Richard Bland To Make PGA Tour Debut

Richard Bland will make his full PGA Tour debut this week at the Valero Texas Open, where he is playing on a sponsor exemption. Despite his heroics at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play, where he was defeated by Dustin Johnson in the round of 16, the Englishman needs a win to secure a place in the Masters. 

Whilst this will be Bland's PGA Tour debut, he has made five Major championship appearances; which are not organised or governed by the Tour. His best finish came in the 2017 Open Championship where he finished T22; twelve strokes behind the winner, Jordan Spieth.

The Englishman put the golfing world on alert last year when he became the oldest 36-hole leader in the history of the US Open. The then-48-year-old opened with rounds of 70 and 67 to share the top spot with Russell Henley. The weekend proved not the be kind with Bland ultimately slipping to a T50 finish. The popular journeyman was riding the crest of a wave after tasting his first DP World Tour success in what was his 478th start at the Belfry just a month prior.

Whilst Bland may not have progressed far enough last week to secure his spot at Augusta, he wasn't downbeat about his performance. Speaking with the Golf Channel, he said: “I would have certainly liked to have got through today to give myself a really good chance at Augusta and make the top 50, it looks like I’m going to just miss out. I needed to beat DJ this morning. It wasn’t to be.

“When I have my best stuff, and I don’t feel like I had my best stuff this week, I can play against these guys,” Bland said. “I can walk away with my head held high. I’m guessing no one was really expecting a 49-year-old rookie to get through the group stages but I did.” Golf romancers will inevitably unite in the hope of a victory in Texas so that Bland does not join the growing list of names missing the Masters.