From the '10 rookie class, who will shine on TOUR?

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Troy Merritt is used to winning -- he's the 2009 q-school medalist and won seven times as a college senior.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- As one of 18 rookies on next year's PGA TOUR, Rickie Fowler was told after he finished 15th at Monday's q-school about an orientation program for new members this week at nearby PGA National.

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Fowler won't be able to attend the entire two-day session because he has a previous commitment -- he's playing with Chris DiMarco in this week's Shark Shootout in Naples.

Not many players who have yet to make it to the PGA TOUR get an invitation to Greg Norman's no-cut tournament, where last place pays $70,000 a man. Then again, Fowler is not like most PGA TOUR rookies.

He showed that six weeks ago when he almost won his second TOUR start as a professional, losing to Troy Matteson in a three-way playoff at the Frys.com Open. That runner-up finish got Fowler into the finals of q-school at Bear Lakes Country Club where, after flirting with shooting a 59 in the third round, he easily gained full-exempt status for next year with his 15th-place finish.

Don't expect to see Fowler back at q-school again. The two-time All-America at Oklahoma State is expected to blossom into a star onto the PGA TOUR. And he knows it.

"The expectations do bring some extra pressure," said Fowler, who earned $571,090 in six TOUR starts this year. "But that's the way I want it."

Fowler, who doesn't even turn 21 until next week, won't be the only newcomer to make an impact on the PGA TOUR next year. Start at the top of the q-school leaderboard.

Troy Merritt has yet to play in a PGA TOUR event, but the Boise State graduate already has shown an ability to finish on top. He won seven times as a senior and added another victory this year in the Mexico Open on the Nationwide Tour.

But Merritt's most impressive performance came during the last week when he won q-school by a shot over Jeff Maggert at 22-under 410. Merritt held the lead (or a share of it) for all six rounds, joining Scott Verplank and Frank Lickliter as the only others to share that distinction at q-school.

"I'm very comfortable playing in front," Merritt said.

Trying to forecast which players will make the quick transition to the PGA TOUR is never easy. There are new courses to be learned, a wait to get into most of the top-tier events and the pressures to swiftly show they belong.

The best guess here is, among the other seven rookies to make it through q-school -- Martin Flores, Billy Horschel, Graham DeLaet, Chris Wilson, Cameron Tringale, Brian Stuard and Brent Delayahoussaye -- Horschel, DeLaet and Tringale have the best chance at making an impact.

Horschel, a three-time All-American at the University of Florida, will be the second-youngest (23) rookie behind Fowler. By finishing second at q-school, Horschel already has shown he's ahead of the professional golf curve.

DeLaet struggled to a 73 in the final round of q-school to finish eighth, but he already had his card assured by then. He's a long hitter who seemed unruffled by the pressures of q-school.

Tringale closed with rounds of 69-67 -- among the q-school graduates, only Shane Bertsch (70-65) finished better -- and will benefit by having played at a top college program such as Georgia Tech. Like Merritt, Tringale also has shown he can win, notching four "Ws" in college.

Surprisingly, seven of the nine rookies to advance off the Nationwide Tour are 27 or older: Jerod Turner (34), Derek Lamely (29), Josh Teater (30), Blake Adams (34), Cameron Percy (35), Garth Mulroy (31) and Chris Baryla (27). I'm thinking the two younger guys -- Matt Every (24) and Alex Prugh (25) -- will make the quickest splash.

Every showed his moxie by winning the Nationwide Tour Championship to jump from 49th on the money list to 10th. Prugh was a two-time All-America at Washington who won the Michael Hill New Zealand Open on the Nationwide Tour this year.

The beauty of golf is all 18 rookies start with an even slate when the first full-field event is held in Hawaii next month. They know they've already accomplished the most difficult part -- qualifying for golf's biggest and brightest stage.

Good luck, rooks. You'll need it.