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Golfer silhouette swinging at sunset design background, Golfer silhouette swinging at sunset design background
Imago
Golfer silhouette swinging at sunset design background, Golfer silhouette swinging at sunset design background
Towards the end of Sunday, there were quite a few players who could have won the 2026 Masters Tournament. The top six or seven were within two strokes of the leader. And one of them was Russell Henley. The 37-year-old delivered one of the best performances of his career. And he finished within two strokes of Rory McIlroy at T3. Hours after the conclusion, Henley shared an emotional message for his fans.
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The PGA Tour pro dropped in on Instagram to say, “Incredible week at @themasters and we nearly made something special happen there at the end. I fought as hard as I possibly could to get it done, it just wasn’t meant to be.”
Henley did have an amazing campaign. In his 72 holes, he only shot 11 bogeys and a whopping 21 birdies. With that, he went on to register his best finish in the Masters Tournament. His previous best was a T4 in 2024. He also revealed his mindset in the closing moments of the tournament.
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“I felt a calmness on the back 9 that gives me a lot of encouragement for the future. I’m starting to embrace these big moments and get more comfortable with them. With each opportunity, I’ll get better and better- all I can do is keep fighting. On to one of my favorite weeks of the year at the @rbcheritage!”
Henley committed only one error in the final round of the major. While he wasn’t scoring birdies every hole, he was also not conceding strokes at critical moments. Winning the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational seems to have given him a lot of confidence. And it’s showing in his recent performances.
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In fact, that is not the only reason Henley played well. He has also been in spectacular form this year.
Russell Henley’s consistency on the course
The T3 finish in the Masters Tournament is certainly something to be proud of. However, it’s worth noting that Russell Henley has delivered quite a few exciting performances since 2025, even before he won the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
It all began at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am last year, where he got a T5 finish. Then, a few weeks later, he won at Bay Hill against Collin Morikawa & Co. Henley also get a T8 in the RBC Heritage and a T5 in the Memorial Tournament in the next few weeks. He then finished as the runner-up in the Travelers Championship and the TOUR Championship in 2025.
This year, Henley tried to chase down the world #1, Scottie Scheffler, in the American Express, only to finish at T8 in the end. Then he tried to defend the Arnold Palmer Invitational and grabbed a T6 finish instead. In between, he also nearly got disqualified from the PLAYERS Championship. But Henley didn’t let that faze him. Finally, he fell two strokes shy of the world #2, Rory McIlroy, at Augusta National.
Looking at his impressive run, it certainly seems like Russell Henley is getting better with each passing event. It won’t come as a surprise if he is able to finally win a major in the near future as well.
