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Wyndham Clark | Recent Results: CUT, WIN, 3rd
Clark, one of the more polarizing figures in the game right now, had been going through a funk for the majority of 2026. The putter was the main factor in that funk, but as of late something has clicked, and it’s turned into a weapon for him once again.
How long it will remain a weapon? Time will tell, but he’s doing a great job of cashing in while it is, winning the Byron Nelson and almost pulling off a second win in as many starts by finishing one shot outside the playoff at the Memorial.
He’s gained strokes on approach in all but two starts this year, so I would treat him as a real threat heading into the U.S. Open if his putter can remain hot for a couple more weeks.
Kristoffer Reitan | Recent Results: WIN, T44, T6
Reitan has played nicely in following up his massive breakthrough win at the Truist. He made the cut in his first-ever PGA Championship, which I view as a solid result even though the exact finish on paper doesn’t look overly impressive.
He returned to action at the Memorial and continued to impress with a T6, which included an unreal up-and-down for birdie on the 15th coming in.
The approach play has been dialed in for four straight starts now, an area that was quite poor at the beginning of his PGA Tour campaign, so he’ll look to continue that going forward.
Ryan Gerard | Recent Results: T70, T10, 2nd
Everyone knows how Gerard finished 2025 and started 2026 in a fury with three straight runner-up finishes across the globe. After that, though, he went into a cold spell that saw him struggle to produce results better than T25, with particularly inconsistent putting and around-the-green play.
While the around-the-green play actually continues to be a problem, even with these improved finishes, he’s had back-to-back fantastic weeks with the putter. Because of that, he’s once again shown signs of life and serious potential with a T10 at the Charles Schwab and a runner-up finish in a playoff at the Memorial.
The strokes he’s gained with the putter over the last two weeks won’t be sustainable long term, so he’ll need the around-the-green play to improve and help round out his game when the putter eventually cools off again.
Aaron Rai | Recent Results: 5, WIN, T19
Rai is the only golfer who remains on this list from the last edition.
His major win still carries a lot of weight, and he deserves his flowers. It’s always hard to follow up with another strong major performance after unexpectedly breaking through, especially with all the new expectations that come with it, but a T19 at the Memorial will suffice for me.
J.J. Spaun | Recent Results: CUT, T6, T12
He hasn’t improved his case as a outlier major winner when you simply look at his Wikipedia major championship results grid. Two missed cuts in the two majors this year.
However, after an unexpected win at the Valero, he’s definitely started to turn the corner and flip the script on what had been a dreadful season.
In his last three non-major starts, his results are T5, T6, and T12. Notably, he hasn’t lost strokes on approach since the Genesis. The putter, which has been an area of concern throughout his career, has once again been the issue he’s had to battle this season after treating him fairly well in 2025.
If he’s able to find a hot putter again for a sustained stretch, look out for him. He’s not too far off.
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Jacob Bridgeman | Recent Results: T52, CUT, T34
Another disappointing week keeps Bridgeman on this list.
Like I said in the last edition, the putting was bound to cool off after the insane stretch he had with it when he picked up his first win at the Genesis Invitational, but it’s really cooled off now, as he’s lost strokes with the flatstick in four of his last six starts, and his best finish during that stretch is a T33.
He was one of the game’s early-season candidates for Breakout Player of the Year, but he’ll need to start performing again if he wants that crown by season’s end. He’s also playing his way off the Presidents Cup team right now after seeming like almost a lock for it just a couple of months ago.
Akshay Bhatia | Recent Results: CUT, T28, CUT
It frustrates me to have to say this, but the way Bhatia has followed up his big win at the API has been shocking and extremely disappointing. The U.S. is getting pretty desperate for some new stars and up-and-comers, and just when it seemed Bhatia was breaking through into that category, he’s taken a massive step backward.
Even more frustrating has been his play in the majors this year, missing the cut in both. The approach play has been far too inconsistent, and his game seems to leave him whenever the weather conditions get tough. Something to monitor.
Robert MacIntyre | Recent Results: CUT, T42, CUT
His season has sure taken a massive dive since that abysmal showing at the Masters, which had him flipping off the 15th green. Since then, his results are: CUT, T42, T60, CUT, T42, CUT.
Pretty shocking…
More specifically, he’s been losing strokes on approach pretty much every time he tees it up, an area he’s struggled with for basically the entire year.
It seems like he’ll need a miracle if he wants to repeat, or better, his runner-up finish at last year’s U.S. Open in a couple of weeks.
Viktor Hovland | Recent Results: T38, T31, CUT
He hasn’t teed it up since our last edition of this list, so he’s staying put.
Hovland was an unexpected withdrawal from the Memorial, a tournament he’s won before, but as of now he’s in the field to tee it up this week and make his debut at the RBC Canadian Open.
Consistency is what he continues to battle, and stringing together four consecutive solid rounds seems like a fever dream at the moment. Disaster always seems to be looming.
He needs to turn it around in a big way.
Matt Fitzpatrick | Recent Results: T52, T14, T36
This may be a tad premature, but after his stretch of winning three times in four starts, he raised the expectations I had for him, and his recent play and results haven’t lived up to that standard.
Since he and his brother Alex won together, Alex has actually been the better player.
The good news for Matt is that the approach play has still been excellent. It’s just been a cold few starts with the putter. If he’s able to fix that, he should return to the top of leaderboards quite quickly.
