The Masters is just a week away but before the world's best take the trip up Magnolia Lane, the Texas Open affords one final chance to tune up, or in the case of many, become the final man to qualify for the Augusta spectacular.
There are 30 Masters invitees in the field at TPC San Antonio's Oaks Course, Rory McIlroy among them, while the remaining 126 runners are all dreaming of securing the last spot in next week's field.
TPC San Antonio has hosted the Texas Open since 2010 and the tournament moved to its pre-Masters slot in 2019, when Corey Conners Monday-qualified then went on to win and seal an Augusta debut. But while only eight members of' last year's Texas Open field had qualified for the Masters including Conners, who would go on to double up in this event, a restructured PGA Tour schedule has made for a stronger field this time around.
With Scottie Scheffler taking a week off, Rory McIlroy is the market leader by default and he was second at the Oaks Course in 2013, but the Northern Irishman is not playing because he's desperate to win the Texas Open. He will only have the Green Jacket on his mind.