5 Reasons 2015 Will Be Great on the PGA Tour
There is always anticipation for the start of a new PGA Tour season, and as the 2015 portion of the 2014-15 season approaches, there are things to be excited about.
Whether it's Rory McIlroy chasing another piece of history, the Open Championship returning to the birthplace of golf or the possibility of Tiger Woods being relevant, the 2015 season is set to be something special.
Just having the Open Championship at St. Andrews makes that particular year special, and this one will be no different.
Check out my list below.
Rory McIlroy's Grand Slam Attempt
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We saw the power and grace of Rory McIlroy's game in the last half of the 2014 PGA Tour season.
Two majors and a World Golf Championship title have given him a hammerlock on the No. 1 player of the world status and has him on the verge of something special.
A Masters victory at Augusta National Golf Club would make him the sixth golfer to win the professional grand slam. Gene Sarazen (1935), Ben Hogan (1953), Gary Player (1965), Jack Nicklaus (1966) and Tiger Woods (2000) are the only other members of that elite group.
The pressure on McIlroy will be tremendous, especially after the last time he had a real chance to win the Masters. He had a one-shot lead going into the back nine on Sunday but melted down to shoot 80.
It will be an interesting couple months leading up to the azaleas and magnolias.
Tiger Woods Is Back
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It's time to resume the seemingly endless Tiger Woods drama.
He had a brutal 2014 season thanks to an ailing back, surgery, rehab and a change in swing coaches/teachers.
Woods declared himself healthy at the tournament he hosts, the Hero World Challenge.
But there are obvious questions. Will the back hold up? How long will it take to become comfortable with the latest swing changes in the heat of a major? Can he learn to putt well enough again in order to contend in majors?
Regardless of how this all works out, you know he'll be in the news each and every week.
Open Championship at St. Andrews
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If there were ever two things better matched than the Open Championship and the Old Course at St. Andrews, it's hard to imagine what they are.
The world's oldest championship will be held on the world's oldest golf course in the third week of July for the 29th time, and really, the two are made for each other.
It's never listed as one of the most scenic courses in the world, but it's definitely the most historic and creates unprecedented interest each time the Open comes back.
Over the years, the Old Course has been referred to as featureless and bland, but history will show that the greatest players ever to play the game have walked those fairways, played the Road Hole and navigated the Valley of Sin guarding the 18th green.
This will be Tom Watson's final appearance in the Open, and that will become a big story as Open week goes on, just as it was when Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer played their final Opens.
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Rickie Fowler, Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed
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It could be that Tiger Woods will never be the dominant player that he once was. It sure looks as though Phil Mickelson's best days are behind him.
And, if that's the case, there will be a need for a new face of American golf. As luck would have it, there isn't just one face. There are three.
Meet Rickie Fowler, Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed.
At ages 25, 21 and 24, respectively, the trio haven't hit their prime yet.
Fowler and Spieth were on Rory McIlroy's heels as they scorched the golfing landscape in the last half of the 2014 season. Reed won twice early and then was a star for the losing U.S. Ryder Cup team.
Those three have the capabilities to accomplish some special things in 2015.
Anchored Putting Stroke Going, Going...
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Just over a year from now, a new rule will go into effect that will change how the game is played for many players.
The United States Golf Association and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club in Europe enacted a rule that bans any anchored putting stroke. Those who putt that way will have to find a new way to do so. They can still use their long or belly putters, but they can't be anchored to the chest, midsection or anywhere else on their bodies.
The name that comes to mind immediately in this discussion is Adam Scott. He's been the No. 1 player in the world for a brief time, has won a Masters and has maintained a top-five position in the world over the last several years. He's been working with a regulation putter as well as an adjusted setup with his long putter.
It would be reasonable to presume there will be increased pressure on the long-putting guys this year to win. After all, in 2016 they'll be re-entering the world of regulation putting, a world these guys escaped by going to the longer putter and anchored stroke.
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