In the history of the Masters dating back to 1934, only three players have ever won the Masters in their first appearance.
Two of those players were the legends who won the first two Masters tournaments, known originally as the Augusta National Invitation Tournament. In 1934, Horton Smith won the first Masters by two strokes over Craig Wood at 4-under 284.
The next year, in 1935, Gene Sarazen, who didn't compete in the first Masters, won in a playoff, also over Craig Wood, at 6 under par. That was the Masters with the "shot heard around the world," making an albatross 2 in the final round on the par-5 second hole.
Since the first two Masters, only Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979 won the Masters in his first try. That year, Zoeller beat Tom Watson and Ed Sneed in a playoff to capture his first of two major championships (1984 U.S. Open).
Jordan Spieth came close to becoming the fourth player to accomplish the feat, finishing tied for second behind Bubba Watson in 2014 before setting the 36-, 54- and 72-hole scoring records in winning the 2015 Masters.
