Pro Golf Now
Fansided

2021 The American Express: Top 10 power rankings

By Mike Randleman

Adam Hadwin hits out of the bunker on the 18th hole of the Stadium Course at PGA West during the Desert Classic, January 20, 2019.Desert Classic Sunday 14
Adam Hadwin hits out of the bunker on the 18th hole of the Stadium Course at PGA West during the Desert Classic, January 20, 2019.Desert Classic Sunday 14 /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 11
Next
Jan 16, 2020; La Quinta, California, USA; Matthew Wolff plays his shot from the third tee during the first round of The American Express golf tournament at La Quinta Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 16, 2020; La Quinta, California, USA; Matthew Wolff plays his shot from the third tee during the first round of The American Express golf tournament at La Quinta Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports /

This ought to be one of the favorite portions of the schedule for the host of Californians on the PGA Tour like Wolff.

We’re about a two hour drive southeast of Wolff’s old stomping grounds of Agoura Hills. There won’t be fans to cheer him on, but he’ll feel at home with three of the next four events in the Golden State.

Wolff, 21, is making his second appearance at The American Express. The former Oklahoma State Cowboy finished T-61st (67-69-71-72) in 2020. He did just fine at La Quinta and the Nicklaus course the first two days. If he can go low on the Stadium course, he’ll vault right up the leaderboard.

Since turning pro in 2019, the former top-ranked amateur has already won on the PGA Tour (2019 3M Open) and picked up three second-place finishes. All three came last year at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, U.S. Open and Shriners Open.

Wolff cooled down late in the year, but he comes to the West Coast swing rested and ready after skipping Hawaii.

A good driver like Wolff should be rewarded this week. He was 12th in strokes gained approach last season on the PGA Tour. He was top 100 in every other SG category, save for around the green, an area young players tend to improve upon as they age and better learn green complexes.

Wolff should have plenty of notes in the yardage book to better tame the Stadium course this time around. I like the young gun to crack the top 10 for the first time in four starts this week.

Home/Golf Power Rankings