2023 Masters Tournament: Top 10 Power Rankings at Augusta National

An impressive run at the Masters came to an end for Xander Schauffele in 2022, but I’m still bullish on his prospects for 2023.

He made the cut in his 2018 debut, taking T-50th (71-78-72-75). A little course knowledge vaulted him all the way into contention the next year. Schauffele finished a shot back in T-2nd (73-65-70-68) and was a superhuman performance from Tiger away from perhaps donning a green jacket.

The X Man took T-17th (67-73-71-70) in 2020 and was three shots off the pace in T-3rd (72-69-68-72) in 2021.

Rounds of 74-77 left him three shots outside the cut line last year.

That was a pretty anomalous performance for a guy who doesn’t MC often. Schauffele missed the weekend just twice in 2022.

He’s toward the top of Best Player Without a Major type lists with 19 made cuts in 22 starts and nine top-10s.

The San Diego State alum also has a bevy of high finishes in non-majors of late. Schauffele’s 2023 features three top-10s, the latest coming in what counts as a T-5th finish at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play where he advanced to the quarterfinals.

Schauffele won his group with a 4 & 3 win over Cam Davis, 2 & 1 win over Aaron Wise, and a 1 Up win over Tom Hoge. Schauffele dispatched JJ Spaun 3 & 2 before a 1 Down loss to Rory McIlroy in a match where both played well.

Schauffele leads the PGA Tour in approach proximity from 150-175 yards (22’8”), which is a fairly common distance range to have at ANGC. He’s ninth in strokes gained per round on approach (.886) and 20th in SG putting (.544). His weakness, accuracy off the tee, can be shielded this week, especially if the course is playing soft.