This article is part of our Weekly PGA Recap series.
Ian Poulter wasn't in the Masters, then he was, then he wasn't.
Now, he is.
Poulter endured a tumultuous and agonizing 10 days' worth of emotions to win the Houston Open on Sunday and, yes, finally, qualify for Augusta at the very last minute.
The 42-year-old Englishman defeated 23-year-old up-and-comer Beau Hossler with a par on the first playoff hole to secure the final Masters berth, his first since 2016.
The outcome put a happy ending on a bizarre storyline that began the week before at the WGC-Match Play. Without rehashing what is now common knowledge among golf fans, Poulter admitted to feeling "deflated," when he had the Masters rug pulled out from under him – he was told he had qualified but he hadn't.
"Last week was painful," Poulter told reporters at the Golf Club of Houston. "To come here this week, I was tired. I was frustrated on Thursday. ... I was patient. I waited my time. And this is amazing."
Yes, amazing. Poulter had to win Houston to get in and, remarkably, he did. It was remarkable not only because it's hard to win a golf tournament at any time, much less when you absolutely have to, but because Poulter hadn't won anywhere in the world in six years and hadn't ever won a stroke-play event in the United States.
But now he's back to No. 29 in the world, is in the Masters, the PGA and the WGC-Bridgestone, and he has a Tour card for the
Ian Poulter wasn't in the Masters, then he was, then he wasn't.
Now, he is.
Poulter endured a tumultuous and agonizing 10 days' worth of emotions to win the Houston Open on Sunday and, yes, finally, qualify for Augusta at the very last minute.
The 42-year-old Englishman defeated 23-year-old up-and-comer Beau Hossler with a par on the first playoff hole to secure the final Masters berth, his first since 2016.
The outcome put a happy ending on a bizarre storyline that began the week before at the WGC-Match Play. Without rehashing what is now common knowledge among golf fans, Poulter admitted to feeling "deflated," when he had the Masters rug pulled out from under him – he was told he had qualified but he hadn't.
"Last week was painful," Poulter told reporters at the Golf Club of Houston. "To come here this week, I was tired. I was frustrated on Thursday. ... I was patient. I waited my time. And this is amazing."
Yes, amazing. Poulter had to win Houston to get in and, remarkably, he did. It was remarkable not only because it's hard to win a golf tournament at any time, much less when you absolutely have to, but because Poulter hadn't won anywhere in the world in six years and hadn't ever won a stroke-play event in the United States.
But now he's back to No. 29 in the world, is in the Masters, the PGA and the WGC-Bridgestone, and he has a Tour card for the next two and a half years. Oh, and he'll probably frustrate U.S. golf fans this fall, when he'll likely be on the European Ryder Cup team.
But for now, the Masters. So what are Poulter's chances at Augusta, where he has a terrific track record with three top-10s and seven top-25s? He's obviously playing well, but we have to wonder what he has left in the tank after the emotional roller coaster of the past two tournaments. When you put every ounce of energy into reaching the Masters, an emotional letdown, however unintended, is entirely understandable.
So there are two ways to go this week with Poulter, who likely will have a very favorable price when he's added to the DFS games. His numbers at Houston – third in strokes gained: approach, fourth in SG tee to green and 15th in SG putting, plus only four bogeys all week – are a blueprint for Masters success. Even beyond this week, Poulter becomes an important player in fantasy golf. He's a top-30 golfer whose prices may not reflect that.
Whether Poulter can summon more energy this week, we're not sure. But we do know he'll be around for all the big tournaments the rest of the season.
Jordan Spieth
Apologies to Poulter, but the biggest Masters-related development of the week was Spieth, who tied for third.
He led the field in both strokes gained: tee to green and approach. While he tied for 69th in strokes gained: putting, Spieth did make more putts this week than he had in months. T69 won't get it done at Augusta, but almost of all that poor standing was "earned" when he lost a whopping four strokes to the field in the third round alone. And Spieth still shot a 1-under 71 on Saturday.
Spieth showed enough improvement over the other three days, including Sunday, to believe that if the improvement continues into next week, he'll be a factor for the Green Jacket.
MONDAY BACKSPIN
Phil Mickelson
Oh, Phil. Mickelson was rolling along in the second round, certainly in the mix, when he registered one of his patented, soul-crushing triple bogeys. Mickelson wound up with two doubles and two triples on the week – with only one "regular" bogey – more than enough to torpedo his chances. Still, Mickelson wound up tied for 24th. We haven't seen stellar results his last two tournaments, but it should surprise no one if Mickelson is contending come Sunday afternoon.
Rickie Fowler
Oh, Rickie. Fowler has been playing sub-par for a couple of months now, but he looked much better through two rounds in Houston, to the point that you could see him making noise at the Masters. Then he fell apart with a late triple on Saturday, and that was that. Fowler continued down the leaderboard into a tie for 43rd. Sure, someone with Fowler's stellar short game can make a dent at Augusta. But it's not going to happen for Fowler this week.
Justin Rose
Rose never got it going on the weekend and wound up in a tie for 52nd. With so many worldwide top-10s over the past six months, Rose is the Masters pick of many golf observers. We agree that the two-time Augusta runner-up merits consideration, and his Houston result should not impact that.
Daniel Berger
Berger was one of the 20 golfers who got a gift late Friday, when Bobby Gates missed a three-footer to bring all those golfers at 3-under inside the cut line. Berger made the most of that second chance, shooting a pair of 4-under 68s on the weekend to climb to T18. Berger has played pretty well this year, albeit while not contending for a title, plus he's two-for-two in good finishes at the Masters.
Shubhankar Sharma
After bursting onto the American golf scene with a top-10 at the WGC-Mexico, Sharma has come down to earth with a poor showing at the Match Play and a missed cut at Houston. Don't get caught up in the hype. The Masters rookie will have a very hard time just reaching the weekend.
Beau Hossler
Hossler had victory in his grasp until Poulter sank a 20-footer on 18 to force a playoff, which Hossler lost with a triple bogey on the first hole. A brutal way to lose, when your first PGA Tour title and a Masters berth was on the line. We liked Hossler coming into the week – he was a RotoWire value pick – and we like him even more now. Sure, his DFS price will go up but not enough right away to dissuade us in future tournaments. Hossler is now inside the top-100 in the OWGR, at No. 88.
Emiliano Grillo
After winning the Rookie of the Year, Grillo suffered through the dreaded sophomore slump. Now in his third season, Grillo is finding his way again. He tied for third with Spieth, giving him a third top-10 this season, which matched the total from his rookie season. He's 11-for-11 in cuts. Grillo didn't get to the Masters, but he's back up to No. 69 in the world and seems headed for a return to the top-50.
Sam Ryder
Ryder was arguably the second best golfer on the Web.com Tour last season before graduating to the PGA Tour. He began the fall season with four straight trunk-slams and didn't have anything better than a T50 in his first 11 starts – just horrible. So of course Ryder tied for fifth in Houston. We were surprised he was so bad coming out of the gate. This top-10 may be an aberration, but we wouldn't be surprised with a few more top-25s and a finish inside the top-125 in the FedEx Cup standings. Ryder's great week moved him to No. 132.
Sam Burns
Burns had a couple of great Florida tournaments to get on the radar of DFS players. He didn't qualify for Houston, so he went back to the Web.com Tour. Good move. Burns won the Savannah Golf Championship on Sunday. It won't officially get him into more PGA Tour events, but it could lead to more sponsor's exemptions and, down the road, his Tour card for next season. And winning even on the secondary tour will help his confidence when he gets back on the main tour. Burns has climbed from No. 881 in the OWGR at the start of the season to No. 165 in just three months.
