Spring is in the air, and for golf lovers that means one thing: the Masters. The best players in the world are preparing to take on Augusta National Golf Club in pursuit of the coveted green jacket.
While the course’s fairways are edged by a second, slightly higher cut of grass, there is no deep rough of the kind that traditionally faces players at most U.S. Opens or PGA Championships. For that reason, most players can be more aggressive off the tee at the Masters, but precision with irons on approach shots is critical. Missing the target by just a few feet when hitting to Augusta National’s famous greens can make the difference between a birdie chance and scrambling to avoid a big number.
The players listed below are the top 10 in strokes gained approach the green, the best statistical measure of iron play on the PGA Tour. The list also includes the irons they are playing. Strokes gained measures how much better or worse a player is versus the field average, so a strokes gained of 1.0 means that player is one stroke better than the field average per round.
10. Matthew NeSmith, 0.767
Matthew NeSmith (Harry How/Getty Images)
IRONS: Srixon Z-Forged (4-PW), with Nippon N.S. Pro Modus 125 X shafts
9. Dustin Johnson, 0.770
Dustin Johnson’s TaylorMade P730 “DJ Proto” irons (David Dusek/Golfweek)
IRONS: TaylorMade P730 “DJ Proto” (3-PW), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts
8. Tyrrell Hatton, 0.773
Tyrrell Hatton’s Ping golf equipment (David Dusek/Golfweek)
IRONS: Ping i210 (4-PW), with Nippon N.S. Pro Modus 3 Tour 120X shafts
7. Chez Reavie, 0.776
Chez Reavie’s TaylorMade irons (David Dusek/Golfweek)
IRONS: TaylorMade P790 (4), P750 (5-PW), with KBS C-Taper 120 shafts
6. Keegan Bradley, 0.804
Keegan Bradley (Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
IRONS: Srixon ZX Utility (3), ZX5 (4,5), ZX7 (6-PW), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts
5. Russell Henley, 0.843
Russell Henley’s Titleist T100 irons (David Dusek/Golfweek)
IRONS: Titleist T100 (4-9), with True Temper Dynamic Gold AMT X100 shafts
4. Will Zalatoris, 0.954
Will Zalatoris (Steve Dykes/Getty Images)
IRONS: Titleist U500 (3), T100 (4-PW), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts
3. Justin Thomas, 1.051
Justin Thomas’ Titleist irons (David Dusek/Golfweek)
IRONS: Titleist T100 (4), 620 MB (5-9), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts
2. Justin Suh, 1.133
Justin Suh (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
IRONS: Ping iBlade (4-PW), with Project X 6.5 shafts
1. Collin Morikawa, 1.238
Collin Morikawa’s TaylorMade gear (David Dusek/Golfweek)
IRONS: TaylorMade P-7MC (4-6), P730 (7-PW), with True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts
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