Russell Knox leads in Texas in bid to secure last-ditch Masters spot

Russell Knox is hoping to land the “biggest bonus of the year” by using his last throw of the dice to join Sandy Lyle and Bob MacIntyre in flying the Saltire in next week’s Masters.

Knox, who last played in the season’s opening major in 2017, needs to win this week’s Valero Texas Open to be heading back to Augusta National and he’s out in front after the opening circuit.

The 36-year-old opened with a seven-under-par 65 at TPC San Antonio to hold a one-shot advantage over Dane Rasmus Hojgaard, with 2019 Scottish Open champion Aaron Rai from England in a group one further back.

Knox is bidding to emulate compatriot Martin Laird, who did the trick in 2013, by winning this event to secure the final spot up for grabs at Augusta National.

“I would love to win and get to play next week,” he said. “I know my game is good, so I've got to keep playing well and see if I can have a great finish.”

Is there a danger he might put too much pressure on himself over the remaining three days with next week in mind?

“No, zero,” insisted Knox, who has missed the cut in both his Masters appearances so far. “It would be the biggest bonus of the year obviously if that happened, but I'm going to try my hardest to finish first this week.”

In his bogey-free start, the two-time PGA Tour winner birdied the first, fifth and seventh before making four gains on the spin from the 12th.

“Yeah, obviously thrilled with the round,” said Knox of his day’s work. “I took care of business off the tee, which was nice. If you get offline, it can be very penal.

“So I drove the ball well, iron play was solid again and had a couple of those momentum moments. I had chip-in on seven, good up-and-down on six, great up-and-down on nine, key parts that allowed me to kind