Crossword Genius

Spoils a masterly piece of verse (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

mars

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'spoils' is the definition.
('mar' can be a synonym of 'spoil')

'a masterly piece of verse' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'a' is found in the answer.
'piece' could be 'r' (abbreviation for Rook) and 'r' is found in the answer.
The remaining letters 'ms' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This may be the basis of clue (or it may be nonsense).

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for mars that I've seen before include "Where Beagle 2 was landed on 25 December 2003" , "Injures - god of war" , "RS [RED STAR] (not technically)" , "Spoils - planet" , "blights" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.