Masters 2022: Top Storylines to Watch for in Round 1 on Thursday

Tiger Woods' anticipated return to Augusta National Golf Club occurs on Thursday morning. 

Woods has been practicing at the home of the Masters for the last week in preparation for his return to the golf links. 

Woods is scheduled to tee off alongside Louis Oosthuizen and Joaquin Niemann at 10:34 a.m. ET. Most of the attention on the early wave of threesomes will be on Woods, who is a five-time champion at Augusta. 

The reigning Masters champion, Hideki Matsuyama, tees off in the group directly after Woods at 10:45 a.m. ET. 

Matsuyama has been dealing with some back issues of late, and that could hinder his chance to defend the green jacket. 

The target score for Woods, Matsuyama or any other golfer Thursday will be to get off to a good start and potentially lead after 18 holes. 

The last three first-round leaders at Augusta carded a 66 or lower, so that is the number to watch throughout Thursday's play.

The most anticipated first tee shot of the tournament comes with the most questions of the event. 

Tiger Woods has not played in a competitive event in over a year, but he feels strong enough physically to compete at Augusta this week. 

Woods magically won us over in 2019, when he captured his fifth green jacket in unlikely circumstances. 

Woods comes into Augusta three years older and with more questions about what his game will look like and if he can even withstand the physical demands of walking the course for four consecutive days if he makes the cut. 

In a normal year, Woods would have all the attention from the gallery because of his star power. That will be increased on Thursday because he has not competed in 13 months. 

Woods has not carded a first-round score over 73 since his 2004 appearance at Augusta. A score of 73 or lower would be a fantastic result given his current circumstances. 

If Woods hits the ball well, it will only generate more buzz about what he can do over the next three days. 

Hideki Matsuyama's title defense at the Masters begins 11 minutes after Woods hits his first tee shot. 

In most years, the injury issues of the reigning champion would be the top storyline, but we have not heard much about Matsuyama because of Woods' comeback.

Matsuyama withdrew from last week's Texas Open and did not participate in the WGC Match Play the week before because of his lingering back issue. 

The 2021 Masters winner carded a single round below 70 in his last two PGA Tour starts at the Genesis Invitational and Arnold Palmer Invitational.

The lack of success cast doubts on whether or not Matsuyama could reach the first page of the leaderboard. 

We will find out Thursday if the back issue is still bugging Matsuyama and that leads to a high score, or if he worked through the injury and can contend moving forward. 

The last three Masters had first-round leaders with either a 65 or 66. 

Three years ago, Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka surged out in front of the field with dueling 66s. 

Paul Casey, Dylan Frittelli and Dustin Johnson played into a three-way tie for first with opening 65s in 2020. 

Justin Rose was the solo first-round leader last April after he shot a seven-under 65. He opened up a four-stroke lead on the closest opponents. 

Low scores can be easy to find at Augusta if a player is in form, and we should see at least one or two low rounds Thursday.

The big question is which player or players land on top of the leaderboard. A mix of experienced players and unknowns shared the spotlight over the last few years. 

Patrick Cantlay, Cameron Smith, Russell Henley and Billy Horschel are worth watching for the first-round lead. They rank first through fourth in first-round scoring average on the PGA Tour. 

Johnson and Koepka are among the previous major champions to watch based on their recent history on Thursday at Augusta.