Last 5 winners of PGA Tour’s Rookie of the Year award
The PGA Tour's Rookie of the Year award is an annual recognition given to the most outstanding rookie on the PGA Tour. This award serves as a way to acknowledge and celebrate the achievements of young golfers who have made a significant impact in their debut season on the professional golf circuit.
With the 2022-23 season nearing its end, the race for rookie of the year award has started and has no clear leader. PGA Tour players who have played at least 12 events in a given season vote to decide the recipient of the award.
Let's take a look at the five previous winners of the PGA Tour's Rookie of the Year award:
Cameron Young (2022)
The 26-year old American golfer exhibited his skill and class from the first season itself and was a runaway winner for the 2022 rookie of the year award. Cameron Young has a great record in Major Championships and has secured two top-three finishes. He has also won twice on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Will Zalatoris (2021)
Will Zalatoris was recognized as the Rookie of the Year in 2021 after having multiple impressive finishes in the Major tournaments. Zalatoris also won the iconic FedEx Cup St. Jude Championship in 2022. Currently, he occupies the 21st spot in the OWGR rankings.
Scottie Scheffler (2020)
Scheffler is the most prominent golfer in this list and currently sits at the top of the PGA Tour rankings. He reached that position in 2022 and has been holding it since then. Scheffler didn't win a championship in his first season. However, his consistent performances got him the 2020 Rookie of the Year award.
Sungjae Im (2019)
Sungjae Im can be considered a young prodigy. The South Korean golfer has been performing exceptionally well for several years now. Sungjae Im was the Player of the Year for the 2018 Web Tour. Subsequently, he was also crowned as the Rookie of the Year for the 2018-19 season.
Aaron Wise (2018)
Aaron Wise had a brilliant start to his PGA Tour career and got his inaugral win at the AT&T Byron Nelson. He was crowned as the Rookie of the Year for his performances in 2018. The American currently ranks 75th on the OWGR.
Multiple golfers in contention for the 2023 PGA Tour's rookie of the year award
The 2023 season is nearing its end with just two tournaments left. Therefore, the wait for the new Rookie of the Year is almost over. However, there is no runaway leader this year and multiple golfers are in contention for the prestigious title.
The favourite amongst them is Eric Cole who's had an interesting season so far. He currently ranks 43rd in FedEx rankings and almost won the Honda Classic in February. Other golfers in contention for the award are Taylor Montgomery, Thomas Detry, Vincent Norrman, and Ludvig Aberg.