In the history of the Masters, only four golfers have had top 10s in their first three starts, including Ralph Guldahl (1937 – 39) and Jordan Spieth (2014 – 16). Both of them went on to win their first (and only) Green Jacket in their first three tries. Our first entry in this list has a chance to make it into that list before 2030. Yes, for the first time, we have decided to predict the possible winners of the next decade.

Ludvig Aberg (before 2030)

Recent Masters Results: 2nd (2025), 7th (2024)

Rounds Under Par: 5 out of 8

Lowest/Highest Rounds: 68/73

Scoring Average (Augusta): 70.38

The Augusta National’s lore confirms Ludvig Aberg fits right in. Sitting 18th in the world, just a dominant Scottie Scheffler run kept him from being the second guy in the modern era to claim victory on debut in 2024. His 7th-place finish last year undersells how well he played, for the most part. He stood tied for third with Patrick Reed on the 72nd hole before triple-bogeying and tumbling down the leaderboard.

This season, critics will harp on Aberg’s blown 54-hole lead at The Players as proof he hasn’t got it. But consistently contending against the greatest players in the world is proof that he is on the right path. And he is aware of his shortcomings.

Following his collapse at The Players, Aberg agreed that nerves get to him. We can also put the blame on that for how fast he plays his back nine on weekends, a fact that he agreed with. But there are signs of hope.

Aberg’s in fine fettle overall, ranking 12th in SG: Tee to Green and 14th in SG: Total on the Tour. But he lurks outside the top 20 in SG: Approach and Off the Tee and beyond the top 50 in short-game stats, including 67th in SG: Putting. Now here’s a fun fact: according to Data Golf, in each of the last five years, the winner’s weakest suit that week was putting, while around-the-green often shone as a strength.

Expect him to be in the mix every year: realistic top‑10s, frequent top‑5s, and at least one serious Sunday charge. If he keeps his game this polished and avoids major injury slumps, a Green Jacket in this window is very plausible within the next few years. However, Aberg needs to work on his short game, as he is very close to donning that Green Jacket. Plus, he has a chance to join Spieth and Guldahl.

And it might as well come before his 7th appearance in 2030.

Tyrrell Hatton (before 2032)

Recent Masters Results: T14 (2025), T9 (2024), T34 (2023), 52nd (2022), T18 (2021)

Rounds Under Par: 8 out of 32

Lowest/Highest Rounds: 68/80

Scoring Average (Augusta): 73.31

Tyrrell Hatton likes it here, even if his actions state otherwise. Like back in 2022, when he stated after poor first two rounds (79-80) to barely make the cut, “Yeah, but you can hit good shots here and not get any reward for it. It’s unfair at times. I don’t agree with that.” In fact, before making a triple bogey on the 13th in the third round the same year, he also mimicked firing a gun at it.

Which brings us to the problem at hand: Hatton needs to find peace with Augusta to win here. Other than that, he is a pretty good player.

From 2023 on, Hatton’s major showings have stayed reliable and pretty sharp. Across 12 outings, he’s cleared 11 cuts and notched six top-20s. Just Scheffler and Xander Schauffele have gone 12-for-12 on cuts during that time, and only six others tally more top-20s (all major champs).

The main critique is that he has slim pickings for victory shots. But peek barely beneath the hood, and he’s hovered high on leaderboards more than a few times. If we take up just the Masters, then last year, Hatton was three shots off the lead by Friday before he shot a 3-over 75 on Saturday to fall off the leaderboard.

Don’t be disappointed. The potential is there. Consider this for his major results: From 2017 to 2022, he registered three top-10s against nine missed cuts in 23 tries. So, the current stats are a positive sign.

Meanwhile, on the stats front, Hatton sits T27 in SG: Putting on LIV and 20th in driving distance. This season, he’s grabbed top-10 finishes twice in LIV events. The surefire path to major glory is to stack up scoring chances, and lately, Hatton’s been doing that. If he tightens his short game and cuts out the high scores, he could push into legitimate contender territory at least once in the coming years.

Hard to say if he’ll bag one this year, but it’d be a treat to see him slip on the Green Jacket and prove us right before 2032.

Chris Gotterup (before 2029)

Recent Masters Result: Debut (2026)

World Ranking: 9th

Note that next week’s Masters marks Chris Gotterup’s debut, entirely by choice. Gotterup snagged invites before but declined them.

He’ll arrive as a contender, no less. Last year, he claimed the Genesis Scottish Open; this year, the Sony Open and WM Phoenix Open. In fact, post-Sony Open win, he became one of the few to snag three Tour wins in 70 starts or fewer: Tom Kim, Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa, Jon Rahm, and Schauffele.

Gotterup went pro in 2022 and maxed out his sponsor exemptions, like any hotshot youngster. Bucking the trend among peers, Gotterup stuck to the PGA Tour, landing Korn Ferry Tour access through top collegiate standings. He took every chance. His 13th straight event was the 2024 Myrtle Beach Classic, an opposite-field affair he won by six.

Stats-wise, two years later, he is holding strong: 13th in SG: Total, 14th in SG: Off the Tee, 29th in SG: Approach. Putting lags a bit (76th on Tour), though. Still, he’s the field’s lone multi-winner this season on PGA Tour soil.

This season, he could snag the Masters on debut. It wouldn’t be surprising, either way.

The last to do it was Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979, if you discount Horton Smith (1934) and Gene Sarazen (1935) from the tournament’s younger years. With two wins already in the bag this season, the 26-year-old joins rare air as just the third—after Dave Hill (1968) and Mark Wilson (2011)—to tee off at Augusta with four PGA Tour victories under his belt.

Whether he grabs one this year is anyone’s guess, but Gotterup’s hot streak promises a Green Jacket in the next four.

Tommy Fleetwood (before 2033)

Recent Masters Results: T21 (2025), T3 (2024), 33rd (2023), T14 (2022), T46 (2021) 

Rounds Under Par: 14 out of 34

Lowest/Highest Rounds: 66/ 78

Scoring Average (Augusta): 72.00

Tommy Fleetwood is perhaps one of the best players who has never won a major championship, much less the Masters. But there’s a reason why this Englishman is on this list. After years without a win on American soil, two dropped in quick succession at the Tour Championship and Ryder Cup.

Fleetwood flashed a major pedigree, cracking the top five across all four and logging seven top-5s in 41 starts. That said, his first seven Augusta trips yielded no top-10s until 2024’s T3. The T3 he achieved two years ago should bolster his confidence in his ability to perform well at Augusta, making him a top-10 contender here, even if he performs better in other majors.

On the other front, his stats raise eyebrows. He leads the PGA Tour in around the green and sits 5th in SG: tee to green, yet lags at 41st in SG: off the tee, 55th in SG: approach, and a worrisome 119th in SG: putting. But his 15th position in SG: Total is promising, too. This season, he has posted three top-10s in six starts. He’ll likely slip into the Masters more under the radar.

If he cracks a major drought (he’s due), Augusta suits his tee-to-green game best among big ones. So project 1-2 top-10s in the coming years; a possible win by 2029 if stats stabilize. Without evolution in his short game, for instance, he’ll hover around T20s.

Regardless, Fleetwood will always be a Master’s favorite.

Miles Russell (before 2029)

Recent Masters Result: Not Yet Played

For this thought-provoker, we’re spotlighting the world’s top-ranked junior, Miles Russell, purely for historic upside. At just 17, he’s lighting it up. In March, he nailed his first PGA Tour cut in five attempts at the Puerto Rico Open, finishing T50. Plus, when he plays the Masters, he’ll be chasing history as the youngest champion ever, with nearly four years to pull it off. Right now, Tiger Woods holds the mark, claiming the 1997 green jacket at 21 years, 3 months, and 14 days young.

Don’t count Russell out for breaking that record. He’s already broken one of Woods’s records previously. In 2023, he snagged the AJGA Rolex Boys Player of the Year, beating Woods’ 1991 mark at 15 years, 10 months, and 2 days. That makes Russell the youngest ever to do so.

In March, Russell captured the Junior Invitational with rounds of 64‑70‑72‑67 to seal the title, becoming the first boys’ champion to win back‑to‑back Junior Invitational trophies. The first week in April, he was originally set to caddie for top‑ranked female junior golfer Asterisk Talley at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, but then he did something even better for himself and opted out of that role.

Russell’s standout closing round at the Korn Ferry Tour’s (KFT) Club Car Championship—a final‑round 67 for a tie‑15th, nine shots behind winner Davis Lamb—booked him a spot in the 2026 LECOM Suncoast Classic.

Ironically, it was at that same Suncoast Classic that Russell first drew global attention in 2024, becoming the youngest player ever at 15 to make the cut on KFT by tying for 20th, then going on to compete the following week in the Veritex Bank Championship. He did more, however.

Tell us that is not promising.