Caleb Wilfinger
The 2025 Masters begins at Augusta National Golf Club at 7:40 am ET on Thursday, and it could be the early starters who top the leaderboard when the first round draws to a close. Golf expert Joe Champion has analyzed the first-round tee times and has highlighted a pair of players who he thinks have value in the First Round Leader market at Augusta on Thursday.
Before action gets underway in the next 24 hours, let’s get into our Masters 2025 first-round leader predictions and best bets.
See our golf expert’s The Masters 2025 best bets, including a +10000 longshot
The Masters 2025 First Round Leader best bet: Min Woo Lee (+4500)
Odds available at DraftKings Sportsbook at time of publishing.
Min Woo Lee won the Texas Children’s Houston Open on his most recent start and the Australian rising star will be relishing the chance to compete in the season’s first Major championship this week. Lee’s confidence is sky-high following his win at Memorial Park, where he held off Scottie Scheffler by a shot, and he’ll get the chance to tackle Augusta National in relatively benign conditions when he tees off at 9:47 am ET.
The Perth native carded a first-round 67 at the Players Championship last month, then he opened with a 66 on his way to victory in Texas, so he’s become accustomed to making fast starts on the PGA Tour. His past visits to Augusta have featured a 14th-place and 22nd-place finish, so it’s clear that he has both the power and the short-game prowess to make plenty of birdies on Thursday. At this longshot price, we’ll take a shot on one of the better young golfers on tour.
Don’t miss our expert’s best prop bets for The Masters
The Masters 2025 First Round Leader best bet: Corey Conners (+5000)
Odds available at FanDuel Sportsbook at time of publishing.
Canada’s Corey Conners has become a regular on the Masters leaderboard, finishing tenth, eighth and sixth in the three editions of the tournaments from 2020 to 2022, and he arrives at Augusta National in fine form. Conners has a trio of top 10 finishes and another top 20 finish from the start of March onwards and he’s putting better than he ever has, suggesting that he could again mount a bold bid for the Green Jacket. While he’s best known as a steady operator, the Canadian ranks highly in first-round scoring average on the PGA Tour this season and could get hot from a 9:41 am ET tee time.
