Ranking the Best Short Games on the PGA Tour

Who has the best short game on the PGA Tour? It's not Phil Mickelson, even though he gets a lot of attention and made a DVD on the subject. 

In order to determine whose short game was the best on tour for 2014-15, we'll take a look at three metrics of short game success: strokes gained from putting, scrambling percentage and sand save percentage. Then, we'll average those three numbers and present the top 10. 

The guy in the picture above did pretty well in all three arenas, but four golfers were better. Here are the 10 best golfers around and on the greens of the PGA Tour. 

10. Luke Donald

Rob Brown/Associated Press

Strokes gained from putting: 38 (.290)

Sand saves: 9 (61.17%)

Scrambling: 46 (61.14%)

Average: 31

Perennially among the best putters and short game players on tour, it's no surprise to find Luke Donald leading off this list. A downturn in putting (No. 7 in strokes gained: putting for 2014) hurts his ranking this year.  

9. Aaron Baddeley

Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press

Strokes gained from putting: 1 (.717)

Sand saves: 20 (59.13%)

Scrambling: 48 (61%)

Average: 23

One of the worst golfers on the PGA Tour from tee to green, Aaron Baddeley needed to rely on his short game in 2015. Badds was No. 176 in strokes gained from tee-to-green. And to give an idea of the relative value of good play from tee to green versus putting: Baddeley was No. 135 in total strokes gained.  

8. K.J. Choi

Jay LaPrete/Associated Press

Strokes gained from putting: 18 (.411)

Sand saves: 26 (57.29%)

Scrambling: 16 (63.12%)

Average: 20

This one is a bit surprising; the former power lifter has a deft touch around the green. Choi has worked hard to improve his short game. He was No. 172 in strokes gained from putting in 2012 and No. 150 in scrambling. 

7. Matt Kuchar

Strokes gained from putting: 33 (.319)

Sand saves: 8 (61.49%)

Scrambling: 13 (63.78%)

Average: 18

Matt Kuchar's short game is consistently good. He has ranked inside the top 30 in strokes gained from putting every year since 2009. And regarding his bunker play, well, look no further than the clip above. 

6. Brandt Snedeker

Isaac Brekken/Associated Press

Strokes gained from putting: 5 (.586)

Sand saves: 21 (59.04%)

Scrambling: 15 (63.27%)

Average: 13.6

Not particularly long or accurate, Brandt Snedeker doesn't find a ton of greens. He was No. 129 in greens in regulation for 2015. Thus, it's not surprising that as a seven-time winner on the PGA Tour he has a short game he can lean on. 

5. Jordan Spieth

GOH CHAI HIN/Getty Images

Strokes gained from putting: 8 (.572)

Sand saves: 24 (58.14%)

Scrambling: 4 (65.03%)

Average: 12

Jordan Spieth was No. 49 on tour in greens in regulation last year, but he managed to win two majors and five additional tournaments. How'd he do it? Brilliant putting and near-tour-leading scrambling certainly didn't hurt. 

4. Brendon Todd

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Strokes gained from putting: 7 (.584)

Sand saves: 6 (61.90%)

Scrambling: 22 (62.63%)

Average: 11.6

From a results standpoint, Brendon Todd took a step backward in 2015. He tallied just four top-10 finishes, contrasting with seven top-10s and a win for his 2013-14 efforts. That's odd because he was statistically similar otherwise, and his short game was top-notch. 

3. Zac Blair

Stew Milne/Associated Press

Strokes gained from putting: 11 (.520)

Sand saves: 15 (60.39%)

Scrambling: 6 (64.81%)

Average: 10.6

As one of the shortest hitters on tour and No. 142 in strokes gained from tee-to-green in 2015, it's no surprise Zac Blair has a first-rate short game. If he didn't, he'd be lucky to hold onto a spot on the Web.com Tour. 

2. Kevin Na

Joshua Paul/Associated Press

Strokes gained from putting: T49 (.232)

Sand saves: 1 (63.19%)

Scrambling: 19 (62.87%)

Average: 10

His putting wasn't up to snuff in 2015, but the rest of Kevin Na's short game was top-tier. Na was No. 14 in the critical "scrambling from 10-20 yards" category as well. And averaging just over 280 yards off the tee, Na needs his short game to be finely honed to contend, which has been doing with regularity lately. 

1. Jason Day

KIM DOO-HO/Getty Images

Strokes gained: putting: 6 (.585)

Sand saves: 10 (61.11%)

Scrambling: 2 (65.34%)

Average: 6

No surprise here; Jason Day, who won five times in 2015, was impressive in every facet of his game. He was fifth in strokes gained from tee-to-green and fourth in total strokes gained. 

All stats via PGATour.com