5 Rookies to Watch on the PGA Tour in 2016
It's a boom time for young golfers on the PGA Tour.
With the success of the American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) preparing players for top-level college golf and the Web.com Tour preparing top talents for immediate PGA Tour impact, it's not surprising that 14 players under the age of 30 totaled 24 victories on the PGA Tour in 2015.
Daniel Berger beat out Justin Thomas, Tony Finau and Nick Taylor for Rookie of the Year honors.
Any one of these five gentlemen could succeed Berger in the ROY race.
We'll analyze five rookies to watch, breaking down how they performed last year and so far this year, and we'll examine their statistical strengths.
Harold Varner III
1 of 5
OWGR: 280
2014-2015 play: Harold Varner III made 18 of 25 cuts on the Web.com Tour last year, with a pair of second-place finishes and five top 10s. Varner finished 33rd in the final priority rankings.
Season so far: He made four of five cuts. Varner's best finish: tied for fifth at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba.
Strengths (Web.com Tour stats)
- Driving distance: 8 (313.4)
- Greens in regulation percentage: 20 (71.94%)
- Par-five scoring average: 22 (4.60)
Brett Stegmaier
2 of 5
OWGR: 286
2014-2015 play: Brett Stegmaier recorded four top 10s, eight top 25s and 12 made cuts. He was 18th in the final priority-ranking order. He finished fifth at the Small Business Connection Championship.
Season so far: Stegmaier finished tied for second at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. He's made five of five cuts and totaled two top-10 finishes.
Strengths (Web.com Tour stats):
- Total driving: 13 (93)
- Scrambling: 28 (60.78%)
Patton Kizzire
3 of 5
OWGR: 74
2014-2015 play: Patton Kizzire won twice on the Web.com Tour in 2015. He finished second twice and third once, totaling 12 top-10 finishes in 23 starts. Kizzire led the tour in earnings.
Season so far: Kizzire finished inside the top five in his first two starts of the season (Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, Sanderson Farms Championship). He's made three of four cuts.
Strengths (Web.com Tour stats)
- Greens in regulation percentage: 8 (72.69%)
- Putting average: 1 (1.694)
- Ball striking: 16 (59)
Emiliano Grillo
4 of 5
OWGR: 31
2014-2015 play: Emiliano Grillo made four of five cuts in PGA Tour stats last year. On the Web.com Tour, he made three of four cuts and won the Web.com Tour Championship.
Season so far: Grillo won the Frys.com Open. He's made three of four cuts.
Strengths (PGA Tour stats)
- Total driving: 4 (93)
- Ball striking: 16 (63)
- Approaches from 50-125 yards: 11 (14'2'')
Smylie Kaufman
5 of 5
OWGR: 69
2014-2015 play: Smylie Kaufman won the United Leasing Championship. He totaled five top-10 finishes in 20 starts on the Web.com Tour but, interestingly, he missed as many cuts (10) as he made.
Season so far: Kaufman won the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in October. He tied for 10th at the Frys.com Open and has made the cut in all six starts.
Strengths (Web.com Tour)
- Driving distance: 6 (314.7)
- Putting average: 5 (1.706)
- Birdie average: 4.51 (3)
