GOLF
Who are the youngest and oldest players to make the cut at the Augusta Masters?
Guan Tianlang, the Chinese amateur golfer in 2013, and the former Masters champion, the American player Fred Couples in 2023, made the history books.
Augusta National Golf Club officials have implemented a 36-hole cut since 1957, with the low 40 players and ties advancing to the next round. Over the years, there have been several changes in the rules; the most significant change occurred in 2020. This rule is still in effect in 2024, where the low 50 players and ties qualify for the final 36 holes.
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Due to its strict cut policy, the Masters has always had a limited field. For instance, last season, the 88-man field was reduced to 86 after some players withdrew. This made making the cut even more challenging, requiring a high level of play.
The age of a player who makes the cut is essential to seeing the extremes one can reach in pursuing excellence. Therefore, there is a lot of respect for the Chinese golfer Guan Tianlang and the American Fred Couples, considering their age when they made the cut.
Fred Couples 2023
Fred Couples made history at the 2023 Augusta National by becoming the oldest player to make the cut in Masters history at the age of 63. He carded rounds of 71-74 for a 1-over total through 36 holes. Couples secured his place in Augusta National history by playing up for a closing bogey on Saturday morning after the play was suspended on Friday afternoon due to storms.
Couples, the 1992 Masters champion, broke the previous record held by Bernhard Langer in 2020 (63 years, 78 days). On that Saturday morning, Couples was 63 years and 187 days old. He has won 15 times on the PGA TOUR and 14 times on PGA TOUR Champions. He shares the record for making the cut in 23 consecutive Masters appearances between 1983 and 2007 with Gary Player and Tiger Woods.
Couples holds several Masters records for 50-and-older players. He shot an opening-round 66 at the age of 50 in 2010 and carded a second-round 67 at the age of 52 in 2012. The sweet-swinging golfer hails from Seattle, Washington.
Guan Tianlang 2013
The 2013 Masters will always be remembered when Adam Scott won his first Major championship. However, another player made headlines that week - a Chinese amateur named Guan Tianlang. He qualified for the tournament after winning the 2012 Asia Pacific Amateur Championship, and he made history by becoming the youngest player to ever appear in The Masters at just 14 years old. He made the cut and claimed the Silver Cup at Augusta National and finished 58th overall, becoming the youngest player to make a cut in a Major or PGA Tour event.
In 2017, Tianlang joined the golf team at the University of Arizona and continued to show signs of progress, recording the seventh-best overall performance by a Wildcats freshman that year. After his sophomore year, he turned pro in 2020 and began playing on the PGA Tour Series-China and China Tour. Despite the former tour disbanding in 2020, Tianlang has continued to compete in the latter and has achieved some notable results, such as tying for fourth in the 2020 Volvo China Open.