Top 100 players to watch in 2012: No. 63 Tommy Gainey

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There was a time when Tommy Gainey was known for his "Two Gloves" nickname and unorthodox swing than the results. Not after 2011. The South Carolinian enjoyed a breakout year in 2011 with seven top-10s, including three third-place finishes.

Journey to the PGA TOUR Tommy 'Two Gloves' Gainey Charity

One of those was at The Heritage, where Gainey was bidding to become the first S.C. native to win the event, played on Hilton Head Island. Gainey shot four rounds of par or better that week but finished one stroke out of a playoff between Brandt Snedeker and Luke Donald.

Gainey had a similar experience at the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, where he recorded four rounds in the 60s but finished five shots back of winner Kevin Na.

With results like that, Gainey is fast becoming known more for his game than a nickname.

Three past winners on the PGA TOUR offer their exclusive evaluations of Gainey for PGATOUR.COM.

You know what, it's unbelievable what he did this year. He's very talented. I love it because he's his own man and no one tells him how to do things.

The swing action may look unorthodox but his results have been anything but.

Looking past the novelty of 'Two-Gloves', Tommy is a heck of a player with a boxer's mentality. His intensity and desire to be successful were on display in 2011 with four third-place finishes and more than $2 million in earnings. The only thing missing from his impressive resume is a victory, which likely will come sooner rather than later.

For more on DiMarco, Oberholser and Perks, click here

Gamers adore that he co-led the PGA TOUR with 34 starts in 2011, cranked out four third-place finishes, another three top 10s and eclipsed $2.1 million in earnings. That he missed the cut in half of his tournaments leaves room for improvement but salary gamers are advised to lay off at that price. He'll be a popular keeper otherwise.

Overall

2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 62nd - 191st 236th - 35th - 202nd 148th - 95th 239th 558th 358th -

Key Statistics

Category 2011 2010* 2009 2008 2007* Driving Distance 46th - 17th 24th 30th Driving Accuracy 130th - 138th 148th 197th Greens in Regulation 48th - 142nd 36th 197th Strokes Gained-Putting 78th - 166th 194th 197th Sand Saves 106th - 48th 50th 1st

* - Did not reach minimum number of rounds to be officially ranked

Category Average Rank on PGA TOUR Scoring Average (adjusted) 70.81 T-88th Scoring Average (actual) 70.79 T-91st Round 1 71.24 T-114th Round 2 70.65 T-85th Round 3 69.72 T-33rd Round 4 71.28 121st Final round 71.29 T-122nd Front nine 35.31 T-97th Back nine 35.48 T-80th Par 3 holes 3.04 T-37th Par 4 holes 4.05 T-88th Par 5 holes 4.70 T-111th