The Masters is officially here, with several former champions once again taking the field at Augusta National this week.
Three-time champion Phil Mickelson has been named a Masters ‘long shot’, but there is no appearance from five-time winner Tiger Woods.
Woods recently underwent Achilles tendon surgery, having been limited to TGL prior to the injury setback.
But his fellow former Masters champions Dustin Johnson, Jon Rahm and Scottie Scheffler are just a few of the winners to have returned to Augusta.
World number one Scheffler is aiming to defend his Masters title, but also join an exclusive list of players to have won the major on three or more occasions.
Former champion Vijay Singh ‘saddened’ to miss The Masters
But like Woods, also missing out at The Masters this time around is Vijay Singh, who won the tournament in 2000.
He saw off Ernie Els by three strokes at Augusta National, with the triumph representing one of his three major championship wins.
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The 62-year-old has now issued a social media statement to share his disappointment at missing out, with Singh writing on X: “Saddened to miss The Masters on the 25th anniversary of my win, and after 31 consecutive years of competing. Sending my best to all of the players competing this week at Augusta.”
Vijay Singh outshines Ernie Els and Tiger Woods to win The Masters in 2000
Fijian legend Singh has enjoyed an unforgettable career on the course, which also involves two PGA Championship wins.
They arrived either side of his 2000 Masters success, with Singh winning at Sahalee Country Club and Whistling Straits in 1998 and 2004 respectively.
| Place | Player | Score | To par |
| 1 | Vijay Singh | 72-67-70-69=278 | −10 |
| 2 | Ernie Els | 72-67-74-68=281 | −7 |
| T3 | David Duval | 73-65-74-70=282 | −6 |
| Loren Roberts | 73-69-71-69=282 | ||
| 5 | Tiger Woods | 75-72-68-69=284 | −4 |
| 6 | Tom Lehman | 69-72-75-69=285 | −3 |
| T7 | Carlos Franco | 79-68-70-69=286 | −2 |
| Davis Love III | 75-72-68-71=286 | ||
| Phil Mickelson | 71-68-76-71=286 | ||
| 10 | Hal Sutton | 72-75-71-69=287 | −1 |
His absence will certainly be felt at Augusta this year, but the iconic figure will more than likely be keeping close tabs on the action.
Singh clinched the green jacket in superb fashion at the turn of the century, carding rounds of 72, 67, 70 and 69 for a total of 278.
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