TOP 20 IN THEIR 20s: No. 10  Editor's Note: Our "Top 20 in Their 20s" series continues as PGATOUR.com counts down the top golfers on the PGA TOUR aged 20-29 over the next two weeks. The list is based on 14 statistical categories, including TOUR wins, Official World Golf Ranking, percentage of time spent in the top 10 throughout their career and 2007 FedExCup performance. Get to know No. 10: Hunter Mahan.
Hunter Mahan started off the 2007 season quietly. But his game began to change with the weather, and once the summer heated up, so did Mahan's game.
Mahan went on a tear notching a T17 and a T13 at the Stanford St. Jude Classic and the U.S. Open. He then followed up his consecutive top-20 finishes with a four event top-10 streak, highlighted by his first TOUR win at the Travelers Championship the week after the U.S. Open. Similar to many top young players on TOUR, Mahan said his game is all about his driving ability. "I'm a good driver of the ball," Mahan said. "I like to hit the driver. I can control it pretty well. I hit it far enough to compete with some of the longer guys. When I put a driver in my hand, I feel pretty confident and comfortable with it." Mahan's stats show he is comfortable with a driver: he's third in total drives, 38th in driving distance, and 28th in driving accuracy percentage. Driving isn't Mahan's only talent; his ability to focus on his own game is what he believes makes him successful. "I'm trying to just play golf the right way," Mahan said. "I just play my game and keep myself under control. If I can do that, I feel like I can play." A decorated amateur career led up to Mahan's 2004 rookie season on TOUR. Two years before graduating to the TOUR by tying for 16th at q-school, Mahan was runner-up to Ricky Barnes in the U.S. Amateur and placed third at the NCAA Championships while playing for Oklahoma State University. The two-time All-American and Big 12 Player of the Year shared the 2003 Ben Hogan Award with Barnes and was the recipient of the 2003 Jack Nicklaus and Fred Haskins Awards as the top collegiate golfer in the country.
While several prominent young players are having no problem winning TOUR events, it's the majors that continue to elude them. Difficult courses test youngsters' patience, and Mahan believes that may be why older, established players continue to win majors. "Guys who win majors win majors over and over again," Mahan said. "Just to stay mentally patient and focused is the hardest thing. We're all not going to hit great shots, but the older guys seem to hold their heads up a little bit better and just seem to fight through it a little bit better than some of the younger guys who seem to get a little impatient sometimes." But clearly majors aren't the only things Mahan focuses on. His 2007 FedExCup Playoffs performance is one of the reasons this Presidents Cup rookie made it into the top 10 on this list. Qualifying for all four playoffs events, Mahan racked up 98,696 FedExCup points and finished the season 15th in the standings - not bad for only his third year on TOUR. Who will be No. 9? Hint: This golfer came oh-so-close to success at this year's PLAYERS Championship. |
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