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2019 will be the year these players win their first PGA Tour titles

By David Salituro

JEJU, SOUTH KOREA - OCTOBER 18: Beau Hossler of United States plays a tee shot on the 3rd hole during the first round of the CJ Cup at the Nine Bridges on October 18, 2018 in Jeju, South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images)
JEJU, SOUTH KOREA - OCTOBER 18: Beau Hossler of United States plays a tee shot on the 3rd hole during the first round of the CJ Cup at the Nine Bridges on October 18, 2018 in Jeju, South Korea. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images) /
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These four players hope 2019 is the year they become champions on the PGA Tour.

As the 2018-19 PGA Tour season goes on hiatus until January, those players who have never been in the winner’s circle wonder if this will be their year.

Eleven players won for the first time on the PGA Tour in 2018. Already this year, Kevin Tway and Cameron Champ have joined the ranks of PGA champions.

These four players, which include a PGA Tour rookie and two who are still just 20 years old, have a good chance to join that group in 2019.

1. Sungjae Im

Korean native Sungjae Im accomplished something in 2018 no one had done before.

Im led the Web.com Tour money list wire-to-wire last season, the first player ever to do so. He began his year by winning the season-opening Bahamas Great Exuma Classic, then ended it by winning the season’s final event, the WinCo Foods Open. Im added 12 more top-25s, including three runner-up finishes.

Im, still just 20 and a PGA Tour rookie, started off the 2018-19 wraparound season strong with a fourth place finish at the Safeway Open in October. He dominated the Web.com Tour last year; if he can carry that form onto the PGA Tour this year, Im will certainly be a contender for PGA Rookie of the Year.

2. Beau Hossler

At the 2012 U.S. Open, a California high school student surprised the golf world by taking the outright lead during the second round. Six years later, that same man was a 23-year-old PGA Tour rookie.

Beau Hossler came close to winning his first PGA title in 2018, losing in a playoff at the Houston Open to Ian Poulter in April. He then added another runner-up finish at the Travelers Championship.

Hossler has the game to finally break through in 2019. He finished fourth on tour in strokes gained: putting, and fifth in total birdies in his rookie year after a stellar amateur career at Texas. In addition to his second-place finishes, he cracked the top-10 in three other events and made it to the BMW Championship during the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Six years ago, Hossler was a teen sensation at Olympic Club. He’s now a solid pro who’s ready to show he’s all grown up.

3. Joaquin Niemann

Like Hossler, Chilean Joaquin Niemann first made his mark on the PGA Tour while still a teenager.

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After spending 48 weeks as the No. 1 amateur in the world, Niemann turned pro at the age of 19 following the Masters in April. In his first eight starts as a pro, he had four top-10 finishes, earning his PGA Tour card for 2019.

Niemann just turned 20 in November. As a teenager he finished 12th on the PGA Tour in strokes gained: off the tee, and fifth in strokes gained: approach to the green. He was also second in birdies per round.

He’s already shown he has the game to compete against the world’s best. Now Niemann has to prove the hot start to his pro career wasn’t a fluke.

4. Abraham Ancer

Abraham Ancer, 27, may be older than the other three players, but he’s also still looking for his first PGA Tour title.

During the FedEx Cup Playoffs, Ancer was in prime position to get that victory. He led the Dell Technologies Championship after three rounds before falling back to seventh on Sunday. The Mexican native finished his 2018 season with three top-10s in his last eight starts.

Ancer has carried that form into the new campaign. He already has two top-10 finishes in the 2018-19 season. He also won the Australian Open in November and finished second at the World Cup of Golf.

Ancer first earned his PGA Tour card in 2016, but it wasn’t until this past year that he was able to keep his card. A reason for his career resurgence: his improvement with the driver. Although he stands just 5-foot-7, Ancer ranked 41st in strokes gained: off the tee last year. In 2016 he ranked 111th in that category.

Ancer has never been in better form than he is right now. If he can keep it up, PGA Tour success will surely follow in the season to come.

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