Don't Be Surprised If More Europeans Stand Victorious at Future Majors

With all the recent talk of the "Tiger-less" tournaments, Ping's 20 year old exception, and the struggles that plague the PGA Tour week in and week out, the European Tour comes out smelling like roses.

Without Tiger, the European Tour is much better to watch on a weekly basis, boasting at least 21 players ranked in the top 50 playing almost every week.

The fact is, 2010 is a big year for golf, in the United States and in Europe.

This year's Ryder Cup is going to be a battle, with Europe coming off a disheartening loss in which they were the overwhelming favorite, at Valhalla Golf Club in Kentucky.

While it is still very early, it seems as though the Europeans will be the favorites again when they collide with the United States team at Celtic Manor in Newport, Wales.

It seems as though the Europeans have used the Ryder Cup, as well as various other platforms, to showcase the talent that exists overseas; talent that many Americans overlook.

That’s why in 2010, do not be surprised if we have more than one Euro hoisting a major championship trophy.

When Padraig Harrington won his first Open Championship, only to follow with a second Claret Jug in as many years, and then raised the Wannamaker Trophy, it seemed as though the floodgates had opened for Europeans to start dominating the major championships.

However, in 2009, the Europeans could not keep what Harrington started alive, failing to capture any major.

Since the days of Seve, Faldo, and Langer, the Europeans have only managed to scatter a few major championship victories in the mix.

Including Harrington's three, Europe has only amassed a miniscule five major championship victories since Faldo's last in 1996 (Paul Lawrie, Scotland, 1999 Open Championship and Jose Maria Olazabal, Spain, 1999 Masters).

But that’s ancient history to the current roster of Euro golfers.

Lee Westwood leads the pack of hungry Europeans, coming very close to winning more than one major championship in his past, including finishing third at the 2009 Open Championship, in which he three putted the 72nd hole to miss out on a playoff by one shot.

In the past couple of years, along with Sergio Garcia, Westwood has seemed to be the standard by which European golf has been judged.

Now both are just the veterans looking to capture that elusive first major and only add to their legacies in the United States and beyond.

But you cannot ignore the up and comers in Europe, which include Martin Kaymer (25 years old) and the future face of golf, Rory McIlroy (20 years old).

McIlroy opened the eyes of the golf world in 2009 by capturing the Dubai Desert Classic. McIlroy also showed his ability to handle pressure last year, finishing 10th in his first U.S. Open and followed with a third place finish in his first PGA Championship.

Kaymer has already established himself as a force to be reckoned with; he's ranked sixth in the most recent World Golf Rankings, finished T6 at last year's PGA Championship and has collected 13 professional wins, five of which have come on the European Tour, most recently the 2010 Abu Dhabi Golf Championship.

While Westwood and Garcia have proven themselves to be contenders in majors for years, Kaymer and McIlroy give a light towards the future of European golf. Even if Garcia (still only 30) or Westwood (36 years old) cannot claim a major title in the next few years, McIlroy and Kaymer top the list of the rest of the Euros.

The rest of the list is quite impressive, I might add.

Paul Casey (age 32), currently ranked sixth in the most recent World Golf rankings, dominated the Pac-10 during his time at Arizona State. He currently has 11 professional victories and has registered top-10 finishes in every major except for the PGA Championship, where his best finish is T-15.

Henrik Stenson (age 33) is currently ranked 10th in the world. He has already established himself as a threat to the major championships, finishing in the top 10 in three of the four: T-3 at the 2008 Open Championship and T-4 at the 2008 PGA Championship. He has 12 career professional victories, including wins at the 2007 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship and in 2009 at The Players Championship.

Ian Poulter (age 34), is ranked 11th in the world and has become a walking fashion show at majors. The saying goes "never dress louder than your game". Poulter hasn't let his dress upstage him in the past, collecting 10 professional victories and having top 15 finishes in all major championships, including a second place finish to fellow European Harrington in 2008.

That is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to talent grown overseas.

Among the best of the rest include:

-Robert Karlsson: 11 professional wins, three top eight finishes in major championships.

-Ross Fisher: three professional wins, finished fifth at the 2009 U.S. Open

Then there is three-time major winner Padraig Harrington, the 2007 and 2008 Open Champion and 2008 PGA Champion. While he has had his struggles since his last major win, you can never count out a man who has had as much success as Paddy.

While the talent is great all over the world, and America has dominated the major championships for the most part, an uprising from Europe should not shock golf fans.

If anything, it is time to prepare to see more Europeans fitted for green jackets or holding up the Claret Jug, Wannamaker Trophy or, dare I say it, the United States Open Trophy.