his rookie season on the PGA Tour without really threatening the top of the leaderboard. That said, his tee-to-green game has been sound, and with a 12^th-place finish at last year’s U.S. Open highlighting his potential in major company, I expect him to get the better of his playing partners today.

Bubba Watson to beat Nico Echavarria & Brandon Holtz

Another former two-time winner of this event, Bubba Watson played some eye-catching golf on the back nine yesterday after enduring a difficult start. He beat the other two players in his group, Nico Echavarria and Brandon Holtz, by three and five shots respectively, and he looks decent value at odds against to stamp his authority once again.

Making five bogeys and zero birdies, there was little to like about Bubba’s front nine on Thursday. However, he suddenly found something at the turn, and never lost another shot coming in, birdying the par 5 13^th to sign for a four-over 76.

With three bogeys and two birdies on his scorecard, Echavarria was four shots ahead of Bubba as they began the 10^th hole, but two double bogeys and two regular bogeys saw him finish at seven over. Meanwhile, Holtz, a 39-year-old amateur who got into the event after winning the U.S. Mid-Amateur, understandably looked out of his depth at this level, signing for a birdie-free nine-over 81.

Echavarria may be a PGA Tour winner this year, though as neither an explosive ball striker nor deft short-game player, this is never going to be the course for him. Bubba may have done little of note on LIV in 2026, but he has consistently performed at Augusta since his two victories in 2012 and 2014 – indeed, he finished 14^th just last year – and if he picks up where he left off yesterday, he should win this 3-ball even more comfortably.

Viktor Hovland to beat Patrick Cantlay & Alex Noren

This appears a competitive 3-ball on paper, though with the strength of his tee-to-green game yesterday, Viktor Hovland looked to have a bit of hand against the other two in this group. His two-shot victory over Patrick Cantlay and Alex Noren was only so close due to struggles on these speedy greens, but he got the hang of them as the day went on and will be hard to beat if in the same form today.

Hovland shot a three-over 75 in the first round as Cantlay and Noren each signed for a 78. He was 15^th in SG: Tee-to-Green (SG: T2G) and sits inside the top 25 in SG: Around-the-Greens, Greens-in-Regulation and SG: Off-the-Tee. Both playing partners were outside the top 60 in SG: T2G and with the exception of Noren’s slightly superior approach play, he outperformed them in each other tee-to-green category.

This was not the case on the greens as he ranked 88^th, losing over three strokes. However, most of that came on the front nine and he actually putted better than the other two from holes 10-18.

There’s little to separate these three players statistically this year, but Hovland has the stronger piece of recent major form, finishing 3^rd in last year’s U.S. Open. With a best of 7^th in 2023, he’s also got a higher level of Augusta form, beating Cantlay’s best of 9^th in 2019, whilst Noren has only made one cut in four visits.

All things considered, Hovland is the standout in what looks like an initially tricky 3-ball contest.

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