⛳️ A Tradition Unlike Any Other

Hello, friends. Welcome to Blitzer Cabin and to this tradition unlike any other... Magnolia Lane. Amen Corner. Doglegs. Dogwoods. Tiger Woods. Tigers in the woods. (Not actually, that would be crazy.) The Hogan Bridge. The Crow's Nest. The second cut. Bryson DeChambeau calling the course a par 67 and then missing the cut. CBS pumping prerecorded bird sounds into their broadcast. Perennial ryegrass that’s totally not spray-painted. Bryson DeChambeau missing the cut again. Blooming azaleas. Majestic pines. Pimento cheese. Holy grounds haunted by friendly ghosts . . . An annual tradition where millimeters feel like miles and green is more valuable than gold — The 88th Masters Tournament begins tomorrow! And we have a full preview teed up for you today. From the course to the courts, the NBA resumed play with a loaded slate, but a potentially devastating injury to one of the league’s biggest stars spoiled a night full of scoring outbursts. Finally, we’ll recap yesterday’s Champions League quarterfinals, a thrilling USWNT title match, and the top games in the NHL and MLB. Let’s go!

WTF Stat: UConn has missed 32% of the men’s NCAA Tournaments played since 1999. UConn has also won 24% of the men’s NCAA Tournaments played since 1999 - Dan Hurley said after Monday night’s win that, “for the last 25 to 30 years, UConn has been running college basketball.” Do you agree?

NBA - Top Games

• Milwaukee Bucks 104, Boston Celtics 91: In a game that featured an NBA record-low two free-throw attempts(!), Patrick Beverley (20 PTS, 10 REB, 3 AST) and the struggling Bucks picked up a must-needed win over Jayson Tatum (22 PTS, 5 REB, 6 AST) and the Celtis to snap their four-game skid, but it came with a potentially crushing blow, as Giannis Antetokounmpo (29 MIN, 15 PTS, 8 REB, 7 AST) left the game in the 3rd quarter with a non-contact leg injury that was later ruled a calf strain - Bucks HC Doc Rivers said that the level of concern regarding Giannis’ injury is “high” and that he will undergo an MRI on his Achilles. It’s the fewest points for Boston this season, and they attempted a record-low zero free throw attempts!

• Golden State Warriors 135, Los Angeles Lakers 120: In a massive game between the respective No. 10 and No. 9 seeds in the West, Klay Thompson (27 PTS, 5-10 3PT), Stephen Curry (23 PTS, 6-6 3PT, 8 AST), Draymond Green (15 PTS, 5-7 3PT, 6 REB, 10 AST), and the Warriors sunk LeBron James (33 PTS, 14-22 FG, 7 REB, 11 AST) and the Lakers by shooting a ridiculous 26-of-41 (63.4%) from beyond the arc to move within 1.5 games back of Los Angeles in the standings - Anthony Davis was ruled out pregame with a headache

• Minnesota Timberwolves 130, Washington Wizards 121: In a night full of scoring outbursts, Anthony Edwards (51 PTS, 17-29 FG, 6 REB, 7 AST) finished as the league’s top dog, as the Wolves superstar dropped a career-high 51 points to carry Minnesota past Jordan Poole (24 PTS, 6 AST) and the Zards in Minnesota - Blitz Prime Lock of the Day was Wizards +16.5, thank you very much!

• New York Knicks 128, Chicago Bulls 117: Bing Bong — Brunson is gettin’ buckets! Jalen Brunson (45 PTS, 7-12 3PT, 8 AST) posted his second straight 40-point game in an offensive clinic, and New York handled business against DeMar DeRozan (34 PTS, 5 REB, 6 AST) and the sub-.500 Bulls at the United Center - the Knicks (47-32) remain one game back of the Bucks (48-31) for the second seed in the East

• Dallas Mavericks 130, Charlotte Hornets 104: Luka Doncic (39 PTS, 8-17 3PT, 12 REB, 10 AST) boosted his late MVP campaign with a monster triple-double, and the Mavs waxed Miles Bridges (22 PTS, 5 REB, 3 AST) and the Hornets for their 12th win in 13 games - Dallas (49-30) is two games back of the Clippers (50-28) for the fourth seed in the West; LA beat Phoenix last night 105-92

See the full NBA scoreboard here and the current standings here.

NHL - Top Games

• Washington Capitals 2, Detroit Red Wings 1: Don’t look now but the Caps currently hold the final wild-card spot in the East! Alex Ovechkin (1 G) buried to notch his 18th career 30-goal season, breaking a tie with Mike Gartner for the most in NHL history, and Charlie Lindgren (42 SV) was two seconds away from a shutout to lead Washington past Patrick Kane (1 G) and the Winged Wheels in Motown - Detroit (38-32-8, 84 PTS) and Pittsburgh (36-30-12, 84 PTS) trail the Caps (37-30-11, 85 PTS) by one point in the wild-card race

• Dallas Stars 3, Buffalo Sabres 2: Wyatt Johnston (1 G) tied the game at two early in the 2nd period, and then Joe Pavelski (1 G) buried the go-ahead goal minutes later, as the Stars rallied to beat Alex Tuch (1 G) and the Sabres for their 50th win this season, moving them one point back of the league-leading Rangers in the race for the Presidents’ Trophy - New York (53-22-4, 110 PTS) lost to the Islanders last night 4-2

• Carolina Hurricanes 4, Boston Bruins 1: Andrei Svechnikov (1 G, 1 A) pulled off the fabled “Michigan” for one of the best goals you’ll see all season, and the Canes made a statement in a potential playoff preview by blasting Charlie McAvoy (1 G) and the Atlantic-leading B’s at TD Garden - Carolina (50-22-7, 107 PTS) is now tied with Boston (46-18-15, 107 PTS) for the second-most points in the East

See the full NHL scoreboard here and the current standings here.

MLB - Top Games

• Oakland Athletics 4, Texas Rangers 3: The upset of the day! In a sensational showing, Shea Langeliers (3-4, 3 HRs, 4 RBIs) bashed three long balls capped by a go-ahead, two-run shot in the top of the 9th to power the A’s past Jonah Heim (1-4, 1 HR, 1 RBI) and the reigning world champions in the heart of Texas - Oakland is only 4-7!

• Baltimore Orioles 7, Boston Red Sox 1: Tyler O’Neill’s (1-4, 1 HR, 1 RBI) solo drive put Boston up 1-0 in the 1st inning, but it was all O’s from there as Corbin Burnes (7.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 6 Ks) settled in on the bump while Colton Cowser (2-4, 2 2Bs, 4 RBIs) and the offense poured it on to smoke the Sox at Fenway - Baltimore fans received more good news after the game as the No. 1 prospect in baseball, infielder Jackson Holliday, was called up from Triple-A

• Los Angeles Dodgers 6, Minnesota Twins 3: Shohei Ohtani (1-5, 1 2B) extended his hit streak to six games with a double, Tyler Glasnow (7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 14 Ks) mowed down 14 batters, and the Dodgers easily handled Carlos Correa (1-4, 1 HR, 1 RBI) and the Twins to improve to 10-4 on the season - James Outman (2-4, 1 HR, 3 RBIs) and Will Smith (2-5, 1 HR, 3 RBIs) each hit three-run homers for Los Angeles

See the full MLB scoreboard here and the current standings here.

UEFA Champions League - Quarterfinals (Leg 1)

• Manchester City 3, Real Madrid 3: In a stirring shootout at the Bernabeu, City trailed 2-1 in the second half before Phil Foden (66’) and Josko Gvardiol (71’) tallied consecutive goals in five minutes to give the holders the lead in a shocking swing; however, Federico Valverde (79’) retaliated for the hosts, and the frantic affair ended in a stalemate

• Arsenal 2, Bayern Munich 2: After Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka (12’) and Bayern’s Serge Gnabry (18’) traded early goals, Harry Kane (32’ PK) cashed in a PK against his old rivals to put the German side up 2-1, but substitute Leandro Trossard (76’) netted a second-half equalizer for the Gunners, and the opening leg resulted in a draw at Emirates Stadium - the second leg of both of yesterday’s quarterfinals will take place on Wednesday, April 17

See the full box scores here and the UCL bracket here.

Women’s International Soccer - SheBelieves Cup Final

• United States 2, Canada 2 (USA wins 5-4 on PKs): The United States’ Sophia Smith (50’, 68’) and Canada’s Adrian Leon (40’, 86’) each recorded a brace in regulation to ultimately force a deciding penalty shootout, where American keeper Alyssa Naeher made three stops, and Emily Fox scored the winner in the seventh round of kicks to give the USWNT their fifth straight SheBelieves Cup title

See the full international scoreboard here.

⛳️ A Tradition Unlike Any Other

The Masters - Top Storylines

• Tiger Woods is playing golf. Which is very cool, especially when it happens at Augusta National. Woods made the cut last year for a record-tying 23rd consecutive time but withdrew in Round 3 due to a flare-up in his right leg stemming from his 2021 car crash. He underwent ankle fusion surgery to address the injury and didn’t tee off again until February’s Genesis Invitation, which saw him withdraw after 26 holes due to illness. Tiger’s finished just two 72-hole PGA events since the car accident 39 months ago and is admittedly still dealing with pain. Nevertheless, he’s optimistic that he can claim his 16th major title this week: “If everything comes together, I think I can get one more.” If it’s going to happen, it will likely be at Augusta, a place he knows better than anybody - Woods is at -105 odds to make the cut and +15000 odds to win.

• Will Rory finally complete the career grand slam? With his Open Championship victory in 2014, McIlroy joined Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the only players to win three different majors by the age of 25. However, he hasn’t won a major since and has never donned the green jacket — the missing piece to his career grand slam. Yet amid his 10-year drought, Rory hasn’t fallen off. He has seven top-eight finishes in his last eight majors and currently boasts a No. 2 World ranking. Once again, McIlroy enters as a favorite at Augusta, but the pressure — both internal and external — that he carries at the Masters has caused some erratic results; he missed the cut in 2021, finished second in 2022, and then missed the cut again last year. The question isn’t whether he has the talent, but rather the fortitude to finally claim golf’s biggest prize.

• Is it Scottie versus the field? Scottie Scheffler is the best player on the planet right now, and it’s not particularly close. He leads the Tour in total strokes gained, strokes gained tee-to-green, and strokes grained approach. He’s also seemingly fixed his woes with the flat stick. Since switching to a mallet putter, Scheffler’s won two of his last three PGA events, and was, ironically, a missed putt on 18 away from winning his third-straight tournament two weeks ago in Houston. Scottie won at Augusta in 2022 and should be able to combat the unforgiving course again with his incredible ball striking. At nearly 4-1 odds to win this week, he’s the largest favorite at the Masters since Tiger Woods in 2013.

• How will the LIV defectors fare? Jon Rahm returns to Augusta National as the reigning champion, but this year he’s a LIV golfer. The Spaniards’ move in December was the Saudi-backed circuit’s biggest acquisition to date. He’s the No. 3 player in the world, an 11-time Tour winner, and a two-time major champion. But can Rahm or any other members of the LIV contingent win the big one when their prep is just a few leisurely 54-hole, no-cut events? Brooks Koepka finished tied for second in last year’s Masters and then won the 2023 PGA Championship, but a recent 45th-place finish at LIV Miami raises cause for concern. The PGA’s rival group also boasts six other former champions in addition to Rahm: Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Patrick Reed, Charl Schwartzel, and Bubba Watson. Old names? Sure. Experienced winners? Absolutely - the average number of Masters appearances before winning at Augusta is 6.8

• Tap-ins: Can Jordan Spieth or Hideki Matsuyama recapture their Augusta magic? Can Xander Schauffele, Viktor Hovland, or another rising star breakthrough for their first major? Can Justin Thomas and Collin Morikawa get back into form? What should we expect from Phil Mickelson? Can Rickie Fowler contend? Is Jim Nantz the man? (Yes.)

Odds to Win

• Scottie Scheffler +450

• Rory McIlroy +1100

• Jon Rahm +1100

• Xander Schaffele +1400

• Brooks Koepka +2000

• Hideki Matsuyama +2000

• Jordan Spieth +2200

• Joaquin Niemann +2800

• Ludvig Aberg +3300

• Bryson DeChambeau +3500

• Viktor Hovland +3500

• Patrick Cantlay +4000

• Wyndham Clark +4000

• Tonny Finau +4000

• Matt Fitzpatrick +4000

• Will Zalatoris +4000

• Dustin Johnson +4500

• Justin Thomas +4500

Thursday’s Top Pairings & Tee Times (ET)

• 9:36am: Phil Mickelson, Tony Finau, Sepp Straka

• 10:06am: Rickie Fowler, Patrick Cantlay, Min Woo Lee

• 10:18am: Hideki Matsuyama, Justin Thomas, Will Zalatoris

• 10:30am: Jon Rahm, Matt Fitzpatrick, Nick Dunlap

• 10:42am: Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele

• 10:54am: Wyndham Clark, Viktor Hovland, Cameron Smith

• 1:12pm: Adam Scott, Sam Burns, Cameron Young

• 1:24pm: Tiger Woods, Max Homa, Jason Day

• 1:36pm: Brooks Koepka, Brian Harman, Tom Kim

• 1:48pm: Jordan Spieth, Ludvig Aberg, Sahith Theegala

• 2:00pm: Dustin Johnson, Collin Morikawa, Tommy Fleetwood

See the full Thursday and Friday pairings and tee times here.

JOIN OUR MASTERS POOL!

The Masters tees off in Augusta tomorrow, and it’s not too late to join our Masters Pool! Here’s how it works:

The Rules

• Pick six total golfers, one player each from six different tiers - the six tiers are determined by player rankings

• The participant whose six players card the lowest total aggregate score at the conclusion of the tournament wins - in other words: the lowest score wins, just like in golf

• The worst score among your six players will be dropped, so only your top five players’ scores matter

Points System

• -1 point for each stroke under par

• 0 points for a par

• +1 point for each stroke over par

• +8 points for missed cuts or incomplete rounds

The Purse

• Entry will be $10 per roster, and the payout will be awarded to the top three rosters as follows:

  • 1st place: 70% of the pot

  • 2nd place: 20% of the pot

  • 3rd place: 10% of the pot

• You can enter up to three rosters, and the deadline to join coincides with the first tee time on Thursday morning.

Enjoy Masters week, and good luck!

A little Trivia hint! — On April 10, 1966, Jack Nicklaus became the first back-to-back Masters champion, winning the 30th Masters Tournament at Augusta National in an 18-hole Monday playoff against Tommy Jacobs and Gay Brewer. One year prior, Nicklaus, then 25 years old, set a Masters record with a score of 271 (-17) to win his second green jacket, finishing nine strokes ahead of runners-up Arnold Palmer and Gary Player. After his dominant victory in 1965, Bobby Jones famously remarked that Nicklaus "played a game with which I am not familiar." However, the Golden Bear's 1966 victory at Augusta was a much closer call. Nicklaus, Jacobs, and Brewer all finished 72 holes at even-par to force an 18-hole playoff, but Nicklaus carded a 70 in the extra round to run away from Jacobs (72) and Brewer (78). It was the fifth of Nicklaus’ 18 major titles and his only successful defense of a major. Three months later, he completed the first of his three career grand slams by winning the Open Championship - the Masters used the 18-hole format until 1976, and the first sudden-death playoff was in 1979.

MLB

• Los Angeles Dodgers @ Minnesota Twins 1:10pm ET, Local

• Arizona Diamondbacks @ Colorado Rockies 3:10pm ET, ESPN+

• Baltimore Orioles @ Boston Red Sox 7:10pm ET, Local

• Full Schedule

NBA

• Dallas Mavericks @ Miami Heat 7:30pm ET, ESPN

• San Antonio Spurs @ Oklahoma City Thunder 8:00pm ET, Local

• Minnesota Timberwolves @ Denver Nuggets 10:00pm ET, ESPN

• Full Schedule

NHL

• Chicago Blackhawks @ St. Louis Blues 8:00pm ET, NHLPP / ESPN+

• Vegas Golden Knights @ Edmonton Oilers 8:30pm ET, TNT

• Arizona Coyotes @ Vancouver Canucks 10:30pm ET, NHLPP / ESPN+

UEFA Champions League - Quarterfinals (Leg 1)

• Borussia Dortmund @ Atletico Madrid 3:00pm ET, Local

• Barcelona @ Paris Saint-Germain 3:00pm ET, Local

Trivia Time Answer

B. 3. Since the inaugural tournament in 1934, only three players have won back-to-back Masters: Jack Nicklaus (1965-66), Nick Faldo (1989-90), and Tiger Woods (2001-02). Nicklaus went on to win a record six Masters titles, and Woods is right behind him with five. Faldo added another victory in 1996 to finish his career with three green jackets and won both of his back-to-back championships in playoffs.

Prime Lock of the Day

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Auston Matthews scored his 66th goal of the season last night; it's the most goals in an NHL season since Mario Lemieux had 69 in 1995-96!

PS: Our beloved founder, Danny, will be taking over for the rest of the week. Many thanks to the People’s Writer!