By RYAN LAVNER
Matt Fitzpatrick.
And yes, if you’re keeping score at home, that’d be back-to-back breakout years for the baby-faced assassin. After ending 2014 at No. 413 in the world, he soared into the top 50 this year on the strength of a European Tour victory and six other top-10s.
The 21-year-old Fitzpatrick didn’t play in a single major this year, but that will change in 2016 because of his top-50 status. His game draws plenty of comparisons to Jordan Spieth, a fellow youngster who won two majors by playing to his strengths – smart preparation, an off-the-charts golf IQ and a superb short game.
Fitzpatrick should make what could be a new-look European Ryder Cup team, and his match-play prowess will make him a tough out at Hazeltine. Don’t be surprised if he’s a top-10 player by this time next year.
By RANDALL MELL
South Africa’s Branden Grace has the resume for a breakout year.
At No. 14 in the Official World Golf Ranking, he is the highest-ranked player without a PGA Tour victory. He was one errant shot onto the railroad tracks on Sunday at Chambers Bay from a possible U.S. Open victory last summer.
He followed that up later in the year with a third-place finish at the PGA Championship. He’s only 27, and now for the first time he will be playing as a full-time PGA Tour member. Add in a 5-0-0 week at the Presidents Cup, and this guy’s trending up.
With six career European Tour victories, Grace has more than proven himself overseas. He had his breakout year on the Euro Tour in 2012, winning four times. A victory in the United States could move him among the top 10 in the world rankings, and a major would put him in the mix with all the other young stars rising up in the ranks.
