Texas golfers had a successful weekend on the big stage as the 87th Masters Tournament pushed through severe weather conditions to deliver an exciting finish on Sunday.
While Will Zalatoris had to withdraw due to a back injury that will cause him to miss the rest of the season, four Texas golfers finished in the top 10 of the tournament, including Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed, Scottie Scheffler, and Sahith Theegala, as many competitors made late rallies to move up the leaderboard.
Spieth tied for fourth at seven under par after shooting an impressive six-under in the final round. He had a chance to at least pull into a tie for second on the last hole, but his tee shot ended up in a bunker. He ultimately would bogey.
Reed shot a four-under final round to tie Spieth and Russell Henley for fourth place. He entered the final round at three-under but made eight birdies on the day to move up the board.
Theegala finished ninth at five under par in his first Masters. The 24-year-old had a rocky start, shooting even par over the first three rounds but recovered with a 67 (-5) over the final 18 holes.
Scheffler, last year’s champion, tied for 10th at four under par with a two-under final round. He had several chances to improve his score on the last day but missed a few crucial putts that kept him from making a late surge.
Texas A&M’s Sam Bennett competed in the Masters as an amateur, meaning he could not take home any prize money. He tied with Justin Rose, Hideki Matsuyama, and a few others for 16th place at two under par and became the first amateur to finish in the top 20 since 2005.
The weather was a big story throughout the first few days of the Masters, as massive trees fell near the 17th hole Friday. Play was suspended during the second and third rounds, forcing many participants to play more than one round on Sunday.
Brooks Koepka entered Sunday with a four-stroke lead at 11 under par and held a two-stroke lead over Jon Rahm entering the final round. However, Koepka did not play well Sunday and faltered as other players trimmed his lead to make things interesting down the stretch.
Koepka shot a 75 (+3) to finish the tournament at eight under par, tied for second place with Phil Mickelson. Mickelson’s final round was the best he has ever shot in one round at Augusta as he birdied five of the last nine holes to finish with a 65 (-7).
On the other hand, Rahm shot a three under par over the final 18 holes to win the Masters at -12, clinching the tournament by taking a five-stroke lead with a birdie on the 14th hole. He recorded par on the four remaining holes to maintain his steady distance from the rest of the field.
According to ESPN, the win makes Rahm the No.1 golfer in the world rankings. It is his first win at the Masters and his second career major win. Rahm also won the 2021 U.S. Open.