Augusta Masters 2023: Tiger Woods-Phil Mickleson, Rory McIlroy-Brooks Koepka matchups rumors debunked
Ahead of the Masters 2023, a parody account, called Tuor Golf, tweeted that Augusta National has paired Tiger Woods with Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy with Brooks Koepka. Ordinarily, this wouldn't be news other than the fact that Woods and Mickelson are both legends.
However, with the growing divide between LIV Golf and PGA Tour, this is pretty substantial. Many Golf fans thought the matchup had been officially announced. The Masters 2023 is all set to begin on 6th April, 2023.
Tuor Golf tweeted:
The featured groups for Round 1 at The Masters: https://t.co/Qru6ds9Xch
However, this is untrue and no Masters 2023 matchups have been announced so far.
Phil Mickelson reflected recently on a return to Augusta after everything.
He said via Sports Illustrated:
“Everything was really cool. Yeah, it was great. I’m very appreciative to go back."
There were rumblings that the Masters president Fred Ridley had considered withdrawing Mickelson's invitation. He denied the report:
“We did not disinvite Phil. Phil is a three-time Masters champion and is invited in that category and many other categories; he’s the defending PGA champion. Phil reached out to me and let me know that he did not intend to play. That was by way of a text. And, I thanked him for his courtesy in letting me know.
"I told him that we certainly appreciated that and told him that I was certainly willing to discuss that further with him if he’d like. And, he thanked me and we had a very cordial exchange."
Ultimately, Mickelson is back. This will be the first time Mickelson is participating in the Masters since he defected.
Masters 2023 matchups rumors debunked
Koepka and McIlroy recently spoke ahead of the Masters. According to Koepka, the conflict between LIV Golf and PGA Tour is only public. Behind closed doors, everything is more or less fine.
Koepka mentioned what the conversation was about:
“Down in Jupiter, we see each other — I was just with Rory and JT yesterday, and I think Keegan was there. We see each other quite a bit. I mean, there's a lot of conversations. I was talking with Rory for probably about 30 minutes just about the ball and all the other stuff that's going on. No one is angry at anybody from what I've seen.”
Now that they're facing off, the narrative around PGA and LIV Golf players will be back in the limelight and it will provide sparks for the tournament. However, it might all be just for show.