Is Ian Poulter playing in The Masters 2022? English golfer’s absence from Augusta explained

English golfer Ian Poulter will not feature at The Masters in Augusta, Georgia - marking his first absence from the tournament since 2017.

The world number 67 failed to secure an invitation to the world-renowned competition, which got underway on Thursday.

Poulter made his Masters debut in 2004, and despite having never won the tournament, has generally enjoyed decent success in Augusta.

The 46-year-old has made the cut in 15 of his last 16 appearances, and has finished in the top 10 on three occasions. His highest finish was T6 in 2015.

Poulter is not the only high-profile player to miss out on this year’s tournament, however, with the likes of Jason Day, Rickie Fowler, and Matt Kuchar missing out as well.

Former champion Phil Mickelson will also be absent for the first time in nearly 30 years, although his previous title at Augusta means that he has a lifelong invitation to compete at The Masters regardless of qualification.

Instead, the 51-year-old has opted against participating after releasing a statement in February announcing his intention to take a break from golf following comments on the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Invitational Series.

Mickelson has not played on the PGA TOUR since late January.

Why hasn’t Poulter qualified for The Masters?

Poulter was in need of a stellar performance at the Valero Texas Open on the PGA Tour a couple of weeks ago if he were to stand any chance of qualifying for this weekend’s tournament in Augusta.

Unfortunately, however, he failed to make the cut at TPC San Antonio, finishing one over par and two strokes short of where he needed to be.

Alternatively, Poulter could have forced his way into the top 50 of the world rankings - and thus, an automatic invitation to Augusta - had he secured a semi-final berth at the WGC Match Play last month. The Englishman ultimately came up short in that regard too

What has Poulter said about missing out on The Masters?

Poulter has delivered an understandably disappointed assessment of his failure to qualify for The Masters.

The 46-year-old took to his Instagram story after finishing his second round in Texas and complained he “felt like s*** for two days”.

He added that he “shouldn’t have pegged it up” and that after 24 years in the pro game he is “still learning.”