The Masters begins on April 9. Before that, the Valero Texas Open is set for next week, marking the last event before Augusta. For some top players, however, the Texas Children’s Houston Open made things harder. The cut at Memorial Park was -2, and five key players did not make it.

Brooks Koepka, Wyndham Clark, Rickie Fowler, S.H. Kim, and Billy Horschel all failed to make the 36-hole cut at Memorial Park, posting scores from even par to +8. For most, this is a warning sign with Augusta on the horizon. For Fowler, the stakes are higher. His struggles now go beyond form; they demand immediate answers.

Brooks Koepka

Brooks Koepka came into Houston off three consecutive top-20 finishes, leading the PGA Tour in Strokes Gained: Approach. He switched to a TaylorMade Spider mallet putter, aiming to fix a putting problem that had cost him for over two years.

Memorial Park exposed the weakness. Koepka lost over three strokes on the greens and finished at +4, missing the cut. Three double bogeys in four holes on Thursday ended his week early.

“The putting was a huge thing. I was putting so terribly, I felt like I had to birdie the hole almost from the fairway or from the tee box.”

Koepka had set a clear goal: to be in contention on Sunday with nine holes to play.

“That’s really the last missing piece.”

Koepka’s status is clear. He holds several major exemptions through 2028 and will play in the Masters regardless of his current form or his world ranking, which is now around 255. His decision to enter the $9.9 million event has raised questions about his preparation and whether he can regain his form on Tour. For now, Augusta remains on his calendar.

Wyndham Clark

Wyndham Clark arrived in Houston after missing the cut at Valspar, his first missed cut this season. He needed a solid performance to regain form before Augusta. Instead, he posted consecutive rounds of 74, finishing at +8 and missing the cut by eight shots.

Clark is currently 147th in Strokes Gained: Putting on the PGA Tour, losing nearly two-thirds of a stroke per round on the greens. He did manage an eagle from the fairway on the par-4 13th in Round 1, but consistent bogeys on the back nine in both rounds prevented any recovery. He was unable to produce the necessary birdie run when it mattered.

Clark finished T5 at this event last year, performing well across all key areas. His 2023 US Open win ensures his place at the Masters. However, consecutive missed cuts before Augusta now put his short game under scrutiny.

Rickie Fowler

Rickie Fowler arrived at Memorial Park with more on the line than anyone else in the field. Ranked 61st in the world, he needed a strong finish to break into the top 50 before the Masters cutoff. Only a win would have secured his spot without question.

Fowler posted back-to-back rounds of 70, finishing at even par and missing the cut by two shots. He was 3-under midway through his opening round but could not hold the momentum. The second round followed the same script: early birdies, late mistakes, and another even-par score that was not enough.

Fowler has made every cut in 2026, with four top-20 finishes and a T9 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. That consistency moved him to 61st in the world, but it has not been enough. Now, only a win at the Valero Texas Open will realistically get him into the Masters field.

Fowler last played the Masters in 2024. Fowler last teed it up at Augusta in 2024. Missing out again would mean two straight years on the sidelines for a six-time Tour winner.

S.H. Kim

S.H. Kim entered Memorial Park after a T7 at the Valspar Championship, his best result of the 2026 season. He gained strokes across almost every key metric at Copperhead. That progress stalled in Houston.

Kim opened with a 73 (+3) after early mistakes and more dropped shots on the back nine. He followed with a 72 (+2), finishing at +5 and missing the cut by a wide margin. His previous results at Memorial Park were T-47 and T-45.

His Official World Golf Ranking is between 100 and 150. A Master’s invitation was not likely this week, but the bigger issue is that he could not keep his momentum from the Valspar going into the next event. For a player trying to build consistency on Tour, this is a concern.

Billy Horschel

Billy Horschel came back from hip surgery in late 2025 and used the start of 2026 to rebuild his game. His T13 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational showed progress. At Memorial Park, he shot 70-70, steady but ultimately two shots outside the cut.

There were flashes of quality in both rounds: a 203-yard tee shot for a birdie on the par-3 seventh in Round 1 and a 28-foot hole-out on 18 in Round 2. Birdies came, but he could not build momentum, and each time his score returned to even par.

Horschel is ranked No. 87 in the OWGR. His best chance to qualify for the Masters is a strong finish at the Valero Texas Open. Moving from 87th to inside the top 50 in one week would require a result he has not achieved this season.