Hatton earns career-best major result with T3 finish at Masters, guarantees return trip in 2027

AUGUSTA, Ga. – An eagle hole-out from 131 yards. Four consecutive birdies on the back nine. Some engraved crystal for his trophy case. His best-result ever at Augusta National – and, for that matter, in any major. And a guaranteed invite to the 2027 Masters when he’ll be a first-time dad. 

All in all, Sunday’s final round was a very productive day for Tyrrell Hatton, who continues to show signs that a major title is getting closer to his grasp. 

The Legion XIII star shot his second 6-under 66 of the week to finish at 10 under and a tie for third, two shots behind winner Rory McIlroy. It’s his second top-10 finish in his last three Masters starts – and his career-best finish in any of his 43 major starts, bettering his tie for fourth at last year’s U.S. Open. 

“Happy with the round that I put together in the end,” Hatton said. “… Happy that I’ve kind of guaranteed a spot here for next year.” 

Indeed he did, since top 12 and ties at the Masters receive an automatic invite to next year. It’s the same exemption he earned for last year’s Masters after finishing tied for 9th in 2024.

But for the longest time Sunday, there was the slightest chance of a green jacket, or at least a playoff for one. Hatton finished well ahead of the final groups, and he sat as the clubhouse leader for nearly 90 minutes until Scottie Scheffler finished at 11 under. 

Still, Hatton was thrilled to make some back-nine noise to ensure his return for 2027. He started slowly with a bogey at the 10th, but birdied the par-5 13th, par-4 14th, par-5 15th and par-3 16th to zoom into contention. He also made a couple of clutch-saving par putts at 11 and 17 to keep his spot on the leaderboard. 

Foremost on his mind was returning next year as a dad, watching his daughter wear a miniature Masters caddie jumpsuit. 

“To be honest, most of the back nine I just wanted to make birdies because my wife is due in six weeks and I was thinking about it would be cool to come back next year and our little girl will be pretty much 11 months,” Hatton said. 

“It would be amazing to see her in a boiler suit. Obviously, you see all the other dads and their families and the little ones in boiler suits is so cute. 

“I wanted to experience that. Definitely a motivation for me to try and make some birdies and happy I managed to do that. It was cool.” 

Even before his back-nine flurry, Hatton ignited the patrons by holing out with his second shot at the par-4 seventh. He followed his eagle with a birdie at the par-5 eighth. 

Each eagle made at the Masters comes with an award – a pair of engraved crystal glasses. It’s Hatton’s third career eagle at Augusta National. 

Hatton will also receive an additional award for shooting the day’s low score (with Keegan Bradley and Gary Woodland) – an engraved crystal vase. 

“The first thing is I shouted ‘crystal’ – obviously happy to make eagle,” Hatton said. “That’s a huge bonus in the round and helped me get a little bit of momentum.” 

In looking back at the week, Hatton will fondly remember not only Sunday’s 66 but also his second-round 66 in which he hit all 18 greens in regulation, just the third player in the last 30 years to achieve that feat.

If he’s playing the what-if game, though, he could then look at the other two rounds – an opening 2-over 74 and a third-round even-par 72, the latter coming on a day in which the field scoring average was 70.630, lowest ever for the third round at any Masters. 

“I actually played really good yesterday; just didn't hole a putt,” Hatton said. “Unfortunately for me throughout the years here, that's generally been a thing. I've just not holed that many putts. I seem to struggle with the speed, whether that be you go from one extreme where you get a street-fast putt and then you get the other way where it's uphill and they can be unbelievably slow. 

“It's hard to judge. That's probably the next step for me round here, would be to just have four really good days on the greens. I feel like there was a lot of good stuff with my long game in the end, and although the scores on Thursday and Saturday maybe didn't show it, there was a lot of good shots. 

“As I said, Thursday afternoon played really tough. I played well on Saturday. Just didn't hole putts. So, I'm happy with my score Friday and Sunday. It's taken me to double digits now in rounds in the 60s I think. It was nice to shoot two good scores.” 

It was definitely nice to be in the mix again at a major. That’s two top-5s in his last three major starts; he also finished top-20 in the Masters and Open Championship last year. 

Early in his career, Hatton produced five top-10s in a stretch of 14 major starts before suffering a four-year lull from 2020-23. Now with more experience and a better feel for Augusta National, the future looks brighter than ever. 

“My major record would have been pretty abysmal up to that point, if I'm honest,” Hatton said. “I try not to treat them any differently. Still go out there every day and every round, every shot and try the best I can. 

“Obviously, that's all I can do. Maybe I would need to find a way of preparing a little bit better, whether that be more putting or something throughout the early part of the week just to get a bit more ready.”

Top image: Legion XIII star Tyrrell Hatton competing at the 2026 Masters. (Photo by Joel Marklund/Augusta National Golf Club)