Despite struggling with a rib injury that has limited him to just four events in 2025, two-time major champion Xander Schauffele remains confident of his chances to win the 89th Masters and claim the third leg of a career grand slam. And Schauffele says he is motivated by the likes of Rory McIlroy as he heads to Augusta National.

Following his major breakthroughs at the US PGA Championship and the Open Championship at Royal Troon last year, Schauffele, currently ranked world number three, is optimistic about his prospects of donning a green jacket this week. When questioned about his chances, Schauffele replied: "Absolutely, yeah. I think I know what I'm capable of when I'm feeling good, when I'm not thinking of anything but getting the ball in the hole.

"It's been a process to get back to that. I don't have a ton of reps doing it, but there's a lot for me to draw back on, sort of previous accomplishments to sort of let that confidence grow."

As he navigates his first significant injury, Schauffele is focusing on the positives, using his time on the sidelines to fuel his motivation. He said: "I've never really dealt with injury before, so I've never really been sidelined.

"I'm trying to find all the positives to attach to the situation, and me not being hurt before and sitting at home thinking all these thoughts, watching everyone else play golf and sort of fly by me, it's been very motivating. Just trying to use that to perform at a higher level."

Scottie Scheffler, the defending champion, is the frontrunner to secure his third Masters title in four years, closely followed by McIlroy, who has already claimed victories at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the Players Championship this season.

In spite of his remarkable performance last year and his consistent record of five top-10 finishes in the past seven Masters, odds-makers have placed Schauffele at around 22/1 to win at Augusta - surprisingly higher odds than those for last year's runner-up Ludvig Aberg.

"There's so many guys that have played at a really high level, and luckily I've learned that I can play at that level," Schauffele commented on his competition.

"[It's] more motivating than anything else. They've been playing incredible golf. Rory has been playing unbelievably well this year with a couple wins already and kind of breezing through what looks like hard golf courses.

"And it's just what happens when you're a really good player and you put things together. That's sort of what happens. Luckily I was able to do that last year, and there's no reason I can't do it again."