In 1934, the Masters Tournament was brought to life by two individuals, Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts. Roberts was an investment banker in New York while Jones was an amateur golfer who had just become a grand slam champion. Collaborating with Alister MacKenzie, they redesigned a plant nursery and turned it into what we now know as Augusta National. Since then, the Masters Tournament has had the tradition of inviting the most talented and promising amateur golfers to compete with the best for the major title and many big-name players have actually debuted in the Masters Tournament as amateurs. The list includes Arnold Palmer (1954), Jack Nicklaus (1960), and Tiger Woods (1995).

The tradition will continue this year as well, as invitations have been sent out to amateurs who have been exceptional over the past year. Unfortunately, a budding amateur golfer, Luke Clanton, hasn’t made that list yet.

Clanton has been killing it in the amateur circuit for the past 54 weeks. He is the world no. 1 amateur golfer and 93rd on the OWGR table. And yet, a spot in the 2025 Masters Tournament has not been presented to him. Famed journalist Dan Rapaport shed some light on this issue on social media.

Rapaport shared a picture of Clanton with his tweet on Instagram, which read, “As of now the world’s No. 1 amateur Luke Clanton (and world No. 93) has not been invited to the Masters Tournament. There are 5 ams in the field—including the U.S. Am champ, runner-up and NCAA champ. 2 exempt amateurs turned pro and lost their spot. Clanton won the McCormack Medal but that doesn’t get him in.” And it doesn’t end here.

The caption of the Instagram post read “I’m a bit surprised by this. Augusta National can use a special exemption on whomever they please, and Clanton’s been such a great story in the game this year. With two exempt amateurs already out and Augusta’s rich history with the amateur game, feels like this would’ve been a great use of an invite. Still time?”

With around 15 days left for tee-off, the Masters Tournament officials do have some time before they release the final field. Hopefully, they will send an invitation to Luke Clanton in the coming days. While he didn’t automatically qualify, he has had some PGA Tour starts like the Cognizant Classic and the Valspar Championship.

Clanton has already impressed the fans during his short stint on the PGA Tour. He was close to winning the John Deere Classic and the RSM Classic last year (he tied for second place at the RSM Classic) and yet, the 21-year-old has not accepted his PGA Tour membership yet. Reports state that he can become a full-time member of the PGA Tour only after the NCAA Championship in May. The Masters, hence, would have been a golden opportunity for him.

Top Comment by E. Scott Ruerup

Both of these outstanding young players should be invited

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Debate

Fans also shared their opinions on the situation as they commented on Dan Rapaport’s Instagram, and some of them shared pretty good pointers.

Golf fans demand Luke Clanton’s invitation to Augusta National!

Dan Rapaport may have just started a rally for Luke Clanton, and he has picked up a lot of support along the way. Elaborating on the amateur golfer’s recent record, one fan added, “He 100% should be invited. Body of work (collegiate wins / PGA Tour results) and #1 in WAGR for over 7 months should be enough to justify the invite.”

Clanton does hold an incredible record. In his last 46 events, the 21-year-old has managed 21 top-10 finishes, which include 6 wins. Another fan had a more sarcastic response as they couldn’t believe Clanton had not received an exemption yet. They commented, “Yeah, why would we wanna see one of the best stories of the year in the masters come on guys do the right thing”.

Hey, it’s not just the fans. You see, in January, when the word spread that Nicolai Højgaard and Joaquin Niemann had accepted invitations to compete in the 2025 Masters Tournament, Smylie Kaufman took to his X account and stated: “Luke Clanton next please,” but somehow, it still hasn’t happened.

A few fans believe that Luke Clanton will get a last-minute invite to play in the Green Jacket event. One of them said, “Plenty of time. He will be there,” suggesting that the Masters Tournament officials are waiting for the right time to send him an invite. Another also said, “He will get the last min invite”. There seems to be a common understanding that Clanton will receive a last-minute exemption to play at Augusta National next month. Interestingly, the last week to receive a Masters Tournament exemption has begun today, on March 25, 2025. So Clanton might get his invitation by this weekend.

One of the fans also had another amateur golfer in mind as they recommended “Luke Clanton and Miles Russell….don’t mess this up Augusta”. While Luke Clanton’s achievements have already been explored, Miles Russell has recently come under the radar. The 15-year-old beat Charlie Woods and also got a huge compliment from Tiger Woods’s rival, Phil Mickelson. The veteran said, “It’s going to be fun watching this young lefty’s career!” comparing Russell to himself.

Do you also think that Luke Clanton deserves to play alongside Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler in the 2025 Masters Tournament? Share your views in the comments section.