MASTERS '25: 10 players likely to contend for a green jacket

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MASTERS '25: 10 players likely to contend for a green jacket

2025-04-03 23:31 Last Updated At：23:41

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — A capsule look at 10 top contenders for the Masters on April 10-13. Players listed in order of the AP's predicted finish:

Age: 36.

Country: Northern Ireland.

World ranking: 2.

Worldwide victories: 39.

Majors: U.S. Open (2011), British Open (2014), PGA Championship (2012, 2014).

Masters appearances: 16.

Best finish: Runner-up in 2022.

Masters memory: Losing a four-shot lead in 2011 with an 80 in the final round.

Tap-ins: McIlroy has never looked better going into the Masters, with victories at Pebble Beach and The Players Championship. This is his 11th straight year coming to Augusta National knowing that only a green jacket is keeping him from the career Grand Slam.

Age: 28.

Country: United States.

World ranking: 4.

Worldwide victories: 8.

Majors: PGA Championship (2020), British Open (2021).

Masters appearances: 5.

Best finish: Tie for third in 2024.

Masters memory: One shot behind as he was making the turn in 2024, he took two shots to get out of a bunker left of the ninth green and took double bogey.

Tap-ins: Morikawa played in the final group of two majors last year and already has played in the final group twice this year. Winning the Masters would give him the third leg of the career Grand Slam.

Age: 28.

Country: United States.

World ranking: 1.

Worldwide victories: 16.

Majors: Masters (2022, 2024).

Masters appearances: 5.

Best finish: Won in 2022 and 2024.

Masters memory: Dominating in 2022 to the point that he four-putted the 18th hole and still won by three shots.

Tap-ins: A victory would allow him to join Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods as back-to-back Masters champions.

Age: 25.

Country: Sweden.

World ranking: 5.

Worldwide victories: 3.

Majors: None.

Masters appearances: 1.

Best finish: Runner-up in 2024.

Masters memory: Hitting in the water on No. 11 for double bogey when he was one shot behind in the final round.

Tap-ins: Aberg beat one of the strongest fields of the year at Torrey Pines. Last year he became the third player in the last five years to be runner-up in his Masters debut.

Age: 30.

Country: Spain.

World ranking: 75.

Worldwide victories: 21.

Majors: Masters (2023), U.S. Open (2021).

Masters appearances: 8.

Best finish: Won in 2023.

Masters memory: Winning the Masters in 2023 on the birthday of the late Seve Ballesteros.

Tap-ins: Rahm did not seriously contend in any of the three majors he played last year.

Age: 31.

Country: United States.

World ranking: 3.

Worldwide victories: 10.

Majors: PGA Championship (2024), British Open (2024).

Masters appearances: 7.

Best finished: Tie for second in 2021.

Masters memory: Hitting 8-iron into the water on the 16th in 2021 when he had a chance to put pressure on Hideki Matsuyama.

Tap-ins: He missed nearly two months with a rib injury. A year ago he was without a major. A victory would put him one leg away from the career Grand Slam.

Age: 31.

Country: United States.

World ranking: 9.

Worldwide victories: 15.

Majors: PGA Championship (2017, 2022).

Masters appearances: 9.

Best finish: Tie for fourth in 2020.

Masters memory: Three shots out of the lead in the second round in 2023, he shot 42 on the back nine and missed the cut.

Tap-ins: He already has four top 10s in eight starts this year. But he hasn’t won since the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills.

Age: 31.

Country: United States.

World ranking: 19.

Worldwide victories: 12.

Majors: U.S. Open (2020, 2024).

Masters appearances: 8.

Best finish: Tie for sixth in 2024.

Masters memory: Saying in 2020 that Augusta National was a par 67 for him. His best score was a 69 in a tie for 34th.

Tap-ins: The U.S. Open champion shared the 18-hole lead at the Masters a year ago and then failed to break par the rest of the tournament.

Age: 31.

Country: United States.

World ranking: 66.

Worldwide victories: 16.

Majors: Masters (2015), U.S. Open (2015), British Open (2017).

Masters appearances: 11.

Best finish: Won in 2015.

Masters memory: Never letting anyone within three shots of him over the last 54 holes when he went wire-to-wire to win in 2015.

Tap-ins: He had surgery on his left wrist last summer. Augusta National is the best measure of his game. He has a win, two runner-up finishes and two third-place finishes.

Age: 26.

Country: Chile.

World ranking: 84.

Worldwide victories: 8.

Majors: None.

Masters appearances: 6.

Best finish: Tie for 16th in 2023.

Masters memory: One round away from turning pro, he shot 63 to win the Latin American Amateur in 2018 and earn his first trip to the Masters.

Tap-ins: He is the only LIV player to get a special exemption to the Masters in the last two years.

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Atalanta at risk of falling out of top 4 after loss to Lazio

2025-04-07 05:08 Last Updated At：05:11

MILAN (AP) — Atalanta’s title chances have already effectively slipped away and now it could be at risk of dropping out of the top four of Serie A.

Third-placed Atalanta lost 1-0 at home to Lazio on Sunday for its third straight league defeat.

That has seen Gian Piero Gasperini’s team fall 10 points behind league leader Inter Milan and left it looking nervously over its shoulder.

Atalanta is only two points ahead of Juventus after the Bianconeri drew 1-1 at Roma. Bologna can leapfrog Atalanta if it beats second-placed Napoli on Monday.

Lazio, which came into the match without a victory in Serie A in more than a month, moved to within three points of Atalanta.

Both teams were lacking in confidence and that perhaps explained the cagey first half.

Atalanta appeared reinvigorated after the break and had two quick chances, with Lazio goalkeeper Chrīstos Mandas making an extraordinary save to deny the league’s top scorer Mateo Retegui at point-blank range.

However, it was Lazio which broke the deadlock nine minutes into the second half, through halftime substitute Gustav Isaksen.

Fisayo Dele-Bashiru nodded a long ball over the top down to Isaksen, who scuffed a shot past Marco Carnesecchi.

Roma's streak of seven straight league wins — with only one goal conceded — was ended by Juventus, in Igor Tudor's second match in charge of the Bianconeri.

It was an aggressive start from Juventus, and Roma goalkeeper Mile Svilar had to palm Nico González's header onto his right post.

Juventus took the lead shortly before halftime. Khéphren Thuram's cross was cleared by Zeki Çelik but only to the edge of the area where Manuel Locatelli volleyed it into the ground to bounce into the bottom left corner.

It was the first goal Roma had conceded in Serie A since March 2.

Claudio Ranieri's halftime substitution had an immediate impact as Eldor Shomurodov leveled three minutes after coming on, heading in the rebound from three yards after Michele Di Gregorio had parried Evan N’Dicka's attempt.

Roma moved to within three points of the top four.

Lecce was loudly jeered by its home fans despite rallying to draw 1-1 against Venezia in a relegation dogfight and ending a run of five straight defeats.

Federico Baschirotto headed in the equalizer for Lecce in the 65th after home defender Antonino Gallo hand bundled into his own net at the start of the second half.

Lecce remained in the last position of safety in Serie A, two points above Empoli which drew 0-0 against Cagliari.

Venezia was in penultimate position, five points below Lecce.

Torino forward Che Adams had a penalty saved in a 1-1 draw at home to Hellas Verona.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer