PGA Tour - Golf: Five to look for in 2022/23

bet365 News Team Published: Sep 07 2022 15:32

The new PGA Tour season starts next week and golf fans are already wondering which players will make an impact in the months that lie ahead.

Here we pinpoint five of the lesser-known players who may be worth following over the course of the season.

Justin Suh

Last week in this space Justin Suh was earmarked as a PGA Tour rookie to follow, and this brilliant young talent promptly underlined his potential by winning the Korn Ferry Tour Championship last Sunday.

The golf betting community seem sure to have Suh at the forefront of their minds when the new PGA Tour season gets going. His membership of the PGA Tour is overdue - and he is fully exempt for the 2022-23 campaign.

Suh was a college peer of Collin Morikawa, Viktor Hovland and Matthew Wolff - all four were expected to become superstars - and Suh got left behind due to injuries and a badly-timed loss of form.

This year, though, the 25-year-old Californian has added great consistency to his game, posting 16 top-20s in his last 20 tournaments, and he could be a player to follow on the West Coast Swing of the PGA Tour.

Will Gordon

A second bite of the PGA Tour cherry is coming for Will Gordon and this time he is probably equipped to take his chance.

Gordon first came on to the radar of punters when he finished third in the 2020 Travelers Championship. The youngster looked a player of great potential as he ran Dustin Johnson close in that event, finishing just two shots back.

Gordon had precious little PGA Tour experience at the time, but became a regular until losing his form and his card at the end of last year.

It has been hugely impressive to see Gordon start this season on the Korn Ferry Tour and slowly but surely revive his career. His form from June onwards has been magnificent, culminating in victory in the Albertsons Boise Open last month.

Robby Shelton

Another youngster who failed in his first forays on the PGA Tour was Robby Shelton, but, like Gordon, he seems set to build on those experiences and become a force to be reckoned with in the season to come.

Shelton was a formidable amateur and when he finished third in the 2015 Barbasol Championship when still in the unpaid ranks, his future looked incredibly bright. That was the best result by an amateur in a PGA Tour event since Phil Mickelson back in 1991.

On the Canadian Tour and the Korn Ferry Tour, Shelton has lifted silverware and been a leaderboard regular, but PGA Tour success has been limited.

He has won four times on the Korn Ferry Tour and, having just turned 27, it seems natural for this quality ball-striker to make the step up to being a PGA Tour contender very soon.

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Hurly Long

Heartache was suffered by Hurly Long last week - the German narrowly failed to secure any PGA Tour rights for the season to come - but that means this steady improver will turn his attentions back to DP World Tour glory.

Long is 20th in the DP World Tour rankings for this season, which highlights just how solid a campaign he has been enjoying on his home circuit.

Third place in the Ras al Khaimah Classic was followed by second in the Kenya Open, sixth in the British Masters, tenth in the Dutch Open, fourth in the Barbasol Championship and seventh in the Barracuda Championship.

Long won on the Challenge Tour in 2020 and is becoming increasingly confident at the age of 27.

He carded a 61 at Pebble Beach in his Stateside college days and is one of Germany's most promising players.

Richard Mansell

Nigel Mansell was a legendary Formula One driver, with 31 victories to his name, and his compatriot and namesake Richard should soon start getting that winning feeling.

Mansell has shown this year that he is one of the best ball-strikers on the DP World Tour and it seems only a matter of time before he becomes a champion.

Eighth in the British Masters in May, was followed up with ninth spot in the Dutch Open, third place in the European Open, fourth in the ISPS Handa World Invitational and third in the European Masters.

A niggling wrist injury has been troubling the Englishman this month, but as soon as that issue clears, the power-packed Midlander can be fancied to make his breakthrough.