21-yo Justin Hastings earns Masters and the Open invites after LAAC win

Justin Hastings won the 2025 Latin America Amateur Championship (LAAC) and earned a spot to play in the Majors. The 21-year-old was pretty impressive with his game at the recently concluded amateur championship and registered a one-shot win over Patrick Sparks.

Although Hastings had a rough start, he gained momentum in the second and third rounds, which gave him a good position on the leaderboard. Ultimately, he played the final round of 72 to settle for an overall score of 16-under, clinching a one-stroke win over Sparks, who settled in second at 15-under.

Courtesy of this win, Justin Hastings will be playing at the 153rd The Open Championship at the Royal Portrush, which will take place from July 17 to 20. Aside from that, he would also be joining the stellar field of the first Major of the year, the 2025 Masters at the Augusta National in April. Moreover, he would also be invited to play at the 2025 US Open at Oakmont Country Club.

Speaking of his marvelous victory, Justin Hastings said (via the Augusta Press):

“It’s still crazy to think about. I don’t think it’s totally kicked in. I definitely learned a lot today and I learned that I still have things to work on in those moments but at the same time, I’m proud to see how far my mental game has come in the last few years."

Patrick Sparks settled in second place after playing a round of 68, followed by Gerardo Gomez tied for third place with Gabriel Palacios and Segundo Oliva Pinto.

With his runner-up finish, Sparks will have a direct exemption to play in the final qualifying stage of the 2025 US Open and also for the Open Championship 2025.

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A look into Justin Hastings' performance at the LAAC 2025

Justin Hastings started his outing at the LAAC with its first round on Thursday, January 16. He began with a birdie on the second hole and then made a bogey on the first. He carded three birdies in total in the opening round along with two bogeys for a round of 1-under 71.

However, he enjoyed a relatively better outing in the second round of the tournament on January 17. He made eight birdies and just a bogey for a round of 7-under 65 in the second round.

Hastings took this momentum in the third round on January 18, starting with three birdies on the second, third, and fourth holes and then another birdie on the sixth. He added five birdies on the back nine along with a bogey for a round of 8-under 64.

In the final round, Hastings made three birdies and three bogeys for an even-par 72 round to finish with a total of 16-under.