The third round of the Valero Texas Open finally finished around noon on April 5 with Robert MacIntrye of Scotland in the lead at 14-under 202.
But the tournament within the tournament is led by Japan’s Ryo Hisatsune.
He shot 67 with a double bogey and is tied for second with Ludvig Åberg and Michael Kim at 13-under.
The key difference among those players: MacIntyre, Åberg and Kim are all in the field for the Masters next week. Hisatsune isn’t but will qualify for an invitation if he wins at the TPC San Antonio.
Who can catch Robert MacIntyre?
The record for the biggest final-round comeback in the Texas Open is four shots, by Mark O’Meara in 1990. The following players were within that margin behind MacIntyre at the end of the third round:
13-under: Ryo Hisatsune, Andrew Putnam.
12-under: Matt Wallace, Chandler Phillips.
11-under: Kevin Yu, Sam Ryder.
10-under: Tony Finau.
The PGA Tour record for final-round comeback is 10 shots (Paul Lawrie, 1999 British Open). Players who have not yet qualified for the Masters who fall within that margin:
9-under: Davis Thompson, Austin Eckroat, Alex Smalley, Bud Cauley.
8-under: Chris Kirk, Hank Lebioda, Stephan Jaeger, Eric Cole, Sudarshan Yellamaraju.
7-under: S.H. Kim, Doug Ghim, Kevin Roy, Adam Svensson, A.J. Ewart, Adam Schenk, Mac Meissner, Austin Smotherman, John Parry, Steven Fisk.
6-under: Paul Waring, Thorbjorn Olesen.
5-under: J.T. Poston, Zach Bauchou, Beau Hossler, Kevin Streelman, Adrien Dumont de Chassart.
4-under: Erik van Rooyen, Brandt Snedeker, Billy Horschel.
Who is Ryo Hisatsune?
He’s the latest young star to emerge from Japan. Only 23 years old, Hisatsune has already won on the DP World Tour (he was the circuit’s Rookie of the Year in 2023) and contended with Cameron Smith at the 2023 Australian PGA before finishing three shots back.
He earned his PGA Tour card in 2024 and retained it last year by finishing 84th on the FedEx Cup Fall standings. He has four top-10 finishes, one of them a tie for fifth at the TPC San Antonio.
Hisatsune is having a solid season on the PGA Tour. He entered this week 21st on the FedEx Cup points list, bolstered by a tie for second behind Justin Rose at the Farmers Insurance Open, a tie for 10th at the WM Phoenix Open, a tie for fifth at Pebble Beach and a tie for 13th at The Players.
He has competed in one Masters, missing the cut in 2024.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Ryo Hisatsune leads Texas Open contenders needing a win for Masters berth
Reporting by Garry Smits, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
