Augusta National Golf Club introduced Thursday that it prolonged a pair of special invitations to the 2023 Masters which were accepted by Gordon Sargent, the 2022 NCAA champion, and Japanese golfer Kazuki Higa. This bumps the Masters field to 80 golfers with three months till the match.
“The Masters Tournament prioritizes opportunities to elevate both amateur and professional golf around the world,” Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley mentioned in an announcement. “Thus, we have extended invitations to two deserving players not otherwise qualified. Whether on the international stage or at the elite amateur level, each player has showcased their talent in the past year. We look forward to hosting them at Augusta National in April.”
Sargent, a 19-year-old sophomore at Vanderbilt who was named SEC Freshman of the Year in 2022, is presently ranked No. 3 within the World Amateur Golf Rankings and projects well at the PGA Tour level due to his swing pace and size off the tee. He is the primary novice to obtain and settle for a special invitation to the Masters since 2000 and the sixth novice becoming a member of the field in 2023.
Though the Masters doesn’t usually invite the NCAA champion to play in its occasion — though the U.S. Amateur winner and runner-up are each invited — it has made special exemptions previously for various totally different gamers. If such exemptions are made, they’re usually doled out nearer to the match in April.
Higa is much less well-known, however he has compiled six wins on the Japan Golf Tour and is ranked No. 68 on the earth. He additionally gained the Japan Golf Tour’s order of benefit in 2022. Higa has performed in a single main championship earlier than, lacking the reduce at The Open Championship final July at St. Andrews by 5 strokes.
It’s tough to not distinction this news of the Masters spreading invitations to international gamers and amateurs with its current assertion concerning the eligibility of golfers taking part in for LIV Golf. Such golfers are nonetheless invited to the Masters whereas eligible, but it surely’s clear that Augusta National prefers one path over the opposite.
Professional golfers will nonetheless have the opportunity to qualify for the Masters the subsequent three months by both profitable a PGA Tour occasion or taking part in their manner inside the highest 50 within the Official World Golf Rankings by the week earlier than the match.