When he attempts to defend his championship at the Masters tournament, which begins on April 6 at Augusta National, world number one Scottie Scheffler will be up against fierce opposition.
Scheffler is looking to follow in the footsteps of Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo, and Tiger Woods by becoming only the fourth player in history to win the Masters Tournament in consecutive years.
Here, we take a look at some of the most formidable competitors for the first men's major tournament of the year.
The only significant black mark on McIlroy's record at the Masters during the past nine years is that he failed to make the cut in 2021. McIlroy's closing round of 64 at the Masters last year was a thrilling reminder of his powers.
The year 2022 marked just Scheffler's third attempt at the race, and he had previously finished 19th and 18th in the two years prior to his triumph in 2022.
Because of the significant amount of change that has occurred in men's golf since the previous year's Masters, it is simple to forget that Cameron Smith and Scheffler were in the same group during the final round of the tournament.
Since his phenomenal run that saw him win three tournaments, place third, and tie for seventh in a total of five competitions, which sent him back to the top of the global rankings, Rahm's performance has suffered a slight decline.
At first sight, the appearance of Conners on this list, which is otherwise comprised of major champions, appears to be unexpected.