Bob MacIntyre will become the 27th Scottish golfer in history – and the first from Glencruitten – to compete in the Masters at Augusta next week after retaining his place inside the world’s top-50.
A thrilling run to the last-16 of the WGC Matchplay in Austin, Texas, helped the 24-year-old from Oban remain at No 44 and secure an invite to one of the most prestigious sporting events in the world.
MacIntyre will be full of confidence after the best performance so far of his American trip. He progressed to the knockout stages from a group that included the world No 1 Dustin Johnson and hit the shot of the week with an incredible 371-yard drive to less than three feet on the par-4 18th.
“Would have been good to go a couple more rounds but it was a brilliant week at #DellMatchplay and thanks to everyone as always for all the support,” MacIntyre tweeted on Sunday. “The American road trip continues.”
MacIntyre is one of three Scots in the field at Augusta, alongside PGA Tour regular Martin Laird and the 1988 Masters champion Sandy Lyle. The tournament begins on April 8 and every shot of MacIntyre’s can be watched live online on the Masters website.
The 8.88 ranking points that MacIntyre earned last week in Austin will also likely be enough to earn him a place in the next two majors. He has already effectively qualified for the US PGA Championship as he will not drop outside the top-100 before then, and he would have to be very unlucky with other results not to be in the top-60 for the first US Open cut-off on May 24.
MacIntyre’s place at this summer’s Open at Royal St George’s in Kent was already secured long ago when he finished tied for sixth on his debut at Royal Portrush in 2019.
