The 2016 season features a two-horse race for the CME Globe with Ariya Jutanugarn and Lydia Ko battling it out all year for top honors on the LPGA Tour. Jutanugarn eventually edged out Ko but the rivalry between those two seems to be just getting started with both golfers poised to thrive for years to come. Meanwhile, a couple of rising stars made splashes this past season with Brooke Henderson and Shanshan Feng both proving they could hang with the best in the world. What should we expect for the upcoming year? Here is a look at four golfers that will dominate the LPGA Tour in 2017.
Ariya Jutanugarn
Jutanugarn accepted the CME Globe Trophy as the LPGA Tour’s player of the year in 2016 and it could very well be a sign of things to come looking forward to next season. The 20-year-old enjoyed an improbable breakout season this past year with five wins. Jutanugarn ranked in the top-10 in Putts per GIR, Putting Average, Scoring Average, Rounds Under Par and Birdies and she dominated on the Official Money List including a $1 million bonus for winning the season-long Race to CME Globe points competition. Jutanugarn has all of the tools to build on her successful 2016 season as the top golfer on the LPGA Tour and nobody will be surprised when she dominates once again in 2017.
Lydia Ko
The fact that some considered Ko’s final stretch of the 2016 season a major disappointment is a testament to how dominant she has the potential to be moving forward. Ko recorded four wins in 2016 but she struggled by her standards down the final stretch with only three top-10 finishes in her final nine starts following a win at the Marathon Classic. That final stretch allowed Jutanugarn to secure the CME Globe Trophy ahead of Ko but the two battled countless times this past year and that trend of them going head-to-head to be the most dominant golfer on the LPGA Tour should continue next season. Ko has all of the tools to be the most dominant golfer on the LPGA Tour so it will only be a matter of finding her form and maintaining a level of consistency in 2017.
Brooke Henderson
The 19-year-old from Smith Falls, Ontario in Canada added two more victories to her career total in 2016 and while she didn’t dominate with the consistency that Jutanugarn and Ko brought to the table the young star showed flashes of her immense potential. Henderson celebrated her first major title at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and then followed it up with a victory at the Cambria Portland Classic. She didn’t get another win after that but top-10 finishes at the Reignwood LPGA Classic, Fubon LPGA Taiwan Championship and the Blue Bay LPGA illustrated she could be a true contender. Henderson is poised to take another step forward next season and it will be very interesting to see what she has in store for 2017.
Shanshan Feng
In Gee Chun and Sei Young Kim were both considered for the final spot on our list but ultimately it appears as though Feng has the highest upside in that group. Feng finished fifth in the Race to the CME Globe with a strong finish to the season as he finished with two wins and 11 top-10 finishes in 21 starts overall. It appears as though the 27-year-old finally figured out how to put it altogether in 2016 and her strong finish to the year could be a sign of things to come with Feng looking to establish herself among the elite golfers on the LPGA Tour in 2017.
In Gee Chun
In Gee Chun is currently the No. 3 ranked player on the ladies side of things and she’s expected to be every bit as good as Ko and everyone above her on this list. Taking a look at her 2016 seasons, she only had one win but she had 11 Top 10 results, which is quite impressive. She played really well to end the year too as she finished in a tie for eighth at the RICO Women’s British Open, then third at the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open, then eighth and the LPGA Classic, won the Evian Championship, tied for 13th at the LPGA KEB HanaBank Championship, 19th at the TOTO Japan Classic and finished seventh at the CME Group Tour Championship. That’s five Top 10’s in her last eight and she never finished worse than 19th. She’ll be a force to be reckoned with on the LPGA Tour next year.
