LIVE BLOG: Masters Day 1 Coverage at Augusta National

The morning fog is lifting at Augusta National Golf Club, here on the first Thursday in April, and that can mean only one thing - it's time for The Masters.

Stick with us all day as we have complete live Masters coverage throughout, including photos, the live leaderboard, news, notes and more.

Refresh this page throughout the day for live blog coverage of the 2023 Masters. The live leaderboard is available here, or under the live blog coverage below.

Check out our additional coverage leading up to today as well:

We're going to end our Day 1 coverage here. An incredible, high-scoring first round, with Jon Rahm, Viktor Havland and Brooks Hoepka leading the pack at 7-under par.

Friday will not be as kind on the scorecards, especially if the inclement weather gets in earlier.

Here's a look at some of the other top storylines from Day at the Masters:

https://wgac.com/galleries/21-of-the-best-images-from-day-1-of-the-2023-masters/

Because of the incoming bad weather, Masters officials have moved up tee times for Friday 30 minutes. The first group will now tee off at 7:30 a.m.

Here's a fun stat: Every winner of the Masters in the last 15 years has been in the Top 11 after the first round.

And 10 of those winners were in the Top 5.

So look to the top of today's leaderboard if you're looking to size a Green Jacket for Sunday.

Right now, that would be everyone at 4-under or better. So we're likely going to see one of these guys win: Viktor Hovland, Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Cameron Young, Jason Day, Shane Lowery, Xander Shauffele, Adam Scott, Gary Woodland, Scottie Scheffler, Sam Bennett or Sam Burns.

The caveat for this weekend will, of course, be the weather. Things are going to get interesting.

Just to prove we weren't making up the whole Rory on the Mic thing earlier, the good folks at The Masters did it again with Max Homa.

Here he is chatting for a good bit while playing the 14th.

We spoke too soon on the changing difficulty of the 13th hole. And we have none other but Mr. Masters Adventure himself, Jordan Spieth to thank for alerting us to its pitfalls.

Nobody would argue that Spieth is a terrific golfer, but nobody would ever argue that he makes it easy either. His rounds at Augusta National are filled with stressful moments.

Jordan finished his front 9 at 4-under today, looking pretty good, with just a bogey on the card. An unfortunate bogey on 11 brought him to 3-under, but still feeling pretty good about life.

Then 13 hit. And things got crazy.

The 13th hole was changed this year, to add some additional length, because many thought it had become far too easy a hole. It averaged out as the easiest hole on the course with a score of 4.77, as a par 5.

But... the changes don't appear to have done much yet. Today so far, it's averaging a 4.72 and is the fourth easiest hole.

Welcome to the top Brooks Koepka! He finished his round at 7-under, 65, and joins Jon Rahm and Viktor Hovland as the clubhouse leaders.

Amateur Sam Bennett is no stranger to success. The Texas A&M golfer is coming off winning the 2022 U.S. Amateur, and has been a standout in college.

But what Bennett has done on his front 9 at Augusta National today is literally unprecedented.

The 22-year-old put a 32 on his card for the front 9, the lowest from an amateur in tournament history. He's got two birdies and an eagle on his card so far.

But there are a lot of holes to play, with a lot of opportunities to give shots right back.

An interesting few moments on the television broadcast just now, as for the first time ever, the broadcast team talked with a golfer live on the Masters course.

Rory McIlroy spent time with the team talking through how his round has gone, as he walked up the fairway on the 9th hole.

He then walked them through his thinking on his pitch the green, before dropping his audio to take the shot. He left the shot a few yards short of the target, which he said he was disappointed with, but it was better than hitting it long. In typical Rory fashion though, as one of the most affable golfers alive, he said he was honored to be the first one to do the on-course interview.

While the novelty of talking to active players during sporting events isn't new, when it comes to The Masters and the level of focus the golfers put on the course, it was interesting to hear from one live.

He ended up parring the hole to end his front 9 at 1-over.

We have a tie atop the leaderboard now, as Jon Rahm has finished his round with a 7-under 65.

The score would be expected from one of the top golfers in the world, but what makes it more impressive is he gave back two strokes with a double bogey on the first hole. He was 9-under after that.

Astonishingly, it's the lowest ever score for a player who started the Masters with a double-bogey on 1.

Rahm and Hovland are now two shots clear of Cameron Young, who finished with a 5-under 67, and stands in third alone right now.

We haven't spent any time talking about the LIV vs. PGA Tour debate yet, and we probably won't get it into it much at all this weekend.

But, just to give a check-in on the 18 golfers who are competing in The Masters, who play in LIV, here's where they stand (we'll update again at the end of the round):

There is now a score to beat in the clubhouse, as Viktor Hovland has finished his brilliant first round with a 7-under par 65.

Hovland's round featured five birdies and an eagle, and no blemishes on his card. He even salvaged par on the 18th, after getting stuck in a difficult position in the green-side bunker.

Hovland's playing partner, Tiger Woods, finished his round with a bogey and a 2-over, 74. The other member of their group, Xander Schauffele had a workmanlike round of 4-under, 68, and is still in the hunt for sure. He just missed a birdie putt on 18 that would have put him two back.

Jon Rahm still sits at 6-under, just missing a long birdie on the 17th hole.

Viktor Hovland looked like he was going to completely run away with this tournament just a little while ago. But things are starting to get way more interesting.

With the weather looking like absolute chaos the next three days, the best in the world are chasing every number they can get today.

Hovland still sits at 7-under, but Xander Schauffele, Adam Scott and Jon Rahm are just two shots back at 5-under. Shane Lowry, Cameron Young, Brooks Koepka and Sam Burns are all at 4-under. Lowry is in the clubhouse with a 68.

Oh, and on Tiger watch, he birdied both 15 and 16, and is now 1-over with two holes to play.

But back to Burns. He has a cool little footnote to his round today:

There's a lot more of the same going on at Augusta National right now, but with some bigger names stepping into the party.

If Viktor Hovland suddenly tanks, we get to blame PGA Tour Communications, not us this time!

Hovland is now 7-under through 13 holes. If he can find two more strokes out there on his final five, he'll be approaching a single-round record.

Greg Norman and Nick Price currently share the record with 63s.

Fred Couples is about as big a name in golf as you can get, and at 63 years old, he's just carded a 1-under 71 in the first round of the Masters.

Couples won the tournament in 1992, and is playing for the 38th time in the event. He's made the cut in 30 of those. But this 71 was his best first-round score since a 71 in 2014, and a 68 in 2013. His last made cut was in 2018.

Couples had four birdies on his round, on 12-13-15-17, but gave back one on 5-9-18. A brutal 3-putt on 18 robbed him of an even better score.

That'll teach us to take a lunch break. A LOT has happened since we last spoke. Let's break it all down:

Before we dip out for a bit for lunch, we need to update what Viktor Hovland and Shane Lowry are doing out on the course.

Hovland finished his front nine with a 31(!), just one shot off the record of 30. He's currently 5-under par and on top of the tournament.

Lowry was chugging along with pars until he got to 7, when he went birdie-birdie-birdie, and he's now 3-under on the day, in second.

(Oops, the curse strikes again. Lowry just had a bogey on 11 to give one back. Sorry Shane.)

We've completed our first 4 hours of play on Day 1 of the 2023 Masters, and Mike Weir is our first golfer in the clubhouse.

Weir finished his opening round with an even-par 72, with birdies on 8, 12 and 15, and bogeys on 10, 11 and 16. Weir finished his round alone, after Kevin Na withdrew from the tournament due to illness.

Shane Lowry, Viktor Hovland and Cameron Young are the on-course leaders, sitting at 3-under as we head to the afternoon.

Tiger Woods is on the struggle bus, sitting at 3-over through seven, with a much-needed low-scoring par 5 ahead of him.

Check out all of our favorite photos from the morning rounds, in our first gallery of the day.

We don't get a lot of opportunities to see our curse go the other way, but Jon Rahm is making us look good now!

After that ugly double-bogey 6 on his first hole, he rattled off two straight birdies on 2 and 3 to get back to even par.

He's looking up at a pack of 14 golfers ahead of him, including Cameron Young, who added another birdie on 3 to get to 3-under and leading the tournament. He had a par on 4, which feels like a birdie today.

Viktor Hovland and his awesome shirt just joined him at the top, with a birdie on the sixth.

Your humble writer here picked Jon Rahm to win The Masters this year. Which of course means he has no shot. And just to make sure and break our hearts early on, the jinx continues, as Rahm had a double-bogey on his first hole, after a four-putt. Sorry Jon.

Meanwhile, Tiger Woods had some struggles on the third hole, and now sits 1-over through four holes.

On the better side of the world, Viktor Hovland is tied for your tournament lead after an eagle on the second hole. He also leads in fashion today. Look at that shirt!

Hovland is joined at the top currently by Xander Schauffele, who birdied 2 and 4; Adam Scott, who birdied 2 and 3; and Cameron Young, who birdied both of his first two holes.

It's getting fun out here!

Kevin Na was having a rough day, at 4-over 40 in his front nine. He just announced he's withdrawing from the tournament.

Mike Weir is now playing by himself for the rest of the day, which will likely change his tee time for Friday to put him in another group.

There's not much more captivating a figure at Augusta National than Tiger Woods.

Even if he doesn't have quite the same abilities as the days of yore, Tiger draws a crowd like none other.

His impressive outing last year, where he made the cut in his 22nd consecutive Masters, left everyone in awe.

Does the five-time champion have another magical tournament left in him? We find out now, as he's stepping up to the first tee. His first shot is a dart down the center of the fairway.

Welcome to Tiger Time.

There aren't many golfers who use anything but the standard white golf ball, but the one standout who goes against the grain is Fred Couples.

Couples won the Masters in 1976, and is playing in his 38th Masters this year. He's started with four straight pars, but what stood out the most was the bright yellow ball he's using. It's working apparently. He's just one shot back of the pack of nine leaders at 1-under so far.

He's been doing it for a few years, but it always stands out at Augusta National.

The 2017 Masters Champion Sergio Garcia is now on the course. His opening drive was perfectly placed on the fairway, and his second shot was safely placed on the green. He'll have a long putt for birdie from there.

Meanwhile, we finally have another golfer under par! Russell Henley dropped a birdie on 3 to move to 1-under par on the day, just one shot back of Matthew McClean.

Uh oh... our curse strikes again. Literally as we typed that, McClean bogeyed the par-4 fifth hole, after starting out in the right-side rough, and coming up short with his second shot.

He's now 1-under and tied with Henley atop the board.

And again as we type that, Scott Stallings birdies the fifth hole, and he joins the pack of three at 1-under to lead things early.

We've got about 20 golfers on the course right now, and aside from Kevin Na's wild ride, everybody else is just quietly churning.

Our leader still remains amateur Matthew McClean, who salvaged a brilliant par on the third hole, after his second shot rolled back off the green. He's still 1-under, ahead of a pack of golfers at even par.

... Well, as we typed this, Mr. McClean said oh no you don't! A birdie just now on the fourth hole gives him a 2-shot lead on the field. A wonderful start for the amateur.

We already mentioned that Kevin Na had a double-bogey on 1, but his adventure has continued.

He's gone double-birdie-bogey-par so far through 4 holes. (Just added a bogey on 5 too. Weeeeeee.)

For Matthew McLean, winning the Masters would obviously be a bit of a pipe dream, since he's an amateur player.

But don't let that (a) fool you, he's starting strong at The Masters, and he has our first birdie of the day! McLean took his second shot from the fairway, and knocked it to within 4 feet of the hole, leaving him a comfortable putt for birdie.

The amateur is now technically leading the Masters. Sure, there's only five guys with scores right now, but have YOU ever led The Masters? Didn't think so.

McLean's playing partners Scott Stallings and Vijay Singh parred and bogeyed the first hole, respectively.

Meanwhile, Kevin Na did get back one of his shots lost on 1 with a birdie on 2. He's now +1 on the day.

Mike Weir and Kevin Na get the first honor of scores on the Leaderboard today.

Weir was able to save par, after an errant drive into the rough. But Kevin Na struggled to recover, missing the green with his third shot, pitching to the wrong side of the green, and then two putting for a double bogey to start the day.

Vijay Singh has our first shot in the fairway today, as his opening drive in the second group was nicely placed.

Mike Weir and Kevin Na are the first golfers on the course, teeing off right at 8 a.m.

Weir started the tournament with a drive left of the pine straw, left of the fairway, and Na decided that was what he wanted to do as well. His landed in the straw, nearly behind a tree.

Sounds like a typical round at Augusta National. Vijay Singh, Scott Stallings and our first amateur Matthew McClean from Northern Ireland, are the next group on the tee.

Three legends of the game got the 2023 Masters Tournament started, as Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson served as the honorary starters Thursday morning.

Player got the festivities started with his typical outgoing humor and grace, hitting a nice shot - especially for an 87-year-old legend of the game.

The 83-year-old Nicklaus followed him with jokes about putting the ball on the tee being the hardest part of all of it, before he also hit one straight.

And lastly, the 73-year-old (but looking far younger) Tom Watson capped things off with a drive he watched for a long time, almost as though he was concerned about how this would impact his scoring on the day.

Combined, this trio has 11 Masters Championships and over 110 years on the course.

SEE MORE PHOTOS HERE.

Today's round gets started shortly, with the ceremonial tee shots, and then our first golfers are on the course at 8 a.m.

Kicking things off, once again, this year will be honorary captains Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson. They’ll hit the ceremonial shots Thursday at 7:40 a.m.

Our first golfers on the course after that will be Mike Weir and Kevin Na, hitting the course at 8 a.m.

Some of the notable groupings include, of course, Tiger Woods, who will play with Viktor Hovland and Xander Schauffele the first two days. They tee off at 10:18 a.m. on Thursday, and 1:24 p.m. on Friday.

Defending champion Scottie Scheffler will join Max Homa and amateur Sam Bennett at 1:36 p.m. on Thursday, and 10:30 a.m. on Friday.

Justin Thomas, Jon Rahm and Cameron Young will head out at 10:42 a.m. on Thursday, and 1:48 p.m. on Friday.

Click here for the full schedule of groupings for Thursday and Friday at the Masters,

Thursday's pin locations seemingly offer some interesting challenges.

Good morning from our live coverage center, as we begin our look at a Tradition Unlike Any Other - The Masters.

Day 1 of the 2023 edition should be interesting, as it'll be the closest we might get to a "good weather day."

"At daybreak, everyone is even," the video below says. And he's right. Right now, everyone has the same shot at a win.

It's Thursday, at The Masters.

A special thanks to our friends at Augusta National Golf Club.