Masters 2022: Debuting golfers on the rise can contend at Augusta National, recent trends show

A top 10 player winning would not be surprising, but the way he gets there might be

When Sam Burns won the 2022 Valspar Championship on Sunday, he became the second golfer in the last three events to pick up at least three PGA Tour wins before making his debut at Augusta National. Burns' three victories (two Valspars and the Sanderson Farms Championship) have pushed him into the top 10 in the Official World Golf Rankings, but they all came after the 2021 Masters, which means his drive down Magnolia Lane in two weeks will be his first.

Collin Morikawa also won three times (including a major championship) before the oddly-situated 2020 Masters in November. Morikawa finished T44 in his Masters debut before going on to win the Open Championship the following summer.

All of this begs the question: Could a first-time participant at Augusta unlock the Rubik's cube that was once disguised as a nursery?