Winners (Rory McIlroy) and losers (Sergio Garcia) from 2026 Masters
The 2026 Masters is in the books, with Rory McIlroy making history by becoming just the fourth golfer in history to win the event in back-to-back years.
Many of the sport's biggest names were near the top of the leaderboard as well, with Scottie Scheffler finishing second and Justin Rose finishing tied for third, just short of the jacket like he always seems to be. However, there were some bigger names that failed to make an impact. At the same time, there were also some unexpectedly solid finishes from some of the game's best.
While golfers like Patrick Reed seemingly fell apart after a great start to the weekend, no one expected him to finish as high as he did. On the contrary, someone like Bryson DeChambeau was expected to be a green jacket contender and wound up missing the cut altogether.
With this year's first major of the golf season concluded, we look back at some of the winners and losers from the 90th Masters Tournament.
2026 Masters winners
Rory McIlroy. How can you not put this man on here? After failing to win the Masters for years, being ever so close to a career Grand Slam, with only Augusta standing in the way, McIlroy goes ahead and wins the event in back-to-back years, becoming just the fourth golfer in history to do so.
What's not to love? Outside of a lackluster round on Saturday, McIlroy was nearly untouchable for the entire tournament. Any victory deserves praise, but one of this magnitude deserves lots of it.
Collin Morikawa. Once considered the next big thing in golf, Morikawa has slowed down in recent years. In fact, he didn't win a single event in 2024 or 2025. Then he shows up at Augusta and recorded a 2-over 74 on Thursday.
Once again, it looked like Morikawa was in for another unimpressive finish. But Morikawa improved in every single round. Shooting a 69 on Friday and then 68s on both Saturday and Sunday.
Sunday was extra impressive considering his double bogey on the second hole. Yet, he bounced back, tallying seven birdies on the day, including five straight from holes 12-16. A masterful comeback effort to finish the tournament in the top-ten.
Jake Knapp. One career PGA Tour win, zero wins in 2026, yet coming into the Masters, he had five top-10 finishes in seven events played.
He's been playing some of the best golf of his career, but has mostly been overlooked due to the fact that he hasn't been at the top of anything substantial. However, a near top-ten finish at the Masters should start earning him some respect from casual fans.
Obviously hardcore fans know how great he has been, but for the less involved, Jake Knapp certainly isn't a household name. He's just consistent. After tallying a 1-over 73 on Thursday, he shot 69, 69, 70. That's a great tournament, and while it won't get him a green jacket, it should earn him much more notoriety than he's been getting.
2026 Masters losers
Sergio Garcia. The 2017 Masters champion, Garcia was one of the first golfers to tee off Sunday − beginning his round at 5 over par for the tournament. Things quickly went south as he bogeyed the first hole, and then hit a poor drive on the par-5 second hole.
However, his reaction was a bit over-the-top.
After forecefully pounding his driver on the ground several times, he smashed it against a cooler as he walked off the tee box, breaking the head of club in the process. Garcia was forced to play the rest of the round without a driver, and he received a conduct warning shortly after the incident. Not only a loser, but a sore loser at that.
Robert MacIntyre. Speaking of inappropriate behavior at Augusta, Robert MacIntyre had only one birdie in his first round 80. In the middle of the round though, he fired off another bird.
After his approach shot into the par-5 15th hole rolled off the front of the green and into the water, MacIntyre raised his middle finger in frustration. After taking a drop, he hit it in the water once more, eventually carding a quadruple-bogey 9.
Then, after refusing to speak to reporters after signing his scorecard for an 80, he doubled down on his disgust by posting on his Instagram story an AI depiction of him as one of the famed Masters gnomes, holding up a middle finger. That earned him a rebuke from Augusta National officials.
Bryson DeChambeau. Perhaps the one player with the most to gain this week, DeChambeau suffered another one of his occasional meltdowns, highlighted (lowlighted?) by a painful double bogey in both of his rounds.
The two-time U.S. Open champion figured to be able to take advantage of his length off the tee to overpower Augusta. But that wasn't the case.
Arriving at Augusta with an unconventional 3D-printed 5-iron he designed himself, DeChambeau put himself in a big hole with an opening round 76. However, he still had a chance to make some magic over the weekend by holding steady on Friday. When he stepped to the 18th tee, he was just above the cut line ... until a disastrous triple bogey sealed his fate. DeChambeau missed the cut by two shots.