Masters weather: First round delayed due to storms in Augusta

AUGUSTA, Ga. — It’s the opening day of the first major of the golf season — but we’ll have to wait just a little longer for the 2024 Masters to truly begin.

Thursday morning storms in the Augusta, Ga., area have delayed the opening round at Augusta National, pushing back the honorary starters’ tee shots and tee times.

Honorary starters Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson will kick off the tournament with their annual ceremonial tee shots at 10:10 a.m. ET, and the first player tee time has been pushed back to 10:30 a.m. Before the delay, the honorary starters were scheduled for 7:40 a.m., with the first player tee time at 8 a.m.

Augusta National Golf Club emailed an update at 5:21 a.m., saying “We continue to monitor the weather closely. Gate openings and tee times have been delayed until further notice. The first round will not begin before 9 a.m.” At 7:38 a.m., Augusta tweeted its latest update, saying the tournament will be ready to start shortly. Patron gates will open at 9:30 a.m.

The good news, according to Weather.com, is that the Thursday weather forecast actually looks better than 24 hours earlier. There’s a slightly less chance of rain — around 20 percent from 7 to 10 a.m. — although a chance of scattered thunderstorms around 8 and 9 a.m. By the time that goes through, the tournament should be set for the rest of the day.

The Thursday afternoon forecast is partly cloudy with a high of 80 and little chance of rain, although players will have to deal with winds of about 17 mph. For the updated tee times, click here.