Yes, technically with their new wrap around schedule, the new PGA Tour season has already started, but the real season does not begin until the Tournament of Champions in January.
Last season brought a ton of great moments, from Bubba Watson winning his second Masters, to Billy Horschel coming out of nowhere to win the last two tournaments of the year and take home the Fed Ex Cup, to Rory McIlroy dominating the last half of the season and taking that momentum into the Ryder Cup for a convincing win for Europe over the United States. There are so many great story lines to follow this season, and it should not disappoint.
Three Biggest Storylines to Follow:
1) Can Tiger finally win a major?
Tiger dumped his old swing coach Sean Foley back in August and turned around and hired little known Chris Como as his swing “consultant.” The hire was a big surprise to everyone in the world of golf, but he was named one of the best teachers in the game by Golf Digest. NBC golf analyst Johnny Miller went as far to say that this is the best he has seen his driver swing since 2001 with the help of Como. Do I think that Tiger will get back to his dominate way of 2001? Absolutely not, but I do believe that he still has the ability to win a couple more majors.
2) Can Phil Mickelson win the US Open to complete the career grand slam?
Only five players in the Maters Era have completed the career grand slam with the last being Tiger Woods winning The British Open in 2000. Phil finally won the British Open Championship in 2013 and he said before the 2014 season he was fixing his game so that it would fit perfectly for the 2014 US Open at Pinehurst #2. However, that plan did not go over so well with a T28 finish and he was never really in contention. This season the US Open goes to Chambers Bay in Washington State, a place relatively unknown for major championships. Phil has a whopping six second place finishes in US Opens including some heartbreaking losses, so this could be the year that Phil finally completes his grand slam.
3) Will Rory McIlroy continue his dominance?
It is no doubt that Rory McIlroy is the best player in the world and he showed that the last half of the 2014 season. However, there is so much talent on tour right now that it is tough to have a run like that for a full season. With the likes of Adam Scott, Henrik Stenson, and now with the emergence of young talent like Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth it will be interesting to see if Rory can have the same type of season. Along with Phil Mickelson, Rory is also only one major away from completing his career grand slam, and he will have his chance in April at the Masters.
Player with a Chance to Win Multiple Majors:
I am a huge believer in the talents of Sweden’s Henrik Stenson, and I believe this is the season he truly breaks out. He did win the Fed Ex Cup in 2013 with wins at the Deutsche Bank and the Tour Championship to win a cool $10 million, but 2014 was a very disappointing season. This season already looks better for Stenson by winning the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. I expect for Stenson, who is currently ranked second in the world behind Rory, to contend in some if not all of the majors in 2015, and it would not surprise me for him to finally win at least one.
Player That Will Sneak under the Radar:
Matt Kuchar has been flying under the radar in the world of golf for many years. He is a very sound, American golfer who has at least one win in five of the last six seasons. He has also been a part of either the Ryder Cup or President’s Cup team every season since 2010. Kuchar has yet to win a major, but has quite a few top 10s, and when he is playing at his best, there are very few players on tour that can keep up. Kuchar is ranked 11th in the world so people who follow the game know that he has the ability to win a major, he just has not taken that last step. 2015 could very well be the year for Kuchar to finally win that first major.
Josh Sisco
Josh was born and raised in Westerly, Rhode Island. He graduated from Western New England university with a degree in accounting. He's a huge fan of almost every sport (including golf and NASCAR), and a personal fan of Red Sox, Cowboys, and Mavericks.
