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5 dark horse golfers who could win The Masters 2018

By Harrison Hamm

HUMBLE, TX - MARCH 29: Kevin Streelman hits his tee shot on the ninth hole during the first round of the Houston Open at the Golf Club of Houston on March 29, 2018 in Humble, Texas. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
HUMBLE, TX - MARCH 29: Kevin Streelman hits his tee shot on the ninth hole during the first round of the Houston Open at the Golf Club of Houston on March 29, 2018 in Humble, Texas. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /
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AUSTIN, TX – MARCH 22: Patton Kizzire of the United States reacts on the 14th green during the second round of the World Golf Championships-Dell Match Play at Austin Country Club on March 22, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX – MARCH 22: Patton Kizzire of the United States reacts on the 14th green during the second round of the World Golf Championships-Dell Match Play at Austin Country Club on March 22, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

4. Patton Kizzire

The 32-year-old Kizzire is in his third year on tour and has already outperformed his career totals by a massive amount. He’s made more money (over $3,000,000) from his 12 events in 2018 than he made from his first 59 career tournaments, winning two and vaulting all the way to second in the FedEx standings behind only Justin Thomas.

Kizzire, interestingly, does not stand out in any particular area. In fact, he is below-average off the tee and can struggle when forced to scramble around the green. His driving accuracy, or the percentage of fairways he hits off the tee, is 140th on tour, and he has a tendency to push drives right — he’s hit the right rough on 19 percent of tee shots, 162nd in the PGA. Closer to the hole, he is 155th in shots gained around the green, and while he is above-average when scrambling from 30 or more yards or 10 or less yards, he is mediocre in the middle distances. He ranks 144th and 150th in scrambling from 10-20 and 20-30 yards.

This trend of at-best average stats stays consistent on greens and fairways. But, thanks in part to his ninth-best greens in regulation percentage, he is among the tour’s best at circling numbers on his scorecard, and he averages a 69.43, one of the highest figures among pros. He shot a 62 in the first round at Mayakoba, Mexico en route to his first tour win, and his six top-25 finishes helped him climb the FedEx standings.

At the Masters, count on Kizzire finishing well (he’s fifth in final round scoring average) and trying to go directly to the pin — he’s shown to be one of the more aggressive top-tier players on tour, demonstrated by his 187 combined bogeys and birdies.

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