American amateur champion Sam Bennett, 23, finished tied for 16th after taking a final round 74 to finish his first two-time Masters tournament…but he won’t take home any of the $261,000 prize money!
American superstar Sam Bennett finished 16th in his first-ever Masters, winning the Silver Cup for amateur-fewest goals–but won’t win any money.
The 23-year-old golfer impressed at Augusta National this week after heading into the final round in a tie for seventh by four-under-par.
Ultimately, he slid to the bottom of the leaderboard when he made a final round 74 to finish two games short. John Rahm won The Masters after the Spaniard beat rival LIV Brooks Koepka in the final round to win by four shots.
Had Bennett not had amateur status he would have won $261,000 sharing 16th with Tom Kim, Songjae Im, Joaquin Nyman, Justin Rose, Shane Lowry and Hideki Matsuyama.
“It’s been an amazing week, just getting the chance to play Augusta was a dream come true,” he said at the tournament on Sunday.
American Amateur Champion Sam Bennett holds the Lowest Scoring Amateur Silver Cup
The 23-year-old college golfer impressed greatly at Augusta National, Georgia, this week
Bennett finished tied for 16th in his first ever Masters tournament after starting strong
“Getting to see him on Sunday go down the back nine, climb 18 was by far the coolest experience of my life.
Teachers and Augusta were everything I dreamed of.
“I definitely need some time to decompress!”
Bennett, from Madisonville, Texas, made a name for himself in the first major of the year after a first-round 68 on Thursday and tallied the same score on the second day.
He flirted with the Masters’ 36-hole amateur record of nine fewer than set by Ken Venturi in 1956.
Bennett fielded a ghost-free run on the first day before revealing how his late father inspired him in one of the greatest events in the sporting calendar.
Mark Bennett passed away in 2021 at the age of 53 due to early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. The last thing he wrote was advice to his son in June 2020 during a tender moment at his family’s home in Texas: “Don’t wait to do something.”
And the younger Bennett lived those words to the fullest when he lined up alongside former Masters champion Scotty Scheffler and matched him all the way with Four Under 68 players.
Bennett tattooed these words above his left wrist, just as his father wrote them.
Bennett, 23, has his father’s words of advice for inspiration tattooed on his left wrist.
Bennett draws inspiration from his late father, who died in 2021 at the age of 53 from Alzheimer’s disease.
