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Jason Kokrak: Emerging from the pack

By Bill Felber

PALM HARBOR, FLORIDA - MARCH 24: Jason Kokrak watches his tee shot on the fourth hole during the final round of the Valspar Championship on the Copperhead course at Innisbrook Golf Resort on March 24, 2019 in Palm Harbor, Florida. (Photo by Matt Sullivan/Getty Images)
PALM HARBOR, FLORIDA - MARCH 24: Jason Kokrak watches his tee shot on the fourth hole during the final round of the Valspar Championship on the Copperhead course at Innisbrook Golf Resort on March 24, 2019 in Palm Harbor, Florida. (Photo by Matt Sullivan/Getty Images) /
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He’s never won a PGA Tour event, but Jason Kokrak’s runner-up at the Valspar suggests he’s getting close.

Jason Kokrak didn’t win the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook Sunday. He missed an 8-foot par putt on the 72nd hole that would have thrown him into a playoff with Paul Casey.

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Even in “losing”, though, Kokrak won. His tie for second with Louis Oosthuizen brought him a $590,000 paycheck, the largest of his eight-season career. Although he is without a victory in 196 career starts, he has now put together a string of 16 consecutive tournament appearances without a missed cut, a vital performance metric for a non-star.

Perhaps most significantly, Kokrak appears to be on something of a roll. His runner-up showing at Innisbrook is the best of three top 10’s on the Florida swing that have also included ties for ninth at the Honda and for 10th at the Arnold Palmer. He tied for 47th at the Players.

Since the Tour left the West Coast, Jason Kokrak is one of only three players with three top 10 placings. The other two are Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson.

Consistency of performance is a critical element for any of the scores of tour regulars who do not rise to the level of front-rank star. It’s how they make a living while pursuing the dream of reaching that elite level. Kokrak’s dream began in 2012 when he arrived out of Xavier University and fought his way through 27 tour events, more than half of them missed cuts. The only highlight was a runner-up at that season’s frys.com, a performance that would continue as his career best into 2016. Among 257 players who received FedEx Cup points that season, Kokrak ranked 178th.

His climb up the performance charts was slow and inconsistent. In 2018, when Kokrak managed one third place and three other top 10’s in 29 starts, he finished 62nd on the FedEx list, tying for 40th at the Northern Trust, for 24th at the Dell and for 19th at the BMW.

Kokrak’s rise to contender status has been slowed by the same short-game questions that eventually did him in on the final hole Sunday. Since 2016, his average Strokes Gained scores in the two touch-sensitive categories – Strokes Gained Around the Green and Strokes Gained Putting – have been -.134 and -.071 respectively. At the Valspar, he registered a score of -2.437 Strokes Gained Around the Green. In winning, Casey’s score in that category was +3.154. That was more than the difference.

Next. Paul Casey masters the Snake Pit with second straight Valspar victory. dark

If Kokrak can get his short game under control, the momentum he has been building may soon translate into a career first … a victory.

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