Justin Hastings laughs when asked if his win at the Latin America Amateur Championship has settled in yet.
“People keep asking me that question,” he says. “I honestly don’t know when I’m supposed to know if it’s kicked in… not till I walk down Magnolia Lane.”
For the San Diego State senior, the road to Augusta National has been long—geographically and metaphorically. Raised in the Cayman Islands, a tiny nation with one 18-hole course and a 9-hole loop owned by the Ritz, Hastings’ introduction to golf wasn’t exactly conventional. But it was instant love.
“I was probably seven years old,” he says. “Started from a hundred yards out, and within a month, I was getting dropped off at the course every day after school. For some reason, it just never got old.”
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That passion carried him across the globe and into the Latin America Amateur Championship, a tournament he first played as a 14-year-old back in 2018. He made the cut that year, believed to be the youngest to do so at the time, and has returned every year since. He finished second in 2024, his closest brush with victory to that point.
“Somebody brought it up to me last year—every year I’ve improved my position,” Hastings says. “So going into this year, it was like… not many places left to move up without winning.”
This year, in Pilar, Argentina, he finally put it all together, surviving a final-day doubleheader after weather compressed the tournament into 36 grueling Saturday holes. Hastings shot a brilliant 64 in the morning to take a four-shot lead, then held on tight during the afternoon’s closing round as that lead evaporated to one.
“There’s no question that going straight into that fourth round helped me,” he says. “Didn’t have to sleep on the lead. The momentum was there, vibes were high. We had a 42-minute lunch break and we were right back on the first tee.”
But the turning point came late, with just four holes to go.
“I had a mud ball on 15, with water left of the green and mud on the right side of the ball,” Hastings recalls. “We aimed right and hoped the mud didn’t do anything. Of course, it slams it left. It’s heading toward the water, and somehow it stops like six inches from the hazard. And I had the easiest chip on the whole green.”
In that moment, Hastings felt a shift. “That kind of break doesn’t happen to someone who’s coming second. I remember thinking, ‘Okay, we’re gonna get it done this week.’”
And now, he’s headed to Augusta National.
For Hastings, it’s more than just a bucket list tournament. It’s been the North Star since he was a kid. He remembers hearing about the inaugural LAAC when he was in middle school in the Caymans. Two players he knew were in the field.
“I think it was my dad who told me, ‘Peyton’s playing to go to the Masters.’ And I was like, ‘What?’ It blew my mind. From that moment, I was totally hooked.”
Hastings became such a Masters obsessive that it turned into a household tradition. “Every Thursday of Masters week, I’d stay home from school. My parents fought me on it the first couple years, but eventually it became a thing—Justin doesn’t go to school on Thursday of the Masters.”
Now, he’s not just watching. He’s playing.
It’ll be his first time at Augusta, and actually, his first time ever attending a PGA Tour event. Although he recently stepped inside the ropes when he competed in the Mexico Open and finished in 13th place and then played in the Puerto Rico where he missed the cut.
“Thrown into the fire,” he laughs. “But I can’t wait.”
As far as his daydreaming about Augusta National, he’s already got one hole circled.
“The 13th. I was a huge Phil Mickelson fan growing up. That second shot, the one from the pine straw—I can’t wait to try it. I know it’s going to be so much harder than it looks on TV.”
As for the caddie question, Hastings hasn’t finalized anything, but he’s leaning toward a local looper. Some advice from fellow Cayman Islander and LAAC champion Aaron Jarvis has stuck with him.
“I talked to Aaron in the airport after I won—he’s been through it all. His biggest piece of advice was find a local guy who knows Augusta. As cool as it would be to have my dad or coach on the bag, I think that’s the smart play.”
After the Masters, he’ll play the U.S. Open at Oakmont and the Open Championship at Royal Portrush. Hastings is quick to note he’s staying amateur through the summer to take advantage of these rare opportunities. “I’d be crazy to give it up,” he says. “If I’m meant to play pro golf, I’ll get there. But this is once in a lifetime.”
And for a kid from the Cayman Islands, raised on a windswept 18-hole course and chasing shadows of the Masters from afar, next week is a dream that finally comes into view—right down Magnolia Lane.
Hastings is currently ranked No. 15 in the Golfweek/AmateurGolf.com World Rankings.