Hello friends. As some of you may know, Fantasy Football is my favorite thing in the world. When week 17 of the season rolls around and waiver wires go into hibernation, life get’s a little darker. NBA, NFL, and MLB Fantasy Sports don’t quite scratch that itch that my soul desires, so I’ve always felt hopeless during the 32 or so weeks where my brain isn’t hyper focused on Fantasy Football. That was until the geniuses over at Augusta decided to make Masters Fantasy Golf.
As if the Masters wasn’t enough of a black hole for attention already, we now have the organized opportunity to put some skin on the line while competing against friends.
HOW IT WORKS
Similar to other Fantasy Sports, Fantasy Masters operates around players filling specific slots in your roster. The four slots available to fill are: A past Masters champion, a golfer from the United States, an international golfer, and a wild card (basically a flex where you can pick any player from anywhere in the world). Players cannot be picked twice.
In case of a tie, there is a tie-breaker similar to many March Madness brackets where the user picks the number of birdies tallied throughout the entirety of the tournament. In the event of a complete tie including an equal guess on the number of birdies, whoever was the first to register their picks is declared the winner.
Now, you may be wondering: What happens to my golfers if they get eliminated by the cut? Good question. If the next round of the tournament is yet to begin, you are able to swap your eliminate golfers for golfers of the same category/position slot. This rule is also in play for disqualifications and withdrawals.
SCORING
Scoring is categorized into three sections, the first being hole-by-hole. If a golfer gets a double eagle (hole in one included), they receive eight points. An eagle warrants five, a birdie is two, and a par is one. Bogeys subtract one point, and anything double bogey or worse is minus three. Amateurs don’t receive negative points for bogeys, which gives them a major upside.
The next scoring category is end of round bonuses. When one of your original picks finishes a round, they are rewarded with one point. This is meant to give you an advantage over someone who picked a player that was cut before swapping them out. Personally, I think the bonus should be a bit more so that people who selected poorly don’t have as high of a chance at winning.
The last scoring category is end of tournament bonuses. If you pick the low amateur, you receive five bonus points. The tournament champion? Also five. Lastly, tournament runner up(s) grant you three bonus points each.
MY PICKS
With my recent hot streak to end March Madness, I’m sure you’re all here to get my picks, so here they are:
Past Champ – Scotty Scheffler
US Golfer – Justin Thomas
International Golfer – Jon Rahm
Wild Card – Rory McIlroy
Tie-Breaker – 1069 (obviously)
HOW TO PLAY
Tell all of your family and friends to go download the Masters App. Everything is laid out in a simple manner, making it easy for even the most experienced viewers to get in on the fun.