Free-falling Max Homa – who hasn’t made a cut in a full field event since last year’s Open at Troon – has brought veteran caddie Bill Harke on board in a bid to rekindle his form.
Homa and childhood friend Joe Greiner, who have been player-bagman since 2019 in a period which brought six wins on the PGA Tour, split ahead of the Masters. “Joe and I made memories for a lifetime and I can’t be more thankful for all the hard work. We have parted ways and it will be sad to see him go,” claimed Homa.
Greiner, though, did not have to wait long for a Masters bag with Justin Thomas subbing him in to replace his regular looper Matt Minister who has a back injury.
Homa’s form has dropped hugely this past year, with a series of missed weekends after making numerous changes, including switching coach from Mark Blackburn to John Scott Rattan and equipment from Titleist to Cobra.
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Ranked ninth in the world after a tied-third finish here at Augusta last year, Homa’s free fall has seen him drop to a current position of 81st as he hopes for an impact with the change in caddie.
Detry hopes course knowledge will help him become first-time winner
Belgium’s Thomas Detry isn’t your usual debutant in the Masters ... he is very familiar with the course, tracing back to his time at the University of Illinois where he was on a golfing scholarship before moving into the professional ranks.
“I used to come here with my college when I used to be in college. We used to come here every Monday, so I’ve been on the property already. I think one of incredible memories is when you arrive here for the first time and seeing the wide open space and seeing the golf course that you watched on TV so many years as a kid, it’s a ‘wow’ affect,” said Detry.
Detry – who made his breakthrough win on the PGA Tour when winning the Phoenix Open earlier in the season – has finished in the top-15 in his last three Majors. “I feel like I can contend,” he said.
The last time a first-timer won was Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979.
Augusta National continues to innovate with its facilities
Players participating in the Masters have the use of a new, underground car park for the first time this year, phase one of Augusta National’s Players Service project.
Phase II will start as soon as the tournament is finished and will see the construction of a building featuring state-of-the-art fitness studio, physio and locker rooms as well as an a la carte diningroom where players can enjoy meals with their families and support teams.
“This improvement is on pace for a full opening in 2026 and will offer the competitors in the Masters facilities from arrival until departure, unlike anything in sports,” said ANGC chairman Fred Ridley of the project.
Augusta National is the only one of the four men’s Majors which returns to the same venue each year.
Quote
“He hits it a mile, has a really good short game, does all the sexy stuff good ... it’s all up to him if he wants to get to number one in the world. I know he has the tools and the mental side to do it” – Jason Day on his fellow Australian Min Woo Lee.
Tiger Woods misses out on Champions dinner
Tiger Woods was one of three past winners who failed to make the Champions dinner hosted by Scottie Scheffler, where his signature dish of Papa Scheff’s Meatball and Ravioli – a humorous throwback to his hand injury suffered at Christmas – was new to the menu.
Vijay Singh withdrew from the tournament on Monday due to injury and didn’t travel while another absentee was Sandy Lyle who was missing “for personal reasons.”
Woods, a five-times winner, suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon when doing gym work last month and was absent, apparently – according to 1971 champion Charles Coody – because “his weight tolerance just isn’t there to climb” the stairs in the clubhouse.
By the Numbers: 3
Of the 95 players in the 89th Masters, 18 are former champions but only three players – Scottie Scheffler, Bubba Watson and Phil Mickelson – are multiple winners.
