The top 12 finishers and ties Sunday at the 89th Masters Tournament automatically qualify for next year's tournament, which for some in the field could be the lone way they get an invitation for 2026.
Three former champions placed in the top 12 (Patrick Reed, Scottie Scheffler and Zach Johnson), while Rory McIlroy's win also qualifies him for as long as he decides to play.
Justin Rose (2nd), Bryson DeChambeau (T5), Sungjae Im (T5), Ludvig Aberg (7th), Corey Conners (T8), Jason Day (T8), Xander Schauffele (T8), Harris English (T12) and Max Homa (T12) are the others who are certain to get invites next year after Sunday's round.
Golfers like DeChambeau and Schaffele also had already qualified thanks to five-year exemptions for major wins.
For golfers like English and Homa, it could be an important qualification as they teeter close to the 50th spot in the Official World Golf Rankings. After struggling this year, Homa entered the tournament ranked 81st in the world while English was 38th.
So far, 33 players are qualified for the 2026 Masters, but some of those are former champions who are not likely to play.
Top 12 in the 2025 Masters Tournament
- 1 Rory McIlroy (-11, won in playoff)
- 2 Justin Rose (-11)
- 3 Patrick Reed (-9)
- 4 Scottie Scheffler (-8)
- T5 Bryson DeChambeau (-7)
- T5 Sungjae Im (-7)
- 7 Ludvig Aberg (-6)
- T8 Corey Conners (-5)
- T8 Jason Day (-5)
- T8 Zach Johnson (-5)
- T8 Xander Schauffele (-5)
- T12 Harris English (-4)
- T12 Max Homa (-4)
Who is qualified for the 2026 Masters as a non-champions?
There are 20 ways to qualify for the 2026 Masters (list below). Here are others who have already qualified because of their performances in previous majors.
Wyndham Clark (2023 U.S. Open Champ)
Matt Fitzpatrick (2022 U.S. Open Champ)
Brian Harman (2023 Open Champ)
Collin Morikawa (2021 Open Champ)
Xander Schauffele (2024 Open Champ, 2024 PGA Champ)
Cameron Smith (2022 Open Champ)
Brooks Koepka (2023 PGA Champ)
Former champions likely to play in 2026 Masters
About half of the former champions qualified in more ways than just prior champion. Here's the complete list of those qualified as past champions.
- Angel Cabrera
- Fred Couples
- Sergio Garcia
- Dustin Johnson
- Zach Johnson
- Rory McIlroy
- Phil Mickelson
- Jose Maria Olazabel
- Jon Rahm
- Patrick Reed
- Scottie Scheffler
- Charl Schwartzel
- Adam Scott
- Jordan Spieth
- Bubba Watson
- Mike Weir
- Danny Willett
How to qualify for the 2026 Masters
This list according to the official Masters website.
- Masters Tournament Champions (Lifetime)
- U.S. Open Champions (Honorary, non-competing after five years)
- The Open Champions (Honorary, non-competing after five years)
- PGA Champions (Honorary, non-competing after five years)
- Winners of the Players Championship (Three years)
- Current Olympic Gold Medalist (One Year)
- Current U.S. Amateur Champion (7-A) (Honorary, ...
