Haotong Li’s hidden Masters meltdown turns Amen Corner into Augusta chaos

China’s Haotong Li produced one of the most dramatic and chaotic final-round collapses in Masters history on Sunday — a meltdown that, remarkably, largely unfolded off live television coverage.

The 30-year-old, playing alongside world number one Scottie Scheffler, began the day just four shots off the lead and briefly threatened a Sunday charge at Augusta National.

Li opened with a nervy bogey, but responded immediately in style, rolling in back-to-back birdies at the second and third to settle any early nerves. 

Momentum, however, proved fleeting. 

A run of three straight bogeys from the fifth stalled his progress, before another recovery stretch saw him birdie the eighth and ninth to turn in one-over-par.

At that stage, the four-time DP World Tour winner was at six-under for the tournament and still firmly in the top 10 — on track for what would have been a career-best Masters finish and potentially a third top-10 in a major championship.

But his tournament unravelled in spectacular fashion at Augusta’s most unforgiving stretch.

The turning point came at the iconic par-3 12th. 

Li came up short on the bank and his ball rolled into the water. 

From the drop zone, fortune turned against him again as his third shot struck the flagstick and ricocheted back into Rae’s Creek. 

Despite the chaos, he salvaged a 20-foot putt from the edge of the green for a triple-bogey six.

What followed on the par-5 13th was even more damaging.

His tee shot leaked right but remained on the fairway.

That was as good as it got on the hole. 

Li then tugged his second shot and his ball ricocheted off a rock into some bushes in the left-side tributary of Rae's Creek.

While the three-minute search was underway, just to further add to the spectacle, Li's caddie Jady de Beer slipped over while wading into the creekside bushes in pursuit of the ball.

After locating it, Li attempted to play out of the bushes but advanced it only a short distance further into trouble. 

A penalty drop followed, and although he eventually hacked his ball over the back of the green, the damage escalated further when his next shot rolled across and the front of the green and back into Rae’s Creek.

By the time he finally holed out, Li had carded a quintuple-bogey 10 on the hole. 

Li raised his arms aloft to huge cheers from the patrons as he walked off the green. 

Watch Li's meltdown on 13 here: 

In total, he played the 12th and 13th in 16 strokes — a devastating eight-over-par sequence across Augusta’s two most famous holes.

Adding to the surreal nature of the collapse, none of it was not shown on live broadcast coverage, with fans instead tracking shot-by-shot updates via the brilliant Masters app.

To his credit, Li briefly steadied the ship with a pinpoint approach to a foot on the 14th that led to a welcome birdie.

But further damage arrived late in the round with a bogey at the 17th.

He eventually signed for an eight-over 80 — a score that transformed a promising top-10 push into a bruising finish of tied 38th. 

Despite the setback, Li’s final position still reflected a week of strong golf up to the closing stretch, but the manner of the collapse ensured his Sunday became one of the most talked-about stories of the championship.

Li saw the funny side of it all though once he signed his card.

He took to his socials with the following post captioned: Well…I guess we go again.

While Li’s round imploded around him, Scheffler maintained his composure, posting a steady 68 to finish just one shot behind eventual champion Rory McIlroy.

McIlroy closed out the tournament at 12-under-par after a final-round 71, securing his second Masters title in 12 months and further cementing his place in history as a six-time major champion. 

The Northern Irishman became only the fourth player ever to successfully defend the Masters title, joining Jack Nicklaus (1966), Sir Nick Faldo (1990) and Tiger Woods (2002). 

Elsewhere, 2019 Open champion Shane Lowry also endured a difficult final day. 

Starting within touching distance of the lead, he too like Li closed with an 80 after a rollercoaster round featuring multiple double bogeys, bogeys, and a handful of birdies. 

Despite the disappointment, he remained on course to congratulate McIlroy afterwards as the green jacket was presented.

In a Masters Sunday defined by extremes, McIlroy’s triumph stood at one end of the spectrum — and Li’s extraordinary collapse at the other.