Maginnes: Masters' eyes now focused on Houston Open

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Maybe Peter Lonard is smarter than the rest of us and knew that his second-place finish at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans was enough to move him into the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking. It seems more likely that he got up on Monday morning and checked the Internet and found out that in the newest rankings he had moved from 72nd to 46th.

Davis Love III must win in Houston to return to the Masters. (Cannon/WireImage)

That's important, of course, because players in the top 50 in the world as of Monday earned a spot in the Masters Tournament next week. There are 18 categories by which a player can earn an invitation to the season's first major, and that's No. 18. So Peter made it. The sting of that bogey on the 71st hole at the TPC Louisiana on Sunday must certainly be soothed by the knowledge that he will be returning to the Masters. This will be Peter's fifth trip to Augusta National, although he has never shot a single round under par or played the weekend.

Interestingly enough, you have to go down to No. 60 in the world, Pat Perez, to find a player who is not currently qualified for the Masters. There is one last chance for Perez and the others, though -- a win at the Shell Houston Open. Not surprisingly then, all eyes will be on Davis Love III at Redstone this week. He has played every major championship since the 1990 British Open but is not currently in the Masters field. Davis, who had surgery on his ankle at the end of last season, started the year ranked 67th in the world but his struggles have dropped the once perennial top-10 player to No. 101.

Davis is not unfamiliar with this position, though. Thirteen years ago Davis was in a similar position with just a week to go before the Masters. He won the 1995 Freeport-McMoRan Classic, now the Zurich Classic, and became the last man in the field. Ben Crenshaw held off Davis down the stretch the following Sunday for the first of his two runner-up finishes at Augusta National.

A year ago, the Masters announced it was reinstating the rule that winners of PGA TOUR events (that offer a full quote of FedExCup points) would be extended an invitation to the season's first major championship. Boo Weekley was the first to take advantage of this development by winning the very next week at the Verizon Classic at Hilton Head.

Others include Brian Bateman, winner of the Buick Open, and Daniel Chopra, winner of the 2008 Mercedes-Benz Championship. Daniel also won the Gin sur Mer Classic at Tesoro, but that event did not qualify him for the Masters because it was during the Fall Series.

Boo, Daniel and Brian will all be playing in their first Masters along with 14 other rookies. No Masters first-timer has gone on to victory since Fuzzy Zoeller captured the Green Jacket in 1979. As of today, the Monday before Masters week, there are 90 players in the field at Augusta National. That number can only change by one. For the more than 100 players in the field this week in Houston who aren't in the Masters the dream is still alive.

The Masters committee and Chairman Billy Payne did the right thing when they reinstituted the rule that gives PGA TOUR winners an invitation to the Masters. Winning on TOUR is what a player dreams about at night and what gets them out of bed in the morning. From an entertainment perspective, the idea that a player can change the course of his career in a week is entertainment of the highest order.

Regardless of how he gained entrance into the elite field at Augusta National, every player will be trying to make history. Whether it is Tiger Woods trying to expand his influence and further his quest to rewrite history or a surprise winner like Zach Johnson, the greatest theater in the game will be on display once again.

But keep an eye on what happens this week, too. The man who is hoisting that trophy in Houston just may be calling his travel agent as soon as the ceremony is over.