Top-20 American players to watch out for in 2012: Part-5
Nick Watney
Official World Golf Rankings: 12
FedExCup Rankings: 9
PGA Tour wins in 2011: 2
For the rampaging Nick Watney, year 2011 brought in loads of fun and success for the Fresno State University graduate as he meandered his way through the thick and thin of the tour events throughout the year. Watney turned professional in 2003 and joined
the PGA Tour in 2004 after his consecutive success on the Canadian Tour and the Nationwide Tour. He made little progress in the starting two years with just one victory in 2007, the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and another in 2009 at the Buick Invitational.
He remained lurking in shadows in 2010 but shot to stardom yet again with a stunning victory at the WGC Cadillac Championship in March this year. Playing the painstakingly long Doral Golf Resort and Spa, he entered the final round with a two shot deficit
and pulled in a round of 67 to take over the overnight leader Dustin Johnson to card his long-awaited victory.
Boldstered by the early win in the season, Watney pulled in yet another stellar victory at the AT&T National at Aronimink Golf Club where he defeated the grizzled K.J. Choi by two strokes. He owed most part of his success at Aronimink to his majestic record
round of 62 on the third day. The victory took Watney to an all-time high of top-ten of the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR), the highest in his career so far.
Watney played brilliantly in the final round of President’s Cup at Royal Melbourne in November, to help the US Team post a historic win over the International Team. He defeated Choi in the individual play format on the final day.
Watney played 22 events on the PGA Tour in the current season, making 19 halfway cuts in all. He finished 16 times for a top-25 and ten times for a top-ten. Watney earned a total of $5,290,673 for the year 2011 with a scoring average of 69.57.
Phil Mickelson
Official World Golf Rankings: 14
FedExCup Rankings: 15
PGA Tour wins in 2011: 1
The once blistering giant on the PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson had a lacklustre year in 2011 where he was only able to win a single title in 11 months, despite moving in contention on several occasions. Starting off the year with consecutive disappointments,
where Mickelson ended up with some of the highest single round scores on the PGA, he shot back in form at the Shell Houston Open, where he landed the title by a lead of three strokes over Scott Verplank.
Winner of the three Masters title surged to number three on the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR), ahead of Woods, whose downward spiral continued through the year. He played majestically in the Open Championship at Royal St. Georges, wrestling the tough
links golf with a brand new strategy.
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