Ryan Lavner makes final prediction on the winner of The Masters, and it’s not Scottie Scheffler or Rory McIlroy

Add as preferred source on Google

Golf expert Ryan Lavner has made his final prediction on which player will win The Masters before play starts on Thursday morning.

Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy – the top two in the world rankings – are by far the most popular picks to claim the Green Jacket.

But, with so much depth in the field, it’s easy to go against those two and side with another world-class player.

That’s what Lavner has done, picking a different PGA Tour superstar to finish at the top of the leaderboard.

• READ MORE: The Masters 2025: Predicting where Scottie Scheffer, Rory McIlroy, Bryson DeChambeau and every top player will finish at Augusta National

Ryan Lavner predicts PGA Tour player to win The Masters

Lavner thinks that two-time major winner Collin Morikawa will complete the third leg of the career Grand Slam at Augusta National.

Morikawa has gone almost four years without winning a major since the 2021 Open Championship at Royal St George’s.

He’s not been at his best in the last two seasons, especially, but he’s been playing well in 2025 and absolutely has the ability to win The Masters.

Lavner explained the key reasons for his prediction: “I’ll go with Collin Morikawa. That’s my pick to win. He’s become this controversial figure who hates the media and fans. I really don’t think he wants to embrace that role, but he continues to find himself in the middle of this controversy.

“I like him for all of these statistical reasons. You mentioned the approach play being by far the biggest determiner for success at Augusta National. He’s leading the PGA Tour this year on strokes gained approach.

“I think it’s just coalescing for him. He’s had plenty of big game experiences now. He played in the final group at Augusta National last year. His short game and putting are vastly improved from even when he was winning major championships.

“So, I think if he’s at his sharpshooting best, which Morikawa typically is, I think this week sets up incredibly well for him.”

Collin Morikawa’s excellent Masters record bodes well

Morikawa had already made five appearances at The Masters before this week.

He finished 44th on his first attempt and is now on a run of four consecutive top-20 finishes.

As Lavner pointed out, Augusta National relies heavily on iron play, and Morikawa might be the best golfer on the planet in that regard.

Finishing Scheffler, McIlroy and 92 other top players won’t be easy, but would anyone say that Morikawa can’t do it?