The 87th Masters won’t be remembered just for Jon Rahm’s thrilling comeback win over Brooks Koepka – the slow pace of play in the final round was a major buzzkill. Patrons are still fuming about it, and it’s not hard to see why, as it seems like history repeated itself at the 2025 Masters, with groups struggling to keep up with the pace.
This year’s grouping and timings didn’t seem to help matters. The group in front of Rahm and Koepka, featuring Patrick Cantlay, Rasmus Højgaard, and Matt Fitzpatrick, teed off at 12:33 p.m./9:25 a.m., while Rahm and Koepka’s group, which also included Russell Henley and Sungjae Im, started at 12:50 p.m./9:36 a.m. Despite the slightly staggered start times, the slow pace of play still managed to cause delays.
Koepka wasn’t afraid to speak his mind about the slow play in the 2023 Masters, saying that the group in front of them was “brutally slow.” He even joked that Jon Rahm went to the bathroom seven times during the round, and they were still waiting. Cantlay was the main culprit, with Hovland even showing signs of annoyance at his playing partner’s slow pace. While Hovland shot a respectable 2-over 74 to finish tied for seventh, Cantlay struggled to a 3-over 75, tying for 14th place.
Starting times and groupings for the first and second rounds of the 89th Masters Tournament. #themasters
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 8, 2025
Many believe that it’s a shame that the slow pace of play overshadowed an otherwise thrilling finish at the Masters and they fear the same will happen this year as well.
Patrons are mad at Masters for what they did to Brooks Koepka
Starting off strong with what one fan said, “After what happened in the final round two years ago, it’s actually great trolling by The Masters to put Brooks in the group directly behind Cantlay on Thursday,” while the other said, “Cantlay teeing off in the group before Koepka is peak Masters.” Another fan said something similar as they wrote, “Putting Koepka in the group after Cantlay is nasty work.” Well, for patrons to be this mad on the whole situation is sort of understandable considering Cantlay has his controversies with slow play. Patrick Cantlay’s slow play issues resurfaced at the 2024 Genesis Invitational, where he was playing in the final group with Xander Schauffele.
Despite being two strokes ahead at the start of the final round, Cantlay and Schauffele found themselves a hole behind the group in front of them by the fifth hole. The gap between the groups grew, with commentator Jim Nantz noting the noticeable delay. “It’s early in the round,” he said. “There is a noticeable gap between these two [final] pairings. Is there a reason for that?” It later emerged that Cantlay had woken up with a fever over 100 degrees on the final day, which may have contributed to his slow pace. This isn’t the first time Cantlay has faced criticism for slow play – last year, Matt Fitzpatrick called it “ridiculous.”
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