Hattiesburg native Davis Riley was the lone Mississippian competing in the 2025 Masters Tournament. The former Presbyterian Christian School Bobcat notched the best finish for a Magnolia State-born player at golf’s highest stage in more than three decades.
Riley was the first of the field to take a swing Thursday, paired with Patton Kizzire, starting the picturesque four-day weekend in Augusta, Ga., with a par on hole one. After Kizzire bogeyed the same hole, Riley was briefly atop the leaderboard of the 2025 Masters.
“I thought I handled my nerves very well,” Riley told media after a first round 73 (+1) in his Masters debut. “I started out and got a decent start, then kind of stumbled coming in. But I was pretty excited to get started. It was a dream come true.”
The fourth-year PGA Tour pro followed with a 3-under par 69 on Friday, comfortably making the top 50 cut ahead of the final two rounds. A rough start to the back nine Saturday resulted in a tournament-low 75, pushing him out of top contention ahead of Masters Sunday.
But in the most pressure-packed 18 holes in golf in the tournament’s last round, Riley again had his best, scratching another 3-under 69. At the day’s end, the Hattiesburger finished tied for 21st alongside five others, including 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama.
It was the best Masters finish for a Mississippi-born golfer since Jim Gallagher, Jr.’s T-17 finish in 1991.
The strong showing in Augusta pushed Riley into the world top 100 rankings, currently sitting at No. 97 among all professional golfers.
You can watch Riley’s condensed final round of the 2025 Masters here.
