The Masters extends invitations to LIV Golf star, former European Ryder Cup player

Augusta National Golf Club announced that it had extended special invitations to two international stars.

Augusta National Chairman Fred Ridley announced Wednesday that LIV Golf star Joaquin Niemann and 2023 Ryder Cup star Nicolai Højgaard received invitations to compete in the 2025 Masters Tournament.

This year’s Masters will mark Niemann’s fifth straight appearance at Augusta National, with his best finish coming two years ago as he tied for 16th. The 26-year-old Niemann joined LIV Golf in 2022 when he was a top-20 player in the world. His Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) has since plummeted, although Niemann has prioritized playing in 72-hole events around the world to keep his ranking afloat. He is currently 71st in the OWGR, but DataGolf has him ranked 15th. Niemann tied for 9th at the Olympics last summer and then closed out the calendar year on a high note. He posted a pair of top 10s at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai and the Australian Open and then won an Asian Tour event in Saudi Arabia.

Højgaard, meanwhile, will make his second Masters appearance. Last year, the young Dane sat towards the top of the leaderboard after each of the first three rounds. He even held the lead briefly on Saturday afternoon but ended up finishing in a tie for 16th. Højgaard shot a 4-over 76 on Sunday, opening his final round with a double bogey. He also made a quadruple-bogey seven on the famous par-3 12th. Despite that, Højgaard had a solid 2024 season, highlighted by his 7th-place finish at the Olympics. He also closed the DP World Tour season with five straight top-25s. But best of all, Nicolai’s twin brother, Rasmus, who won the Irish Open at Royal County Down in September, will make his Masters debut this year. It will mark the first time that a pair of twins will compete in the same tournament.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Follow him on X @jack_milko.