AUGUSTA, Georgia: Defending champion Scottie Scheffler is the man to beat at this week’s Masters where Rory McIlroy, oozing confidence after a marvelous start to the year, makes his 11th and perhaps best shot at completing the career Grand Slam.

Played amidst the blooming azaleas, towering pines and flowering dogwoods at Augusta National, the Masters may be the most anticipated of golf’s four majors and this year’s edition is no exception given a plethora of compelling storylines. Not even the absence of Tiger Woods, a five-times champion and golf’s top attraction who is recovering from surgery to repair a ruptured left Achilles tendon, can dampen enthusiasm for an event that marks the spiritual start of spring.

Much of the excitement ahead of this year’s Masters revolves around Scheffler and McIlroy, the two best players in the world, who are in great form and could deliver a final-round duel for the ages if they are both in contention on Sunday.

“I think that it sets up to be headlined by those two. I really do. I think you have to begin there,” veteran broadcaster Jim Nantz said on CBS Sports’ Masters preview call.

World No. 1 Scheffler, whose season debut was delayed by about a month after hand surgery following a December cooking accident, finished runner-up at his Masters tune-up in Houston for his third top-10 in six starts on the year.

A win for Scheffler, who first triumphed at Augusta National in 2022 and has a game that appears to be a perfect fit for the layout, would make him only the fourth golfer to retain a Masters title and first since Woods in 2001-02.

“It’s his happy place,” said Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee. “He can go there and play his normal game, and everybody can struggle to beat him. That’s just how good he is and how great a fit Augusta National is for him.”

Exclusive club

McIlroy is eager to become the sixth player to complete a career Grand Slam of golf’s four majors this week but to join that exclusive club he will need to overcome an Augusta layout that has been the site of several frustrating moments for him.

But, in a sign that this could finally be his year, McIlroy has enjoyed a superb start to the year and lifted two PGA Tour titles before April for the first time in his career — at Pebble Beach and The Players Championship.

“There’s never been a better week for him to win the Masters. Never,” said Chamblee.

Perhaps the only question mark for McIlroy is that after finishing in a share of fifth at Houston, the Northern Irishman said his right elbow had been bothering him “a little bit” and he may seek treatment. The Masters will also provide a brief respite from the ongoing divide in the sport given it will be the first time since last July’s British Open that players from the PGA Tour and Saudi-backed LIV Golf will compete against each other.

A dozen LIV players, including 2023 champion Jon Rahm and fan favorite Bryson DeChambeau, are among those in the field this week. Rahm had his worst-ever result at Augusta National last year as he finished in a share of 45th place but the Spaniard cannot be overlooked given he has five top-10 finishes in eight career Masters starts.

Twice major champion DeChambeau will be eager to get another crack at a Green Jacket having finished in a career-best tie for sixth place last year when he sat alone atop the first-round leaderboard and held a share of the halfway lead.

The only guarantee this week is that Augusta National will present challenges at every turn given the pristine course is known for small landing zones on speedy and undulating greens that put a premium on course management and accuracy. Twice champion Bernhard Langer, 67, is in the field for what is expected to be his final Masters, while 2009 champion Angel Cabrera returns for the first time since serving a 30-month prison sentence for domestic abuse.

The opening round is scheduled to begin on Thursday.