What is the cut rule at the Masters?
The Masters cut rule is unique, NCG provides you with everything you need to know ahead of the year’s first major championship
The Masters cut rule is a fairly unique one and differs from the regular cut rule we see on the PGA Tour. We take a look at how the cut line is determined for the first major of the season…
A brief history of the Masters cut rule
From its first staging in 1934 until 1956, the tournament was played without a cut, but this changed for the 1957 event.
Between 1957 and 1960, the top 40 players and ties as well as those within 10 shots of the lead would make the cut after two rounds.
This was later extended in 1961 to include the top 44 players and ties, and then altered once again in 2013 to include the top 50 and ties plus any players that finish round two within 10 shots of the leader.
This was changed in 2020 to the current cut rule, when the ‘within 10 of the lead’ part of the rule was axed.
What is the Masters cut rule?
The top 50 players and ties on the leaderboard will qualify to play over the weekend.
How is this different to the standard PGA Tour cut rule?
The cut rule for regular PGA Tour events sees the top 70 advance to the weekend with the score of the 70th-placed player being the score needed to make the cut.
Any player that is level with or above the 70th-placed player on the leaderboard makes the cut and plays the final two days of the tournament.
Now have your say
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Steve Carroll
A journalist for 25 years, Steve has been immersed in club golf for almost as long. A former club captain, he has passed the Level 3 Rules of Golf exam with distinction having attended the R&A's prestigious Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar.
Steve has officiated at a host of high-profile tournaments, including Open Regional Qualifying, PGA Fourball Championship, English Men's Senior Amateur, and the North of England Amateur Championship. In 2023, he made his international debut as part of the team that refereed England vs Switzerland U16 girls.
A part of NCG's Top 100s panel, Steve has a particular love of links golf and is frantically trying to restore his single-figure handicap. He currently floats at around 11.
Steve plays at Close House, in Newcastle, and York GC, where he is a member of the club's matches and competitions committee and referees the annual 36-hole scratch York Rose Bowl.
Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NTCJ exams at Darlington College of Technology.
What's in Steve's bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; TaylorMade Stealth 2 irons; TaylorMade Hi-Toe, Ping ChipR, Sik Putter.
