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(Editor’s note: AmateurGolf.com and Golfweek have teamed up to cover the amateur game from top to bottom.)
Amateurs have always held a special place in the history of The Masters, in part because one of the founders of Augusta National Golf Club, the immortal Bobby Jones, is regarded as the greatest amateur of all time.
The amateurs who qualify for The Masters stay in the clubhouse during the week, attend the opening dinner and play the first two rounds with former champions.
While no amateur has won The Masters, Frank Stranahan tied for second in 1947, two shots behind Jimmy Demaret and Ken Venturi held a four-shot lead going into the final round only to finish second, one stroke behind champion Jackie Burke, Jr.. Augusta member Charlie Coe played in The Masters 19 times as an amateur and finished in the top 25 on nine occasions, including 1961, when he tied for second.
Ryan Moore, winner of the NCAA Championship, the US Amateur, US Public Links and Western Amateur in 2004, was the last amateur to finish in the top 20 at Augusta, tying for 13th in 2005.
After the pandemic limited the number of amateurs in last year’s field to just three, the list of participants has doubled this year. Austin Greaser, Stewart Hagestad, Aaron Jarvis, Keita Nakajima, James Piot and Laird Shepherd will all be aiming to win the prestigious Silver Cup, awarded each year to the low amateur in the field.
Hailing from the United States, England, Japan and for the first time ever, the Cayman Islands, all amateurs took their own distinctive paths to Augusta National.
Here’s a look at the six amateurs who will be competing for this year’s Silver Cup: