The Masters faces a LONG first day with a storm approaching Augusta National and heavy rain expected throughout Thursday… but organizers still expect the tournament to end on Sunday.

FEARS of a first-day flop at the Masters are growing, with a storm approaching Augusta National.

Heavy rain was expected last night and would continue for the rest of the day, while thunderstorms are expected to arrive just as the first players are due to play at 1:00 pm GMT.

Significant delays shouldn’t cause much of a problem, and even in the event of no play, the tournament will likely finish at its traditional time slot on Sunday.

A limited field of players allows for flexibility, and many may be asked to play two rounds in one day if the need arises.

Augusta implements a famous ‘Sub-Air’ system that allows them to control the humidity levels on the surfaces. However, water may slow some of the greens, which some thought may have been the fastest in the tournament’s 88-year history.

Rory McIlroy, hoping to break his Masters voodoo, will start at 3:42 p.m. in a stellar group with American stars Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele.

Wet weather was a feature of last year’s Masters, when delays on Friday and Saturday resulted in a marathon Sunday. The 2019 version was also affected.

In better news, the forecast for the rest of the week is almost perfect. From Friday to Sunday, meteorologists predict sunny skies and less than a five percent chance of rain. Friday’s strong winds should also help dry out the famous course, if necessary.

Last year, three pine trees collapsed after a gust of wind, sending customers frantically running for shelter. Miraculously, no one was injured. Officials have not commented on what measures, if any, are in place to prevent a repeat this year.

Meanwhile, Augusta National president Fred Ridley poured cold water on the prospect of spots being allocated directly to those playing on the LIV Golf Tour through a new system.

The number of rebels playing has decreased from 18 last year to 13 this year thanks to LIV’s inability to receive World Ranking points.

“I don’t know the answer,” Ridley said. “I think it’s going to be difficult to establish any kind of points system that has any connection to the rest of the golf world because it’s basically, not totally, but for the most part, a closed shop.”

Ridley added: “I don’t think that stops us from giving subjective consideration based on talent, based on the performance of those players.” Our goal is to have, to the greatest extent possible, the best golf course, the best players in the world. That being said, we have never had the best players in the world due to the structure of our tournament. It is an invitation. It’s a limited field, it’s a small field.’