Why Have There Been so Many First-Time Winners on the PGA Tour in 2013?

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: May 5, 2013

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The likes of Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy still dominate PGA Tour headlines, but as witnessed this weekend at Quail Hollow, a new wave of talented and confident golfers are quickly making their mark by claiming first-time victories at an accelerated rate.

Tour rookie Derek Ernst emerged from the pack Sunday to win the Wells Fargo Championship in a playoff over David Lynn in Charlotte, N.C.

In doing so, the 22-year-old Ernst, who bested established Tour stars including third-round co-leaders Mickelson and Nick Watney, became the seventh first-time winner through the first 19 official PGA Tour events of the season.



It’s a rather startling figure considering that during the same stretch of the 2012 Tour season, only four golfers broke through with first-time triumphs. Of those, Kyle Stanley, Jason Dufner and Rickie Fowler were already established players just looking for their first breakthrough.

The same can’t be said for Ernst, fellow rookie Russell Henley, John Merrick, Scott Brown and Kevin Streelman, just a few of the golfers that have surprised and surpassed some talented fields during the first half of the season.

Whether we’re looking at the emergence of exciting young players coupled with improving veterans finally breaking through or just a simple anomaly that will eventually correct itself is worthy of debate.

There is no doubt, however, that parity is finding its way to the Tour.

Younger players such as Ernst and Henley are arriving more ready to win than ever before, and vast improvements in technology and training are helping players in the middle of the world rankings as much as those at the top.

No matter the explanation, it’s fair to say this this run of first-timers is among the most interesting stories of the PGA Tour’s first half. It began right out of the gate when the promising Henley became the first...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Golf

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