The Best Putter At Augusta National? This Famous Member Who Once Outscored Rory McIlroy...

"I don't think I've ever seen anyone putt the greens as well as he does around here."

That's quite some praise, especially when it comes from a player who has completed the Career Grand Slam.

During the 2014 Masters, Rory McIlroy, who finished the week tied eighth, was beaten in the third round by a player who was only stepping in to play at Augusta National because an odd number of players made the cut.

How embarrassing. Well, actually not at all, because it's not some competition winner who gets picked to play in such circumstances.

Jeff Knox, when he was the Masters marker, was a proper player (and probably still is).

Yes, Knox could play - and he could really play at Augusta. An accomplished amateur before taking on the enviable role as a non-competing marker, Georgia-born Knox actually holds the unofficial course record at the famous course, an 11-under 61 off the members' tees. Not bad, eh?

And how about this for a title? The Augusta specialist is a former champion of the Azalea Invitational. No wonder he's in the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame.

Obviously, then, he has a decent game from tee to green, although it's on the greens where he excels, and many players over the years have sought out his advice in an effort to improve their chances of winning a Green Jacket.

Asked what he thought about playing with Knox in 2014, McIlroy gave a glowing appraisal of the Augusta National member and said he "should be playing in the Masters."

McIlroy added, "Jeff is a great player. He beat me by one. So I thought he was going to be nice and three‑putt the last, and we would have a halve, but he beat me by one.

"He obviously knows this place so well and gets it round. I don't think I've ever seen anyone putt the greens as well as he does around here. He was really impressive.

"I was thinking of maybe getting him to read a few of my putts out there. He played really well, and he couldn't have been more helpful. He was really nice all the way around."

McIlroy isn't the only player to have benefited from playing a round with Knox, who made his first appearance as the Masters marker in 2002.

Two-time Major winner Justin Thomas, who played with Knox's son Lee at Alabama, prepared for his first Masters in 2016 by picking his brains about Augusta National's famous slick and undulating surfaces.

"It helped a lot," Thomas told the Augusta Chronicle of playing the course with Knox.

"He knows so much about that course. Any questions or any concerns I can ask. He’s always good. I don’t think anybody has the knowledge he has on those greens.

"Hopefully, it will help me a lot. I’ve still got to execute. I’ve tried to get as much as I possibly can [from Knox] before the event starts."

As debuts go, tied 39th for Thomas was a very respectable effort, and no doubt Knox's tips have helped make the American one of the favorites to win the Green Jacket every year since.

"The dude’s an absolute legend. I’d take him over anyone in the world on those greens, hands down," said Thomas.

Knox, who has also been approached for advice by the likes of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, may well have the following quotes printed and put in a picture frame at home.

"If the PGA Tour played every event at Augusta National, Jeff Knox would be on Tour. He doesn’t miss inside of eight feet," said Kevin Kisner.

Jim Furyk: "[He] could beat half the field who made the cut."

What does Steve Stricker think, someone regarded as one of the best putters of all time?

"He never misread a putt," he said of the time they played together.

Knox's time as a marker came to an end ahead of the 2022 edition, and it sounds as though he could make himself busier than Phil Kenyon during Masters week if he wanted to.

So, what happens now if there's an odd number of players making it through to the weekend? Who do the players watch closely for a few tips?

That honor went to Michael McDermott, who made his debut as the Masters marker in 2023, and returned in 2025 to play with Tom Kim in the first pairing of Saturday's third round.

There was a lovely moment in 2023, when Knox and McDermott shared a couple of jokes before the new marker teed off.

Knox, wearing his Green Jacket of course, then returned to watching the action, no doubt reminding a few patrons that he once got the better of McIlroy and a fair few others, and that he did once shoot 61 off the member's tees.

Well, you would, wouldn't you?