Robert MacIntyre leads the 2026 Valero Texas Open by four strokes going into the weekend after shooting a 64 on Friday. If he wins on Sunday, it would be his third win on the PGA Tour and his first win on American soil.
MacIntyre came to TPC San Antonio in good form with two top 5s so far this season including a 4th place finish at The Players. While he has only played here once before, MacIntyre wants to be in proper shape going into The Masters next week.
In his post round press conference, MacIntyre said, “I tweaked [my schedule] this year. I didn’t play [here] last year… just went straight into Augusta, so this was an adjustment for that reason. I wanted to be sharper going into Augusta.”
MacIntyre missed the cut at The Masters last year, which was his third appearance at Augusta. He has good history at The Masters otherwise; he finished t-12 there in 2021 and t-23 in 2022. MacIntyre also finished in second place last year at the US Open, posting a one over score for the tournament before JJ Spaun finished at one under.
MacIntyre is currently the 11th ranked player in the Official World Golf Rankings.
Ludvig Åberg Moves On From The Players
GettyLudvig Aberg enters the weekend in second place at the Valero Texas Open.
After shooting consecutive 67s, Ludvig Åberg finds himself in position to contend for another PGA Tour title. It would be his third win on the PGA Tour if he wins this week. Åberg arrived in San Antonio looking to put the end of The Players behind him.
At TPC Sawgrass, Åberg entered Sunday leading the tournament by three strokes. Unfortunately, Åberg shot a 76 in the final round to finish t-5, leading to Cameron Young to finish in first place. Despite missing out on the biggest win of his career, Åberg has moved on.
“I’ve had two weeks off, which is quite nice, since The Players. I was able to think about it, reflect on it, but also move on from it. I think that was the main thing, for me at least, showing up this week. Those things are behind me; they’re past me and my focus is here this week.”
Åberg also has a history at Augusta National with a second place finish in 2024 and a 7th place finish last year. He is ranked 18th in the Official World Golf Rankings.
Tony Finau Among Chasers Vying for a Last Chance Spot at The Masters
GettyTony Finau is five back at t-3 going into round 3 at the Valero Texas Open.
Tony Finau is currently not in the Masters field; however, if he wins this week, he would claim the last spot into the year’s first major. A Masters without Finau would be the first since 2017. He has three top tens at Augusta including a t-5 finish in 2019.
Finau fell to 107 in the Official World Golf Rankings after a down season in 2025. He only had five top 20 finishes and one top 5, the lowest rate of his career at any level. However, so far in 2026, he already has three top 20 finishes in nine starts, which is much closer to his career averages.
Other players in contention looking to get into The Masters include Thorbjørn Olesen, Bud Cauley, and Kevin Roy. They all join Finau in the tie for third. Beyond them, Ryo Hisatsune, Alex Smalley, Andrew Putnam, John Parry, Steven Fisk, and Sam Ryder would also qualify for The Masters if they won. The are placed in a tie for seventh.
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