Round 1 Masters grades

— -- AUGUSTA, Ga. -- This year without the world's No. 1 golfer in the field, I'm going to do the Top 5 playing in the Masters with a few miscellaneous players thrown in just to give everyone more opportunities to call me dumb. It doesn't matter to me; sticks and stones may break my bones, but I'm still at the Masters!

Adam Scott    World Ranking: No. 2 | Score: 69

Defending a title is hard. Defending the Masters has been done only by two Hall of Famers (Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo) and one future Hall of Famer (Tiger Woods). The plus is for showing the composure of a major champion after making double bogey on the 12th. So why not an A? Because he birdied only one of the par 5s. If he goes 3-for-4 on the par 5s Friday and plays steadily, he'll have at least a two-shot lead by the end of the day.

Henrik Stenson    World Ranking: No. 3 | Score: 73

I'm not going to fail him because he's still inside the top 30 going into Friday. What I am going to do is start questioning his hunger this year. And it's not his fault. It's hard to be hungry after banking more than $16 million last year on the PGA Tour alone. But he has a chance to be No. 1 in the world, and that doesn't have a price tag. Eleven greens in regulation and 32 putts won't even make you No. 20 in my book. He should skip dinner Thursday night and come back hungry Friday.

Jason Day    World Ranking: No. 4 | Score: 75

He was a birdie and a nice up-and-down on 18 away from an F. He gets an asterisk on his grade because I'm writing this before finding out whether he hurt his thumb during the round, in which case I apologize to him for that first sentence. If he's not hurt, then the four-hole stretch from the eighth to 11th holes shows that he may not be ready for the pressure that comes with being a favorite going into a major. Friday needs to be a great day for him. Again, though, if the thumb is hurt then all bets are off.

Phil Mickelson    World Ranking: No. 5 | Score: 76

No, F! Wait, B! OK, D-plus. ... Hang on, C. I don't feel so good. "For those of you choosing to ride the Phil-Ta-Whirl, please secure your loose items. Keep hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times. There will be motion-sickness bags available when the ride comes to a stop." Here's the thing: If I grade him just on his performance today, he'd get a D-minus. But I feel like I should grade him on a curve because he came in unprepared due to injury. Even using that curve, I still could give him only a C-minus. Instead, I'm giving him an "I" for incomplete. Tomorrow will be a make-up quiz. No excuses Lefty, and I better not see any more 7s on your scorecard or you're going into timeout!

Sergio Garcia    World Ranking: No. 6 | Score: 74

I know, he got a better grade than Stenson and had a worse score. That's because even though he scored worse, he hit fewer greens yet had one fewer putt. During an up-and-down round with four birdies and six bogeys, it wasn't his putter that let him down. When Sergio hits eight of 14 fairways and only 10 of 18 greens, even his putter can't bail him out.

Patrick Reed    World Ranking: No. 23 | Score: 73

Harsh grade for a guy who's only 1 over, but not for someone with aspirations to be a top-five player in the world. Bogeys on the last three holes are not what champions do. Fifty percent of fairways at Augusta is like a pro bowler throwing three gutter balls in 10 frames. I guess that whole "gonna treat this just like any other tournament" theory is flushed. I believe he's a top player, but he's not showing me that I should believe in him.

Jordan Spieth    World Ranking: No. 13 | Score: 71

Oh, what could've been. He gets the B for being under par, but 15 GIRs and 32 putts? He's the kid who isn't scared, remember? I will give him credit for staying relatively positive through a trying day on the greens, but no excuses tomorrow. It's time for him to take his place as the new young face of the PGA Tour. He needs a 68 or better with the same stats or I'll have to drop him a grade.

Kevin Stadler    World Ranking: No. 60 | Score: 70

I can't imagine the thoughts that must have been going through his head last night after having just played the Par 3 Contest with his dad, Craig (which isn't sunshine and rainbows). Making four birdies against two bogeys showed a laudable resolve. Friday may be a tougher day for him as the adrenalin reserve from Day 1 won't be there. Still, he can do something this year his father won't: play the weekend.