By
SPORT DADDY NEWS GOLF
Each week on GolfChannel.com, we’ll examine which players’ stocks and trends are rising and falling in the world of golf.
RISING
J-Day (+9%): The longest, straightest driver also possesses the best short game. Little wonder he’s winning at a 41-percent clip.
Kevin Chappell (+6%): Don’t look now, but his Kisner-esque run in 2015-16 has propelled him to 10th in the Ryder Cup standings. He’ll bust down the door soon. And often.
Ken Duke (+3%): Move over, Sneds: The 47-year-old journeyman now owns the Round of the Year, after his are-you-kidding-me? 65 on TPC’s skating-rink greens.
Russell Knox (+2%): It’s easy to play the woulda-coulda-shoulda game – an example: Had he simply made par on the 17th hole Saturday – and not deposited three balls into the water – he would have tied for second and earned $924,000 – but he handled the “epic fail” with good cheer and bounced back with a 68.
Trey Mullinax (+1%): Justin Thomas, Bobby Wyatt and now another member of that dynastic Alabama team (2012-14) has made it big, with Mullinax winning on the Web.com circuit and locking up his card for next year. At this rate, even the Tide’s water boy is going to be on Tour soon.
FALLING
Rory (-1%): The good news? His long game is still at an elite level. Alas, his wedge game is a mess and after two months of shabby putting, it might be time to end the cross-handed experiment.
Big 3/4/5 narrative (-2%): This was soooo 2015.
Tiger’s return (-4%): Hey, it was just three wedge shots – three stiff, half-swing, rinsed wedge shots on national TV – but it was further proof that Woods is nowhere near a return to competition.
Jimmy Walker (-5%): One of the most consistent players over the past three seasons, he tied for DFL after two rounds of record-low scoring at Sawgrass. Oy.
Course setups (-7%): Sadly, the only way to keep some of these modern courses relevant is to push green speeds to the brink. When that happens, occasionally there will be out-of-control days like The Players’ third round.
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