2015 PGA Rookies to Watch

By: Jeff Bergerson
jtbergerson
January 4, 2015

This season we look for several rookies to have an impact on the leaderboards on the PGA Tour. The great part about having knowledge about the newcomers to the tour is they are unknown to the masses, which allows you, the informed fantasy golfer to profit big, before everybody finds out about these talented rookies.

Justin Thomas- 21-year-old former star at the University of Alabama, who finished 5th on the Web.com Tour’s list of 50 graduates after winning one of the tour’s four playoff events. He had 7 Top 10 finishes and only missed 2 cuts while on the Web.com Tour in 2014. Thomas drew rave reviews from fellow pros, including Phil Mickelson, while competing at last year’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst.
Already this 2014-2015 season he has made his last 3 cuts on the PGA Tour including a 71st at the McGladrey Classic, tied for 4th at The Sanderson Farms Championship, and tied for 23rd at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba. He is relatively unknown by most, but that will change quickly, so be sure to target him while his value is low.

Carlos Ortiz- is just the fifth Mexican player to earn his tour card. After three wins and six top 10s on the Web.com tour in 2014 he looks to make an impact on the PGA tour this season. We have been a bit concerned with his volatility especially since he missed 8 cuts in 18 events on the Web.com tour and most in the latter part of the year. Ortiz however has impressed thus far in the 2014-2015 season going four for four in made cuts and placing tied for 57th in the Frys.com Open, tied for 18th in the Shriners, tied for 65th in the CIMB, and tied for 9th in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba. Ortiz would be a great under the radar player to target in large tournaments (GPPs) as he has proven to be explosive. For more tour rookies to target early in the season, including our top rookie, become a premium member and read the rest of this article.

Andrew Putnam- After a successful season on the Web.com tour last year, Andrew Putnam, younger brother of PGA tour player Michael Putnam looks to make an impact on the PGA tour this year. On the Web.com tour Putnam posted 13 top 25 finishes in 22 events, 5 top 10 finishes, one of which was a victory and one a runner up. So far in the 2015 season after missing the cut in his first event he has made his last 4 cuts, including placing 33rd in the Shriners, 12th in The McGladrey Classic, 43rd in the Sanderson Farm Championship, and 62nd in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba. We look for Andrew Putnam to have a solid 2015 and make a lot of cuts.

Nick Taylor- He is a guy who has already made a splash on the PGA tour by winning the Sanderson Farm Championship. He had 3 Top 10s in 24 events on the Web.Com tour last season. After missing the cut in his first PGA appearance at the Frys.com, Taylor has made four consecutive cuts including that win in November. We will definitely be rostering Taylor in some tournaments, but not sure how unknown he is at this point.

Tony Finau- Finau is our favorite rookie on tour this season. Last year on the Web.Com tour he made 19 cuts in 23 events including 5 top 10s and a win in the Stonebrae Classic. Finau clearly has all the tools and has started with a bang making 4 cuts in 5 events so far on the PGA tour this season including a tied for 12th at the Frys.com, tied for 7th in the Shriners, tied for 14th at the McGladrey Classic, and tied for 7th in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba. We will be rostering Finau often, especially while he is still undervalued and unknown by the general public.

Adam Hadwin- Another PGA newcomer that we at Fantasy Golf Insider like a lot. He is a 27 year old out of the University of Louisville. Hadwin tore up the Web.Com tour last season with 9 Top 10s in 21 events including 2 wins at the Chile Classic and the Chiquita Classic. So far this year on the PGA tour he has made 4 out of 5 cuts including a tied for 10th at the Shriners in October. We should be able to take advantage of both Finau and Hadwin at low prices early on in the 2015 season.

Sam Saunders- Another rookie on the PGA tour that performed well on the Web.com tour making 16 cuts in 22 events including 5 Top 10s. He has struggled though early this PGA season making only 2 cuts in 5 events and not breaking the top 30. We are going to hold off on picking Saunders until he proves he can be a factor on the tour. He does however have it in his genes as he is Arnold Palmer’s grandson.

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Jeff Bergerson is a co-founder of Fantasy Golf Insider.com, fantasy golf expert and has been following and writing about fantasy golf for over five years. He is a member of multiple season long fantasy golf leagues as well as an avid daily fantasy golf player. In the past 12 months he has won over $59,000 playing fantasy golf on Draftkings.com as jtbergerson. Feel free to contact Jeff at jeff@fantasygolfinsider.com or visit Fantasy Golf Insider.Com