7 Big Names Missing The 2022 Masters

Rickie and Phil won't be playing this year

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 29 March 2022

The Masters has the smallest field of any of golf’s Major tournaments. With fewer than 100 teeing it up at Augusta National each year, it’s inevitable that a selection of notable players will miss out.

At the time of writing, 91 invites have been sent out with a further 16 former champions not playing.

Tiger Woods still may not be fit enough to make a start at this year’s Masters although rumours abound he will be there and is making a concerted effort to return for the week. Aside from Tiger, we’ve looked at the current invite list and noted some big-name absences. Playing this year’s Masters isn't going to happen for:

Phil Mickelson

Following his explosive comments on the PGA Tour and Saudi-involvement in golf, Phil Mickelson has said he’s taking a break from the game. There have been suggestions that Phil was encouraged not to attend the year's first Major. The 51-year-old is a six-time Major champion with three Masters titles to his name - 2004, 2006 and 2010.

Jason Day

Despite finishing in a tie for third in the Farmers Insurance Open at the end of January, Jason Day has slipped right down the World Ranking and is currently outside the top-100.

Day won the 2015 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits and climbed to World Number 1 later in the season. He has won 12 times on the PGA Tour, most recently the Wells Fargo Championship of 2018.

The Australian was tied for second in the 2011 Masters won by Charl Schwartzel and was third in 2013. He played in each instalment of the competition between then and last season.

Martin Kaymer

The German is another former World Number 1 who will not be at Augusta this year. Martin Kaymer won the 2010 PGA Championship and spent eight weeks as the World’s top-ranked player in 2011. He won a second Major at the 2014 U.S. Open.

Kaymer has won 11 times on the European Tour and was 2014 Players Champion on the PGA Tour.

He played in every Masters from 2008 to 2019 but has not enjoyed a good record. His best finish was a tie for 16th in 2017.

Kaymer is currently down at 156th on the Official World Golf Ranking and hasn’t recorded a top-10 finish since the BMW International Open of last June.

Ian Poulter

European Ryder Cup talisman Ian Poulter will miss out on this year’s Masters. He’s played at Augusta 16 times in the past and has recorded three top-10 finishes.

Poulter had a chance to scramble in but couldn't get his ranking up sufficiently. He needed to move back into the world's top-50 but is currently 67th.

Henrik Stenson

The Swede who won a thrilling duel against Phil Mickelson to claim the 2016 Open Championship at Royal Troon has endured a poor run of form over the last couple of years and is now down to 232nd on the Official World Golf Ranking.

His Masters exemption from winning The Open is now up and he will miss The Masters for the first time since 2005. The European Ryder Cup captain's best finish at Augusta was a tie for fifth in 2018.

Matt Kuchar

The nine-time PGA Tour winner has been a fixture at The Masters since 2010 (having made his debut as an amateur in 1998) and has often been a factor towards the conclusion of the tournament. Between 2012 and 2017, Kuchar posted four top-10 finishes with a best of tied third in 2012.

But it’s been a tough run for Kuchar in recent months and he’s dropped to 148th on the Official World Golf Ranking. Since last year’s Masters, he’s missed eight cuts and has only one top-10 finish to his name.

Rickie Fowler

Rickie Fowler, a five-time PGA Tour winner, has long been touted as a potential winner at Augusta and he has three top-10 finishes at Augusta. In 2018 he was runner-up, finishing just a shot behind Patrick Reed.

But Fowler has not been on form and has dropped to 122nd on the Official World Golf Ranking. In 2022, his best finish has been a tie for 42nd in the Honda Classic.

Fergus is Golf Monthly's resident expert on the history of the game and has written extensively on that subject. He has also worked with Golf Monthly to produce a podcast series. Called 18 Majors: The Golf History Show it offers new and in-depth perspectives on some of the most important moments in golf's long history. You can find all the details about it here.

He is a golf obsessive and 1-handicapper. Growing up in the North East of Scotland, golf runs through his veins and his passion for the sport was bolstered during his time at St Andrews university studying history. He went on to earn a post graduate diploma from the London School of Journalism. Fergus has worked for Golf Monthly since 2004 and has written two books on the game; "Great Golf Debates" together with Jezz Ellwood of Golf Monthly and the history section of "The Ultimate Golf Book" together with Neil Tappin , also of Golf Monthly.

Fergus once shanked a ball from just over Granny Clark's Wynd on the 18th of the Old Course that struck the St Andrews Golf Club and rebounded into the Valley of Sin, from where he saved par. Who says there's no golfing god?