The 2021-2022 golf season is past its midway point, and with the second major of the year on deck, it is time for us to look at five golfers who have underachieved so far this season.
For a myriad of reasons, these five haven’t lived up to their standards and need to kick it into high gear if they want to earn a spot at the TOUR Championship later this year.
5. Webb Simpson
The 36-year-old has been underwhelming this season, currently in 136 place in the FedEx Cup standings. Simpson has cashed in on eight of 11 events but has garnered just two top-25 finishes, with his best a T8 at the RSM Classic last fall.
The seven-time PGA Tour winner needs to get his game in gear if he wants to return to the FedEx Cup playoffs for the 14th year in a row.
4. Phil Mickelson
Lefty was in the news for the wrong reasons back in January when comments on Saudi Arabian humanitarian practices were published. Since the remarks, Mickelson hasn’t been heard from or seen since.
The 51-year-old defending PGA Championship winner wasn’t productive on the course either when he was playing, collecting just two made cuts in four events, with his top finish a T30 at the Sentry Tournament of Champions.
3. Justin Rose
The former no. 1 player in the world and 2018 FedEx Cup champion might be falling victim to Father Time. The 41-year-old sits at 125th in the FedEx rankings and has tumbled to 61st in the official world golf rankings.
Outside of a T14 at the Zurich Classic team event, Rose has missed three of his last four cuts. The ten-time PGA Tour winner has one top-10 finish in 2022, but the rest of the season has gone by the wayside, and he’s in jeopardy of missing the playoffs without a quick turnaround.
2. Bryson DeChambeau
Hard to place DeChambeau here since the bomber has battled a rash of injuries. But with injuries comes disappointment as expectations are not met. We’ve seen Bryson just five times this year, and in those events, the no. 22 ranked player in the world managed to make just two cuts.
The 2020 U.S. Open champion picked up a pair of victories last year, but his best finish to date is a T25 in Hawaii at the Tournament of Champions.
The lack of competition has dropped DeChambeau to 219 in the FedEx Cup standings, and there is no timetable for his return to competitive action.
1. Rickie Fowler
Maybe we are too tough on the five-time PGA Tour winner who has seemly never regained his form since with 2018-19 season when he had eleven top-25 finishes in 20 events.
Fowler has just 13 top-25 finishes in the three seasons since, his closest look at victory at T3 at the CJ CUP @ SUMMIT last October.
There are still many years left in the tank for the 33-year-old, but sitting at 140th in the world and 122 in the FedEx leaves a lot to be desired for the former number one ranked amateur in the world.
