It was mid-December and Ryan Gerard had to make a decision.
He was just outside the top 50 in the world rankings and there was one more chance for him to rise enough to earn his first Masters invitation – but it meant traveling some 9,700 miles to Mauritius and finishing fourth or better in the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open to ensure he received that holiday letter from Augusta National.
When you’re 26 years old and feel like you’re riding a growing wave, it sounded like an adventure.
“Worst case, I would have a really cool trip and a nice story,” Gerard said last week in Torrey Pines.
It has become more than that.
“Any time you get the opportunity to play your way into a really prestigious tournament like the Masters, you try to do everything you can to do that.” – Ryan Gerard
Gerard thought he had played his last event of 2025 when he missed the cut at the RSM Classic, where he played well but didn’t make enough putts, falling outside the top 50 of the rankings. The magic number will come on December 31 when the Masters invitations are set.
After a few conversations and some quick math, Gerard realized it might be worth the jet lag if he could have a good week in Mauritius, which is about 1,200 miles off the southeast coast of Africa.
Going to Mauritius is not the same as going to Maryland. But participating in the Masters is no different.
“Every time you get the opportunity to play your way into a really prestigious tournament like the Masters, you try to do everything you can to do that,” Gerard said.
Since Gerard had a DP World Tour membership, the distant opportunity awaited.
He left his home in Jupiter, Florida, on Saturday around 5 p.m., took an Uber to the Miami airport, then took an overnight flight to Rome with his roommate, JP Burke, who agreed to caddy for him that week.
With a layover of almost eight hours in Rome, Gerard toured the Colosseum, visited some ruins and grabbed some “really good” pizza before catching a twelve-hour flight to Mauritius, arriving around 11am local time.
“I had a nice, flat seat, so I wasn’t too worried about it, but it was a little different than normal,” said Gerard.
Having made the financial and physical investment, Gerard did not want to waste it. A spot in the Masters could be his Christmas present to himself.
A 68-69 start got Gerard into the weekend, and a third round of 63 left him with a two-stroke lead.
“Once we got going, it was just like any other golf tournament. You don’t want to go all the way there and lay an egg and play terribly. I felt pretty confident that I could get to that spot pretty well,” Gerard said.
“It was one of those things where I was okay with whatever happened. I was okay with whatever happened. I’m going to go out there and play my best and control what I can control.”
“Absolutely bittersweet not having won, especially when you’re in a play-off. Suddenly the mentality shifts from we’re here to get to the Masters to winning.” – Ryan Gerard
Gerard shot 66 on Sunday and found himself in a play-off with Jayden Schaper, but lost when Schaper holed out on the second extra hole for Eagle and won for the second week in a row on the DP World Tour.
Yet Gerard got what he came for.
“Absolutely bittersweet not winning, especially when you’re in a play-off. Suddenly the mentality changes from we’re here to compete in the Masters to winning,” Gerard said.
“It was quite valuable for me going down the stretch, either with an even lead or with the majority of the back nine in the lead. Just how I was playing to protect the top four, but also playing to win. It was kind of a weird situation that you don’t often find yourself in, where you were playing for a specific number, but also kicking into gear to birdie the last hole and get into a playoff.”
Gerard was home long enough to enjoy a short break before heading to Hawaii and making one of the fastest starts in this young touring season. Gerard finished second at both the Sony Open in Hawaii and the American Express before finishing in 11th place at the Farmers Insurance Open last week.
In second place in the FedEx Cup points race, Gerard has largely determined his 2026 schedule by his good play, which has allowed him to focus on the bigger events. Gerard is now ranked 23rd in the world and has quietly evolved as a player.
During his time at the University of North Carolina, Gerard was teammates with Ben Griffin, Austin Greaser and David Ford in several seasons. Gerard has only won one college event, but he has managed to find what works for him.
“I’ve always flown a little under the radar. My swing isn’t exactly super picture-perfect, so it’s easy to ignore that early on in a high school and college career. Some guys jump off the page with really cool looking swings or really fast ball speeds,” Gerard said.
“I’ve done a really good job of sticking to my plan and my process and controlling what I can control, but also going out with the intention of getting better.”
Gerard has made one playing visit to Augusta and joined Greaser in 2022 after his teammate reached the US Amateur final the year before. He plans to return at least once before the Masters and look at it through the lens of a competitor.
“If I go there for the first time pre-Masters it will still bring the awe factor. I went [as a spectator] for a practice run with my dad in 2013 maybe, so getting some of the ‘sacred cow’ stuff out of the system now will be helpful,” Gerard said.
“You can go with the intention of learning the golf course, I’m still going to enjoy it, but I’m going with the intention of learning and preparing.”
And it’s not nearly as far away as Mauritius.
© 2026 Global Golf Post LLC
#Mauritius #Masters