Masters weather update: Thunderstorms delay tournament start

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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10: A general view of the Par-3 competition during the Par Three Contest prior to the 2024 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 10, 2024 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)

AUGUSTA, Ga. - The start of the 88th Masters Tournament was delayed on Thursday because bad weather, finally teeing off at 10:30 a.m. local time.

Tournament officials later said that patron gates would open at 9:30 a.m., two hours later than usual, and Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson and Gary Player would hit their ceremonial first shots at 10:10 a.m. down Tea Olive, the first hole at Augusta National.

Erik van Rooyen and Jake Knapp are the first group due off, while the featured groups will tee off in the afternoon.

Defending champion Jon Rahm, former U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick and Nick Dunlap are due off at 1 p.m., right after Hideki Matsuyama, Will Zalatoris and Justin Thomas in another star-studded group. Those two groups will be followed by a power trio of 2022 Masters champion and world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Rory McIlroy.

Tiger Woods is scheduled to tee off with Jason Day, Max Homa at 3:45 p.m. Jordan Spieth, Ludvig Aberg and Sahith Theegala are two groups later; Dustin Johnson, Collin Morikawa and Tommy Fleetwood are last off at 4:30 p.m.

The delay means those players starting late are unlikely to finish their opening rounds before sundown. If they don't finish, they will complete their opening rounds on Friday morning.

Strong storms, heavy rain and strong winds battered the area early Thursday, leaving thousands without power across Georgia. But it mostly tracked to the south of Augusta National, which last year endured its share of torrential rain during tournament week.

FILE - Jon Rahm stands under an umbrella with his caddie during Round Two of the Masters Tournament at Augusta National. Augusta, GA, on April 8, 2023. (Photo by Erick W. Rasco/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)

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Masters tee times 2024

Tee times for the opening two rounds of the Masters, which is held at Augusta National Golf Club, were announced earlier this week – prior to the rain delay.

Full tee times Thursday/Friday:

• 8:00 a.m./11:06 a.m.: Erik van Rooyen (South Africa), Jake Knapp
• 8:12 a.m./11:18 a.m.: Jose Maria Olazabal (Spain), Taylor Moore, *Santiago de la Fuente (Mexico)
• 8:24 a.m./11:30 a.m.: Danny Willett (England), Austin Eckroat, Stephan Jaeger (Germany)
• 8:36 a.m./11:42 a.m.: Charl Schwartzel (South Africa), Luke List, *Christo Lamprecht (South Africa)
• 8:48 a.m./11:54 a.m.: Gary Woodland, Thorbjorn Olesen (Denmark), Bryson DeChambeau
• 9:00 a.m./12:12 p.m.: Zach Johnson, Corey Conners (Canada), *Jasper Stubbs (Australia)
• 9:12 a.m./12:24 p.m.: Sergio Garcia (Spain), Chris Kirk, Ryan Fox (New Zealand)
• 9:24 a.m./12:36 p.m.: Lucas Glover, Byeong Hun An (Korea), Harris English
• 9:36 a.m./12:48 p.m.: Phil Mickelson, Sepp Straka (Austria), Tony Finau
• 9:48 a.m./1:00 p.m.: Nick Taylor (Canada), Joaquin Niemann (Chile), Russell Henley
• 10:06 a.m./1:12 p.m.: Patrick Cantlay, Min Woo Lee (Australia), Rickie Fowler
• 10:18 a.m./1:24 p.m.: Hideki Matsuyama (Japan), Will Zalatoris, Justin Thomas
• 10:30 a.m./1:36 p.m.: Jon Rahm (Spain), Matt Fitzpatrick (England), Nick Dunlap
• 10:42 a.m./1:48 p.m.: Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland), Xander Schauffele
• 10:54 a.m./2:00 p.m.: Wyndham Clark, Viktor Hovland (Norway), Cameron Smith (Australia)
• 11:06 a.m./8:00 a.m.:Lee Hodges, Adrian Meronk (Poland), Grayson Murray
• 11:18 a.m./8:12 a.m.:Camilo Villegas (Colombia), Denny McCarthy, Cameron Davis (Australia)
• 11:30 a.m./8:24 a.m.: Mike Weir (Canada), Ryo Hisatsune (Japan), *Neal Shipley
• 11:42 a.m./8:36 a.m.: Vijay Singh (Fiji), Si Woo Kim (Korea), Emiliano Grillo (Argentina)
• 11:54 a.m./8:48 a.m.: Fred Couples, Adam Hadwin (Canada), *Stewart Hagestad
• 12:12 p.m./9:00 a.m.: Justin Rose (England), Eric Cole, Peter Malnati
• 12:24 p.m./9:12 a.m.: Akshay Bhatia, J. T. Poston, Shane Lowry (Ireland)
• 12:36 p.m./9:24 a.m.: Bubba Watson, Nicolai Hojgaard (Denmark), Adam Schenk
• 12:48 p.m./9:36 a.m.: Patrick Reed, Sungjae Im (Korea), Kurt Kitayama
• 1:00 p.m./9:48 a.m.: Keegan Bradley, Matthieu Pavon, Tyrrell Hatton (England)
• 1:12 p.m./10:06 a.m.: Adam Scott (Australia), Sam Burns, Cameron Young
• 1:24 p.m./10:18 a.m.: Tiger Woods, Jason Day (Australia), Max Homa
• 1:36 p.m./10:30 a.m.: Brian Harman, Brooks Koepka, Tom Kim (Korea)
• 1:48 p.m./10:42 a.m.: Jordan Spieth, Ludvig Aberg (Sweden), Sahith Theegala
• 2:00 p.m./10:54 a.m.: Dustin Johnson, Collin Morikawa, Tommy Fleetwood (England)

This story was reported from Cincinnati. The Associated Press contributed.