Sports
Nine Big-Name Golfers Who Will Miss The Masters This Year
We are edging ever closer to Major season in golf.
The Players Championship generally heralds the start of big tournament season, with the event in Florida often described as the fifth Major in stature if not name.
The Players Championship will get underway on March 12, with the first Major of the year to follow just a month later – the Masters.
Won last year by Rory McIlroy, to complete the career grand Slam he had been chasing for years, the Masters is the biggest individual golf tournament in the calendar, played at Augusta National every single year.
It is the tournament everyone in golf wants to be a part of, but there are some big-name players who are currently going to miss out on this year’s tournament.
There are a strict set of rules for competing at Augusta each year, with players needing to meet certain criteria to be able to play.
Here is a rundown of how players can qualify to play at the Masters each year, with the length of time people who meet those criteria in brackets.
- Masters champions (lifetime)
- U.S. Open champions (five years)
- Open champions (five years)
- PGA champion (five years)
- Players champion (three years)
- Current Olympic gold medalist (one year)
- Current U.S. Amateur champion and runner-up (one year)
- Current British Amateur champion (one year)
- Current Asia-Pacific Amateur champion (one year)
- Current Latin America Amateur champion (one year)
- Current U.S. Mid-Amateur champion (one year)
- Current NCAA Division I Men’s Individual champion (one year)
- First 12 players, including ties, in the previous year’s Masters
- First 4 players, including ties, in the previous year’s U.S. Open
- First 4 players, including ties, in the previous year’s Open Championship
- First 4 players, including ties, in the previous year’s PGA Championship
- Individual winners of PGA Tour events that award a full-point allocation applied to the season-ending Tour Championship
- Those qualifying and eligible for the previous year’s season-ending Tour Championship
- Current Scottish Open Champion (One year)
- Current Spanish Open Champion (One year)
- Current Japan Open Champion (One year)
- Current Hong Kong Open Champion (One year)
- Current Australian Open Champion (One year)
- Current South African Open Champion (One year)
- 50 leaders on the final Official World Golf Ranking for the previous calendar year
- 50 leaders on the Official World Golf Ranking published during the week prior to the current Masters
That can be a lot of players, but obviously, people at the top of the game like McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler will appear on multiple lists, which will bring the number of different players down.
There are plenty of ranking points up for grabs between now and the tournament starting on April 9 and there are a number of high-profile players who need to secure some points to be in with a shout of playing at August this year.
Here GIVEMESPORT takes a look at some of the names missing out currently.
9
Will Zalatoris
The American has finished in the top ten in three of the four Masters tournaments he has played, clearly enjoying Augusta National, although he did miss the cut for the first time playing there in 2025.
Zalatoris has been beset by injuries in recent seasons and currently finds himself down in 268th place on the Official World Golf Rankings.
Time is running out for him to secure a place and it looks unlikely that he will be there this year.
8
Rickie Fowler
Fowler is still in with a chance of making it to Augusta, as he is ranked 67th in the OWGR at the moment and with a few tournaments in order to boost that ranking before the Masters begins – starting with the Arnold Palmer Invitational this weekend.
The American has only actually played in one of the last five Masters tournaments, so while a big name it may not come as a huge surprise if he does not make it this time around too/
7
Billy Horschel
Does not always have the best of times round Augusta National, but is normally in the field, so it would be a surprise not to see him there.
The American has played nine of the last 11 Masters tournaments, although his best finish was tied for 17th in 2016.
He is 84th in the OWGR and not too far away from the top 50 and what would be qualification.
6
Christiaan Bezuidenhout
Has been a regular in the Majors since coming onto the scene in 2020, playing 19 of the 23 Major tournaments in that time. But he will be missing this year unless he can pick up enough points in the last few tournaments before it gets underway in April.
The South African is currently sitting in 93rd place in the OWGR as he attempts to make the Augusta field for the fifth time in his career.
5
Sahith Theegala
Only really started becoming a regular on the Majors circuit in 2023, finishing ninth in that year’s Masters and then tied 12th in the PGA Championship in 2024.
The 28-year-old has only missed two of the 12 Majors from 2023 to 2025 but is in danger of starting this season without a place in the Masters field with an OWGR of 97 currently.
4
Tony Finau
Another big-name American player who is not in the field for the Masters this year yet.
Finau has dropped down the ranking and now finds himself in 101st position and in danger of missing out on a Major for the first time since 2017. He has played in every Major tournament that has been played in the last eight years.
He’s finished in the top ten at the Masters on three occasions, with eight other top ten finishes in Major tournaments to boot. Missing out would be a huge shock.
3
Tom Kim
The 23-year-old was seen as one of the rising stars of the game, but he has fallen down the rankings since a career high of 11 at the end of 2023.
He has played all of the Major tournaments in the last three years, but without an exemption and in 118th place in the OWGR he is in danger of missing out on the Masters next month.
2
Louis Oosthuizen
What a player he has been during his career. Playing on the LIV Golf tour now, his Major career does look to be over, but he has some pedigree in the big tournaments over the years.
The South African won the Open Championship in 2010 and came oh so close to winning the Masters in 2012, beaten in a play-off by Bubba Watson. Has five other second-place finishes in Majors and two third places too.
1
Matthieu Pavon
The Frenchman has been a Majors regular for the last two seasons, playing in every single one in 2024 and 2025, although his record is not great with a fifth-place finish at one US Open and a tied 12th at the 2024 Masters.
He will miss this year’s Augusta National event with and OWGR of 254. That will take some effort to improve over the next month to get in.
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Legends such as Sir Nick Faldo, Jack Nicklaus, and, of course, Tiger Woods, all make the cut.
Tottenham are showing interest in a Premier League striker this summer, according to TeamTalk, as focus shifts to potential signings up front.
The change in direction follows the Lilywhites bolstering their defence, with three signings already confirmed to help tighten up a leaky backline for next season.
The midfield is a problem area, with Sandro Tonali and Mateus Fernandes viewed as ideal potential candidates to fill the void, and then there’s the forward areas.
Tottenham are keen on wingers, with Cody Gakpo and Savinho emerging as options, but they may not be the only arrivals in the forward areas.
Strikers are being considered, and there’s a World Cup ace on the club’s radar.
Tottenham Linked With Brian Brobbey Transfer
As links continue to emerge over potential transfer options, TeamTalk reports that Sunderland and Netherlands striker Brian Brobbey is being monitored by Tottenham.
The report claims that Spurs have been tracking the 24-year-old before he made the move to the Black Cats, and retain an interest in him to this day.
The former Ajax star, who is ‘an absolute freak of a number nine’ according to one analyst on X, is attracting interest beyond North London as well, however, as Manchester United, Chelsea, and Aston Villa have all been credited with admiration for the striker.
Brobbey, who scored seven goals in 31 appearances last season, is under contract at Sunderland until 2029, and the club currently has no interest in facilitating a sale just one-year on from signing him.
There is no price set on the centre-forward, though the report does suggest that an offer could yet test their resolve in the market.
It remains to be seen whether any club will step forward, with his World Cup performance so far suggesting that he has plenty more to offer in the future.
Ronald Koeman handed Brobbey his first start in the tournament against Sweden, where he bagged two goals and ran the defence ragged with his relentless physical ability, and showed why he has been described as “excellent”.
It showed exactly what Tottenham could have, and what the side are currently lacking in the forward areas.
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Tottenham Need Striker Presence
Tottenham have lacked a lot of things in the past few seasons, but since the exit of Harry Kane, the lack of presence up front has been noticeable.
Dominic Solanke was signed as the replacement, but a mixture of injuries and just a general lack of impact means he is still trying to get his Spurs career off the ground.
Richarlison is inconsistent at best. He can put himself about, but rarely in a way that will hold up the ball and bring others into play like Roberto De Zerbi would want.
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So, therefore, a move in the transfer market for someone who does all of that makes total sense. Brobbey has his flaws, and would certainly be a work in progress, but he has shown good glimpses in the past six months of what he can do.
Whether he’d be the perfect fit for what Tottenham would want right now remains to be seen. But he would certainly add something the team has been lacking.
Police bodycam footage has emerged showing the moment retired UFC legend Dustin Poirier was arrested at an airport. It makes for concerning viewing.
Former interim lightweight champion Poirier was beloved for his fan-friendly style in the Octagon during his career, but has now hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The 37-year-old was taken into custody by police in Georgia on Sunday evening and later charged with public drunkenness. A clip had already emerged of Poirier wrestling with fans at a bar in the hours before his arrest, but the new footage shows just how badly things escalated shortly afterwards.
What Dustin Poirier Did Before Getting Arrested at an Airport
The full story of exactly what led to the charges against Poirier has become clear after the Atlanta Police Department released bodycam video of his arrest at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
After apparently being removed from a flight due to his being intoxicated, ‘The Diamond’ became agitated to the point that airline staff called for police assistance at the gate.
Shockingly, Poirier then proceeded to challenge the officer to a fight as he fumed:
“Let’s go big dog.”What’s up? Bunch of hoes. Let’s go. Let’s go. Yeah, pull me off the plane. All my boys went to the f****** crib. Now what the f***”
The officer immediately recognised the fighter as he asked: “Are you Dustin Poirier?”
The Louisiana native then doubled down on his desire to fight the officer, while also threatening other airport staff nearby.
“Man, f*** you, bro,” Poirier said. “Man, f*** her and f*** her. I’ll fight you right now. I’ll go with you right now. Let’s go. Let’s go. Tell them. Tell them. It’s going to be bad. It’s going to be bad, my (expletive). What’s up? You want to fight. You want to fight?”
The UFC star even tried to square up to the arresting officer with his fists up. At this point, the officer appeared to reach for his tazer to subdue Poirier, although he never deployed it as Dustin eventually calmed down.
As he was led away in handcuffs, Poirier even asked the arresting officer for a fist bump, insisting, “You did a great job, you did what you could.”
Poirier Facing Jail Over Airport Incident
Poirier was formally charged with the offence during a court hearing on Monday morning. If found guilty, he faces up to a year behind bars, together with a $1,000 fine.
In the aftermath of his arrest, Poirier issued a brief seven-word statement in which he confirmed he was “working on himself” in an effort to get his personal life under control.
The veteran fighter has been open about his struggles to adjust to life following retirement from the UFC. After leaving his gloves in the cage after his loss to Max Holloway at UFC 318 last July, Poirier has previously stated that he felt like a part of him “had died” since walking away from competition.
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In their second match of the 2026 World Cup, England were held to a goalless draw by Ghana in Boston, a result that nonetheless keeps Thomas Tuchel’s side top of Group L following their opening 4-2 win over Croatia.
Jude Bellingham marked the occasion by becoming the youngest England player to reach 50 caps, though he was unable to inspire a breakthrough against a Ghana side happy to sit deep and frustrate their opponents.
But as half-time was called, following a half in which the Three Lions failed to register a shot on target, a foul-mouthed incident involving Bellingham took place, one that required the intervention of several players and staff from both sides, before things had the chance to escalate further.
Jude Bellingham and Carlos Queiroz Clash at Half-Time
It all stemmed from a foul in which Bellingham caught Jerome Opoku late, with tempers boiling over moments after the referee’s whistle for the interval.
Bellingham looked to be exchanging expletives with former Premier League right back John Painsil, one of Carlos Queiroz’s assistants, before Queiroz himself got involved, pursuing Bellingham as Morgan Rogers pulled the Real Madrid man away.
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The former Arsenal midfielder was denied the chance to play in Ghana’s World Cup opener last week due to his upcoming court case.
Players and coaching staff continued arguing as they made their way across the pitch and towards the tunnel, though no cards were issued and calm had been restored by the restart. Watch what happened below:
After the match Bellingham was eager to downplay his role in the incident. “It was just when I made a silly tackle, to be honest,” he said.
“I was trying to try to win the ball, and I followed through a little bit and caught the lad. I spoke to him after, and then their bench jumped up trying to get me a yellow card.”
He also offered a nod of respect towards the opposing dugout, adding: “I think their manager [Queiroz] I just recognised him. He’s obviously the one who used to be at Manchester United, so great respect, and nothing but a competitive edge for both of us.”
Queiroz Reveals his Thoughts on Bellingham Incident
After Thomas Tuchel insisted that the issue was just a matter of Bellingham standing up for himself, Queiroz was clear on what had actually irritated him, pointing to Bellingham’s language rather than anything to do with Bellingham’s challenge on his player.
The 22-year-old is no stranger to his language getting him in trouble after being sent off for verbal abuse when representing Real Madrid in February.
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“He had a bad reaction with some bad names and that’s why the story started,” the Ghana boss said, before elaborating further: “He swears and that created a bit more tension. But it’s just football – he had one word that carried a bit of fire but we are professionals and we were able to cool down. This isn’t dancing where you wear tuxedos,” per Ed Aarons of The Guardian.
England end their group stage campaign against Panama on Sunday, while Ghana face Croatia.
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