Heading in to the 2016 PGA Tour season, the big three was considered primed to lead the way with a handful of potential breakout candidates right behind them led by Rickie Fowler. While Jason Day and Rory McIlroy struggled with consistency, it wasn’t nearly as bad as what happened to former world No. 1 Jordan Spieth or the potential rising star in Fowler. The number of first-time winners at major events and overall on the PGA Tour this season opened the door for some strong sleeper picks to emerge but it also had a lot to do with the number of busts that disappointed overall. Here is a look at the four biggest busts in PGA fantasy this year.
Jordan Spieth
The No. 1 ranked golfer in the world heading into the 2016 season struggled mightily this past year. Spieth’s win total dropped from six in 2015 to just two in 2016, which matched his win totals at major the year before. Spieth also went from 16 top 10 finishes in 2015 to just eight in 2015, including only one top-10 finish in his four major appearances. The 23-year-old’s performance at majors was the biggest problem from a fantasy perspective as his only top 10 finish came at The Masters and even that tournament felt like a disappointment since he conceded the lead to Danny Willett in the final round. Spieth went on to finish 37th at the US Open, 30th at The Open Championship and then 13th at the PGA Championship. That hurts especially for those playing daily PGA fantasy as Spieth is often the most expensive player on the market – or up there – and the production simply wasn’t there.
Factor in that his only two wins came at two lower profile tournaments in the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and the DEAN & DELUCA Invitational and it’s clear that fantasy owners that kept buying in to Spieth’s potential were constantly disappointed. His profile combined with his poor play made Spieth the obvious choice for biggest PGA fantasy bust for 2016.
Rickie Fowler
Fowler is another top 10 golfer that really struggled on the biggest stages as he failed to record a top 10 finish in any of his four major starts. In fact, Fowler opened the major season with missed cuts at The Masters and the U.S. Open before posting a 46th place finish at The Open Championship and a 33rd place finish at the PGA Championship. Those are absolutely brutal numbers for one of the top ranked golfers in the world – especially when so many experts were constantly pointing out his potential and calling him a strong pick to eventually break through. Fowler didn’t record a single win in 2016 and with just eight top 10 finishes in 23 starts, he is clearly one of the biggest busts of the year. He did show well at the Ryder Cup, so the hope is that he’ll parlay that strong play into a solid start to the next golf season.
Jim Furyk
Furyk opened the year ranked No. 9 in the world but a disappointing 2016 season led to him finishing 26th overall in the rankings. Furyk suffered a major drop-off that was largely the result of injury struggles, as he competed in just 14 events with only three top-10 finishes on the season. While he did record a runner-up finish at the U.S. Open, anybody that him on their roster in annual PGA fantasy leagues was severely disappointed when age and injuries led to him hitting a wall in 2016.
Zach Johnson
Johnson earned the final spot on this list after dropping from 13th in the world rankings to 26th with a disappointing 2016 season. The veteran golfer failed to win an event and his top-10 total dropped from 11 last season to five this year. Johnson was fairly consistent from start to finish but when you are consistently finishing outside of the top-10 that is not a very good thing. There is no doubt that Johnson had his owners in annual leagues and daily fantasy leagues shaking their heads more than a few times and it is clear he was among the biggest fantasy busts for 2016.
