Augusta-Bound
Major champs, rising stars among the nine players in line to earn Masters invites via OWGR
Kevin C. Cox
For nine lucky tour professionals, December truly is the most wonderful time of the year, provided you've snuck into the final end-of-year Official World Golf Ranking top 50 projection.
Over the weekend, OWGR Twitter/X guru Nosferatu released his projection for the final ranking. Why is it such a big deal? Because being in the top 50 in the final OWGR ranking traditionally is a qualifying category for the Masters. And while many inside the top 50 already earned an Augusta invitation via other criteria, those not otherwise exempt will now be in line to play come next April. Nine players in total fit that bill, a list featuring a couple of major champions and a few rising stars in the sport.
Perhaps the most surprising name in the bunch is Jason Day, who is ranked 38th in the world and has played in all but one Masters Tournament between 2011 and 2024. Day, the 2015 PGA champion, made more than $4.1 million on the course last season but failed to pick up a victory, his last coming at the 2023 AT&T Byron Nelson, which earned him a spot in the 2024 Masters. This April, he'll tee it up in the event for the 14th time.
The other major champion in the bunch is Lucas Glover, who enjoyed a career resurgence in 2023 that helped earn him a spot in all four majors in 2024 after he missed all four a year prior for the first time since 2004. Glover tied for 20th in the 2024 Masters, matching his career best finish in the event. This will be his 11th appearance.
Nick Dunlap, Tom Kim and Min Woo Lee were three of the other intriguing names on the list, which can be viewed in full in the tweet below from OWGR Twitter/X guru Nosferatu:
Kim, 22, has already played in two Masters, with T-16 and T-30 showings. Dunlap missed the cut in his debut in 2024, while Lee has finished T-22 or better in two of his first three appearances. Corey Conners has become a Masters regular, appearing seven times already and finishing inside the top 10 three straight years between 2020 and 2022. Denny McCarthy made his first Masters start last year, tying for 45th.
Rounding out the group are Max Greyserman and Rasmus Hojgaard, who will both be making their first career Masters starts in April.
