LIV Golf star “fine” with Masters snub

LIV Golf star Marc Leishman says he has made peace with the possibility of never playing in the Masters again.

The Australian finished tied for fourth at Augusta in 2013 and has played in the last 30 majors.

However, his ranking has dipped since making the switch to LIV earlier this year alongside Open champion Cam Smith, meaning he is on the brink of missing out on one of golf’s showpiece events for the first time since 2015.

Only the world’s top 50 at the end of the year are guaranteed spots in the field.

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But Leishman told the Sydney Morning Herald he is “fine” if his days of regular appearances at the Masters are over.

“That was one of the things I had to weigh up when I did make the move,” he said.

“I’ve played at pretty much all the majors for the last 12 or 13 years. I’ve had my chances. Obviously, I want to play them, but I’m fine not playing them.

“I’ll try to qualify for the British Open and the US Open and if the world rankings happen, I’d love to get into The Masters. If not, I’ll watch it on the TV and hopefully watch Cam win it.”

Approaching his 40s, Leishman admitted the lure of a 25% stake in an all-Australian LIV franchise was too good to turn down.

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“I’ve loved my time on the PGA Tour and I certainly enjoyed the transition,” he said.

“That was one of the things that drew me to it. I’m not getting any younger and you can play golf forever, but you don’t know how high a level you can play at as you get at into your 40s.

“After playing, that’s going to be certainly something to work with and hopefully we can build the franchise and be a part of it when golf is done.”