The 88th Masters at Augusta National Golf Club began on Thursday, and golfers from Texas, especially the Dallas area, have made their mark in the tournament over the years.
For this week’s moments in Dallas sports history, The Dallas Express looks at how some local golfers have fared in the sport’s most renowned tournament.
Scottie Scheffler
Scheffler is one of the two Dallas natives currently playing on the PGA Tour to have won the Masters, defeating Rory McIlroy by three strokes in 2022. He finished tied for 10th in 2023, but the world No.1 is favored to win this year’s title in his fifth appearance in the tournament. He enters Saturday in a three-way tie for first.
Jordan Spieth
Spieth rose to fame after winning the 2015 Masters as a 21-year-old for his first Major victory. The win was his second of the season, and he went on to win five total titles that year, including the U.S. Open and the TOUR Championship. He has finished in the top three at the Masters four other times but missed the cut in his 11th appearance at Augusta.
Bryson DeChambeau
The SMU alum has never won the Masters but has risen to fame due to his personality and golf style and has won a Major (2020 U.S. Open). This will be his eighth Masters appearance, but he has never finished better than 21st at Augusta. He was tied for first place entering play on Saturday.
Ryan Palmer
Palmer is not playing in the 88th Masters but has participated in the event six times. His best finish came in 2011 when he finished 10th.
Tom Hoge
Hoge has played in two Masters but has not fared well. He finished tied for 39th with a 7-over-par in 2022 and followed it by missing last year’s cut with a four-over-par. He is also not participating this year.
Will Zalatoris
Zalatoris is playing in his third Masters and has two top-six finishes. In 2021, he was the runner-up, finishing one stroke behind Hideki Matsuyama, and he finished sixth in 2022 after his best-ever round in the tournament. Through two rounds in 2024, he is tied for 24th with a two-over-par, eight shots off the lead.
Byron Nelson
Nelson became such a golf legend that even an annual tournament bears his name. The Hall-of-Famer ended his illustrious career with 52 PGA Tour wins, including Masters victories in 1937 and 1942. He shot a perfect first round in 1937 and fought off fellow Texan Ralph Guldahl on the tournament’s final day to win his first of five career Majors. He is also one of just 17 golfers to win the tournament in multiple years.
Ben Hogan
Hogan is considered one of golf’s all-time greats and had a hand in establishing several traditions. The Fort Worth native won the Masters in 1952 and 1954 and is credited with starting the annual Champions Dinner tradition and suggesting more limited membership. He now has several awards named after him.
Ralph Guldahl
While Guldahl did lose to Nelson in 1937, he took home the title himself two years later, beating out the legendary Sam Snead to become the second Texan to do so. A plaque on the Nelson Bridge between the 12th and 13th holes at Augusta National now mentions his successful eagle on the 13th hole during his victorious weekend.
Jack Burke Jr.
Burke Jr. win 17 PGA titles but only one Masters. In 1956, he came from eight strokes back to win on the final day through windy conditions that were once described as “the hardest playing conditions we’ve ever had in this Tournament” for a one-stroke victory.
