Tyrrell Hatton produced a final round 65 for another top-10 finish in the US on the eve of The Masters.
It was enough to give Hatton a share of seventh place at the Houston Open as Mexican Carlos Ortiz took the win on 13-under.
Hatton has played just three times at The Masters, a missed cut and placings of 44th and 56th in the past two years hardly indicating him as a contender for the Green Jacket when the event gets under way at Augusta National on Thursday.
But the 29-year-old is in the form of his life and his latest result took him up to No9 in the world.
Ahead of The Masters, he told The Times: “It’s a course you grow up watching on TV and you think you know it but then you walk through the clubhouse and see how big the slopes are.
“I remember my first Masters in 2017 and it was absolutely thumping at the start and then everything becomes more apparent.
“You need to know where your misses are, keep the ball below the hole. I feel comfortable there, I just haven’t played well.
“Winning the PGA and getting into the top 10 were career goals. The next progression would be a World Golf Championship title and a Major but everyone’s career goal is winning a Major unless you’ve won one and then it’s winning another. Winning anywhere is not easy.”
