The PGA Tour’s 10 Biggest Disappointments of 2021/22
By Bill Felber
8. Erik Van Rooyen
How much worse? (0.779 strokes)
Van Rooyen is a 32-year-old South African pro in his second full season on the PGA Tour. You would like to see a nice improvement in performance between seasons one and two. Van Rooyen instead went the other way.
His scoring average went bad by three-quarters of a stroke, from 70.674 as a full-time rookie to 71.453. He was 55th on the list in 2021, falling to 152nd this season. Van Rooyen made 17 starts but landed only one top 10, that coming at the RBC Heritage in April when he tied for 10th.
Here’s the Van Rooyen chart.
2020-21 2021-22 Change
Off The Tee 0.126 0.090 -0.036
Approaches 0.141 0.411 0.270
Around the Green 0.052 -0.460 -0.512
Putting 0.193 -0.333 -0.526
As the chart makes clear, Van Rooyen’s performance decline had everything to do with his failures on and around the green. He actually improved his approach game, and while driver performance regressed modestly it remained a positive.
Once on or around the green, though, Van Rooyen consistently stumbled. His recovery game cost Van Rooyen nearly a half stroke against the Tour average in 2022, turning from a neutral factor to a significant liability.
And on the greens themselves, things were even worse. Previously a competent putter, Van Rooyen in 2022 spotted the field one-third of a stroke per round with the putter, a season-to-season decline amounting to more than a half stroke.
When your game handicaps you by more than a full stroke within 30 or 40 yards of the green, it’s easy to understand the reason behind Van Rooyen’s performance failures.