There is no more difficult test in golf on an annual basis than the second major championship. The 2017 U.S. Open is being contested at Erin Hills in Wisconsin, a first for this venue. Perhaps not surprisingly, players are already upset about the way the USGA has set up the demanding course.
Needless to say, it’s going to take nothing but the best to win. The field is loaded with the top golfers the game has to offer, minus Phil Mickelson, who has family matters to attend to.
Daniel Berger comes into the week hot, having won the FedEx St. Jude Classic for the second year in a row. But who else is riding a hot streak? That’s what we’ll be examining here.
These are the 10 hottest golfers entering the 2017 U.S. Open.
Daniel Berger
Young Daniel Berger is learning how to become a winner on the PGA Tour. He comes into the 2017 U.S. Open riding the momentum of his FedEx St. Jude Classic victory, which marks his first win this season and second in as many years on this course.
Berger closed out the weekend at TPC Southwind with two straight scores of 66. He beat out a talented field that included Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott, Kevin Chappell (more on him in a moment) and runner-up Charl Schwartzel.
The 24-year-old has two other top-10 finishes on the year and fared well at the Masters, finishing in 27th place. Berger has competed in two previous U.S. Opens, finishing in 28th and 37th place.
We probably shouldn’t expect a win from the former Florida State Seminoles star this weekend. But he did place 10th at the 2016 Masters, so anything’s possible.
Brian Harman
It’s been an interesting season for this 30-year-old University of Georgia product. Harman missed the cut in his last tournament, which was the Memorial Tournament, posting dual 76s in his first two rounds. So in that sense, he’s not coming into the 2017 U.S. Open red hot.
However, before that stumble, Harman had a win at the Wells Fargo Championship. After winning in North Carolina, Harman was asked how he was able to withstand the pressure of playing the final round.
“Just having a little more belief in myself. Just trusting that I’m pretty good at what I do.”
In addition to his win, Harman had two other top-10 finishes in his last four tournaments. Though, he also finished in a tie for 53rd in the middle of all that at THE PLAYERS Championship.
That typifies Harman’s season. He’s either been darn good or almost falling apart at the seams. In 20 events, he has six missed cuts and five top-10s. Thankfully he’s been more hot than not of late, and he enters the U.S. Open ranked No. 11 in the FedEx Cup Rankings.
It’s worth noting that, in two previous U.S. Open appearances, Harman missed the cut both times. Hopefully he’ll be on the hot side of things this year so he can have a chance to play through the weekend.
Kevin Chappell
Since finishing in a tie for seventh place at Augusta in April, Chappell has been generally playing some good golf. Two weeks after that strong finish at the Masters, he won the Valero Texas Open, his first career victory.
This past weekend, Chappell claimed fourth place at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, continuing his strong play as he marches into Erin Hills. In between his victory and this excellent finish, he struggled a bit with two sub-par performances at the THE PLAYERS Championship and the Memorial Tournament.
The U.S. Open has recently been a tough nut for Chappell, who missed the cut last year and has finished no better than 32nd place going back to 2013. However, he has played well in this major, finishing in third and 10th place back in 2011 and 2012, respectively.
Justin Thomas
One of the rising stars on the PGA Tour, Thomas opened up his season with three wins before February. Though he’s cooled off a bit since then, it’s worth noting that, in 15 starts this season, Thomas has cracked the top 10 seven times.
This includes his last tournament, when Thomas finished in fourth place at the Memorial Tournament. At the end of April, he landed a fifth-place finish at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, and he finished in fifth place at the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship.
Clearly, he’s beginning to make his mark as a force on tour. Though, it’s worth pointing out he has yet to log that signature big win every young golfer must in order to be counted among the game’s elite.
In seven previous major championships, Thomas has made the cut six times, signalling he does have the chops to compete on the game’s biggest stage. Whether he can pull it all together to register a win remains to be seen.
Jon Rahm
This talented Spaniard continues to shine on the PGA Tour.
Forgetting his missed cut at the Memorial Tournament, what Rahm has done this season is nothing short of exemplary. Since winning the Farmers Insurance Open in January, he’s logged five top-10 finishes in his last eight events, counting that missed cut.
Earning $4.5 million this season (fifth on tour), he’s averaging under 70 strokes per round and under two putts per green in regulation.
Rahm was the leading amateur finisher in last year’s U.S. Open, tying for 23rd place. He finished in a tie for 27th at the Masters in April. Now that he’s got a few major championships under his belt, we fully expect the Arizona State product to challenge for a top-10 finish this weekend, if not quite a bit better than that.
Jordan Spieth
Isn’t it funny how recency bias works?
Spieth was, by far, the best golfer in the world throughout the 2015 season — a historic campaign that saw him log five total wins, including two wins, a second-place finish and a tie for fourth in major championships. That stretch of dominance almost was a curse on the young man, who, two years later is still just 23 years of age.
This season, Spieth has one win to his credit — his tremendous victory at Pebble Beach over a loaded field — and five top-10s in 14 events played.
Most recently, Spieth logged a second-place finish at the DEAN & DELUCA Invitational and a 13th-place finish at the Memorial Tournament. He’s missed a couple cuts in between these finishes and his 11th-place performance at Augusta, but for the most part Spieth has been rock solid throughout his current campaign.
Rickie Fowler
Fowler’s been a bit down of late, but his second-place finish at the Memorial Tournament and what he’s accomplished throughout the season lands him on this list.
Averaging 69.4 strokes per round, Fowler is one of the lowest scorers on average the PGA Tour has to offer (No. 3 overall). He won The Honda Classic in February and has five top-10 finishes in 12 total events played.
Fowler missed the cut at the FedEx St. Jude Classic and was a non-factor at THE PLAYERS Championship. But in addition to his excellence at the Memorial, he logged an 11th-place finish at the Masters and a 16-under performance at the Shell Houston Open, good for third.
Now at the age of 28, it’s time for Fowler to take his game to the next level. He’s struggled his past two U.S. Opens, missing the cut in 2015 and 2016. Though, before that, Fowler finished in second in 2014 and 10th in 2013. So, he certainly has the game to make a run at the trophy every year.
Hideki Matsuyama
One of the few golfers who’ve won multiple times on the PGA Tour this year, Matsuyama started the year with three wins in his first seven events. His last victory came in February at the Waste Management Phoenix Open in a playoff over Fowler.
Since that big win, he’s had his share of ups and downs since then.
Most recently, Matsuyama’s toiled a bit with finishes in the 20s and 40s in four of his past five tournaments. In the middle of all that, however, the Japanese star finished in a tie for 11th at Augusta, reminding us all just how dangerous he is at a tough venue.
Because he’s been competing in majors since the 2011 season, it’s easy to forget Matsuyama is still just 25 years old. He’s been somewhat of a mainstay on major championship leaderboards in recent years, finishing in the top 10 five times since 2013.
Though, if Matsuyama is going to have any luck this weekend, he’ll need to get his driver accuracy on point (No. 88 on tour in driving accuracy). Erin Hills doesn’t forgive those who go errant off the tee.
Sergio Garcia
Now that he’s finally got the monkey off his back, who knows what we’ll see from Garcia this weekend?
The Spanish star who many thought would be a worthy rival to Tiger Woods finally won a major at the age of 37. Garcia came through with a victory for the ages in a sudden-death overtime win over Justin Rose at Augusta.
In 10 events played this year on the PGA Tour, Garcia has made it to the weekend all 10 times. He has finished in the top 25 seven times and has one other top-10 finish in addition to his Masters win. He also won the Omega Dubai Desert Classic on the European Tour this past February.
In 17 career appearances in the U.S. Open, Garcia has made the cut 15 times. His best finish came back in 2005 when he finished in a tie for third place, and he finished in a tie for fifth place last year. Needless to say, we’ll be more surprised if Garcia isn’t a factor than if he ends up challenging for his second straight major title.
Dustin Johnson
Even though he’s missed some big events (including the Masters) due to a back injury, Johnson is the top dog in the FedEx Cup Rankings and the money list.
In 11 events, Johnson has made the cut nine times, has won three times and has six top-10 finishes. Before his tumble down the stairs at Augusta, the lanky power hitter had won twice and had four top-three finishes in his last four events.
Scorching.
Since returning from his injury, we’ve seen a bit of mixed bag from Johnson. He came back with more heat, finishing in second place at the Wells Fargo Championship. Since then, however, we’ve seen Johnson just outside the top 10 at THE PLAYERS Championship and the AT&T Byron Nelson, followed by a missed cut at the Memorial Tournament.
It’s really hard to know what to expect from Johnson this weekend. He broke through with his first career major last year at the 2016 U.S. Open, so nobody would be surprised if he ends up with a big-time performance again this year.
However, making things even more interesting, for the second major in a row there is a bit of uncertainty surrounding Johnson. His fiancée, Paulina Gretzky, has yet to deliver their son, who is expected to arrive soon. Because they are waiting for their baby to be delivered, Johnson has yet to arrive at Erin Hills as of Sunday.
We can’t think of a better way to cap off a momentous occasion like the arrival of your son like winning another major.