Zach Johnson is back at Augusta National with a new number next to his age and the same stubborn goal: contend at The Masters. The Cedar Rapids native turned 50 in March, has already teed it up on the PGA Champions Tour, and said this 'old man' still wants to play well this week at The Masters as the tournament opens later today with the Par 3 contest.
The odds do not make the case for him. Johnson is listed at +55,000 to win The Masters at 50, even though he knows this course has already delivered the biggest result of his career. He won in Augusta, Georgia, in 2007 with a total score of 289, or 1 over par, a winning mark tied for the highest in tournament history. Last year, he finished tied for eighth at 5 under par, his best Masters finish since 2015.
That was a sharp turn after a stretch of uneven results at the same tournament. Johnson missed the cut in 2021, missed again in 2022, tied for 34th in 2023 and then missed the cut in 2024 before breaking back into the top 10 last year. For a player whose Masters history has swung from a surprise green jacket to years of frustration, the return to Augusta has become a test of whether one more strong week is still in him.
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Johnson's 2007 win remains one of the most unexpected in Masters history, and it still stands out because of how little margin he needed to get the job done. Now, after turning 50 and starting to mix more starts on the PGA Champions Tour into his schedule, he is arriving at a different stage of his career with a familiar setting in front of him. Rory McIlroy is the defending Masters champion, and the tournament will air on CBS, Paramount+ and The Golf Channel, but Johnson is the player trying to make the most personal case for attention.
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The tension around his week is simple. Augusta has already shown him both extremes: a green jacket and a string of missed cuts. If Johnson is going to turn 50 into more than a milestone, this is the place where he has to prove it.
