This article is part of our Golf Draft Kit series.
It's called an offseason, but there's really no such thing as an offseason for professional golfers. The PGA Tour takes a short break, but the players play on. Whether it's a stop on the Asian Tour or an unofficial event in the States, golfers are teeing it up darn near 52 weeks a year.
Luckily for us fantasy golfers, we do get a break. Some leagues forgo the larger break and play through the fall season, but many leagues take the fall months off. For those who unplugged from the sport for the past few months, there are a few things you should be aware of, and that's where we come in.
We decided to leave our 2014-15 season rankings in tact as not much has changed the last few months. But we also thought it would be wise to note some things that took place while many of you were focused on football.
Here are some items that caught my eye over the past few months.
• A few big names won in the fall season, and for those players, not much has changed. But there were also a bunch of lesser-known golfers who won, and for whom things are about to change. Specifically, Ben Martin, Nick Taylor and Robert Streb notched some pretty important victories this fall. Streb and Martin are no strangers to success. Now that they have a jump on the season, it will be interesting to see how they react when 2015 schedule comes around.
It's called an offseason, but there's really no such thing as an offseason for professional golfers. The PGA Tour takes a short break, but the players play on. Whether it's a stop on the Asian Tour or an unofficial event in the States, golfers are teeing it up darn near 52 weeks a year.
Luckily for us fantasy golfers, we do get a break. Some leagues forgo the larger break and play through the fall season, but many leagues take the fall months off. For those who unplugged from the sport for the past few months, there are a few things you should be aware of, and that's where we come in.
We decided to leave our 2014-15 season rankings in tact as not much has changed the last few months. But we also thought it would be wise to note some things that took place while many of you were focused on football.
Here are some items that caught my eye over the past few months.
• A few big names won in the fall season, and for those players, not much has changed. But there were also a bunch of lesser-known golfers who won, and for whom things are about to change. Specifically, Ben Martin, Nick Taylor and Robert Streb notched some pretty important victories this fall. Streb and Martin are no strangers to success. Now that they have a jump on the season, it will be interesting to see how they react when 2015 schedule comes around.
• Streb not only won during fall, but he also claimed two other top-10s. You could say he dominated the fall swing. Entering the 2015 portion of the season, Streb is your FedEx Points leader. Don't get too excited, though. If you recall, Jimmy Walker looked like Ben Hogan during fall 2013, and although he carried over some momentum, he never reached that same level in the new year.
• Bubba Watson was the biggest name to win an official event this fall. For fans of Bubba, this was nice to see as Watson had tailed off a bit after a strong start to the 2014 season.
• Jordan Spieth did not win an official event, but he did beat a solid field at the Hero World Challenge. Much like Watson, Spieth also struggled down the stretch, so it was good to see that he's doing just fine. Speaking of Spieth, I expect yet another jump this year. If he improves on last year's numbers, it will put him in a class few have known. A major victory would put him right below McIlroy at this point.
• Speaking of the Hero World Challenge, Tiger Woods didn't look so good, but the fact that he got through four rounds was a positive. I'm torn on his prospects this season, though. A couple years ago I was certain that he'd get back to a very high level of play. Now, I'm not so sure. I'm not ready to declare him ready for the Champions Tour yet, but I'd like to see some positive signs early in the season.
• Jason Day is again poised for a big season ... if he can stay healthy. He's played well during the unofficial fall season because he's healthy. It's tough to predict injuries this far off, but everything looks positive.
• Regrets, I've had a few, but then again too few to mention. Ah, who am I kidding, this is a perfect opportunity to mention some things I would change:
1. I have Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth tied for 2nd on my 2015 projected earnings. I may have gotten a little caught up in how Fowler played at the majors last year. After all, it's not like he has a long track record of winning on the PGA Tour. Is he capable of winning several events this year? Certainly, but if given the chance, I'd move Spieth ahead of Fowler.
2. Speaking of getting swept up by emotion, Billy Horschel's projected earnings of $5.5 million look a bit high now that we've gotten some distance from his outstanding run during the FedEx Cup Playoffs. Don't get me wrong, I think Horschel is a fine player with plenty of upside, but $5.5 might be a bit optimistic.
3. If Jason Dufner has no setbacks, he should easily surpass the number I set out for him this year, which was $2.75 million.
There, I said I had a few. I'm sure there will be more down the road, but for now, that's all I got.
