PGA TOUR: Ranking the top 5 comebacks of 2018
By Jordan Perez
2018 has brought the professional golf world an unusual year. Mostly, for the better. One of its most notable trends? The end of many win droughts. Whether bouncing back from injury or tweaking their technique, players on the PGA Tour have shown resilience unmatched elsewhere.
Sure, winning a major is an achievement on every professional golfer’s to-do list. But perhaps an even more rewarding accomplishment might be re-visiting the winner’s circle after a win drought. Comebacks of all types were a recurring theme for many golfers in 2018 on the PGA Tour. That’s right–Tiger wasn’t the only one who added a new trophy to his dusty shelf.
Remaining on the PGA Tour means outlasting the best of the best. It means playing at a consistent level, a level defined by a player’s priority ranking. And of course, a PGA Tour golfer’s priority ranking is based on results, longevity and qualifying. But the formula isn’t as simple as those three variables. Competition, younger talent, equipment, rules and tournament changes don’t wait for any player. Time is of the essence and maintaining one’s game is a crucial part of staying in the mix in professional golf.
Returning to the top of the leaderboard is no easy task, demonstrated by the grueling journeys from some of the best to ever play the sport.
The amount of comeback stories this year makes for quite the long list. Many players across the tour found their groove once again. Some turned the momentum from countless top-ten finishes into wins. Others returned to the top in a sudden, yet dominant fashion.
Either way, 2018 gave the golf world plenty of memorable comeback stories to look back on and spoiled golf audiences everywhere. These stories give plenty of excitement for what’s to come in 2019 and beyond.
Here are the top five PGA Tour comebacks of 2018.