When the Masters begins Thursday, there are significant stakes for the world’s best players.

Jon Rahm (+1100 at FanDuel), the defending champion, will play his first major championship since leaving the PGA Tour for LIV Golf. A win would give him three major championships before turning 30.

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler has been on a two-year tear, winning four times since the start of last season. Two of those wins have come in his three most recent PGA Tour starts. Despite putting up ball-striking numbers that rival Tiger Woods in his prime, Scheffler didn’t capture a major championship in 2023. He’s the heavy favorite — +450 at FanDuel — to win this year’s tournament.

“Can he put the putting aspect together?” SuperBook Sports’ vice president of risk and golf oddsmaker Jeff Sherman said. “If he does, then he’s just pretty much dominant.”

Scheffler is -240 to finish in the top 10 on FanDuel.

Then, of course, there’s Rory McIlroy (+1100). He’s finished in the top 10 at the Masters seven times, including a runner-up finish in 2022. He has seven top-10 finishes in the last eight major championships, but he hasn’t won a major since 2014. If he wins the Masters, he’ll complete the career grand slam.

“No question, he’ll do it at some point,” Woods said Tuesday of McIlroy’s chances of finally breaking through at Augusta National. “He’s just — Rory’s too talented, too good. He’s going to be playing this event for a very long time. He’ll get it done. It’s just a matter of when.”

Woods isn’t expected to be a factor this week, as he’s +110 to make the cut at SuperBook Sports. He’s +15000 to win, the same odds as Stephen Jaeger.

DraftKings offers a market of the “big guns” vs. the field. The field is -250 to win the event, with the trio of Scheffler, Rahm, and McIlroy listed at +180 for one of them to win the green jacket.

The top contenders outside of the top three players in the world are Xander Schauffele (+1400 to win at DraftKings), Brooks Koepka (+1800), Hideki Matsuyama (+2000), and Jordan Spieth (+2500). Other players like Will Zalatoris (+4500), Cam Smith (+5000), Russell Henley (+5500), and Shane Lowry (+6000) have flashed solid course history at Augusta National.

At SuperBook Sports, Scheffler and Koepka are No. 1 and No. 2 in ticket count, respectively. Schauffele has also received notable action, according to Sherman.

“His consistency is performing [in the] top five or 10,” Sherman said. “I think a lot of people believe in that.”

Schauffele is +100 to finish in the top 10 on SuperBook, a feat he’s accomplished three times at the Masters.

Even with a strong batch of contenders, RotoGrinders’ Derek Farnsworth is backing Scheffler to win.

“It’s funny, we think of +450 odds as outrageous in golf betting, yet we would jump at the opportunity to bet a basketball, baseball, or football game at these odds,” Farnsworth said in an email.

Elite form coupled with previous success at the Masters makes Scheffler a logical bet for Farnsworth.

“He won the Masters two years ago and has finished in the top 20 at this event in all four of his appearances,” Farnsworth said. “At this point, it’s hard to envision him not being in the mix on Sunday and if he putts well, he could easily run away with it.”

Farnsworth’s favorite bet of the tournament is Sahith Theegala to finish in the top 20, which has odds of +125 at ESPN BET.

“Dating back to last August, he has finished in the top 20 in 8 of his last 14 starts and most of those were full fields,” Farnsworth said. “Keep in mind that there are only 89 golfers teeing it up at Augusta National this week. It doesn’t hurt that Theegala played in his Masters debut last year and finished inside the top 10.”

Several sports betting apps are offering Masters promotions, including DraftKings. At DraftKings, users can place any bet on the Masters and have their bet matched with a bonus bet. The app’s “maximum reward limit” applies.

FanDuel offers customers a 30% profit boost on its “Ringer Specials” markets, which include an array of different tournament prop bets. Bettors can find “Scottie Scheffler or Brooks Koepka to win the Masters” at +360 in the Ringer Specials menu.

ESPN BET offers Golf “Winsurance.” If a bettor places three $25 wagers on an outright tournament winner, they’ll receive a bonus bet back if the golfer finishes in the top five but doesn’t win.

Caesars Sportsbook offers a similar promotion, giving customers a bonus bet if their bet to win finishes in the top five but falls short of earning the green jacket.

Fanatics Sportsbook gives a 10% Masters profit boost to select customers, with a maximum wager of $25 and minimum odds of -1000.