Rory McIlroy failed to win for the first time since 2008, and he had plenty of company among those who didn’t meet expectations.
Rory McIlroy failed to win for the first time since 2008, and he had plenty of company among those who didn’t meet expectations.
Bubba Watson kicked off 2017 by announcing a partnership with ball manufacturer Volvik, a “multi-year” deal that didn’t make it 12 months. Watson would announce at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in late October that his time with the company had come to an end. Over the course of 2017, Watson dropped from 10th in the Official World Golf Ranking all the way down to 89th.
Tiger Woods managed to cut short one comeback and attempt another in 2017. Woods started his year with a missed cut at Torrey Pines and then a withdraw in Dubai. Two months later, and just two weeks after claiming he was close to playing the Masters, Woods under went anterior lumbar fusion surgery in his back. He finally returned to competition at the Hero World Challenge in December - just like he did in 2016 - but you can call 2017 yet another lost year for Tiger.
This situation that overshadowed the event and its winner. Lexi Thompson was assessed a four-shot penalty midway through the final round of the ANA Inspiration. She was docked two shots for improperly marking her ball on the 17th green the day prior and two more shots for signing an incorrect third-round scorecard. Thompson, who was on her way to her second major title before being told she was four shots worse than she thought, rallied back with stellar play but lost in a playoff to So Yeon Ryu. Months later in December, viewer call-ins and penalties for signing an incorrect card as a result of an unknown infraction were both abolished.
World No. 1 Dustin Johnson was coming off three consecutive victories when he arrived at Augusta National. He was the hottest player on the planet and the odds-on favorite to win the year’s first major. And then he slipped and fell on some stairs the night before the tournament, injuring his back. DJ arrived at the practice area on Thursday hoping to play, but after a warm-up session, he chose to withdraw. He would win again in the FedExCup Playoffs, and it is difficult to call a four-win campaign for the No. 1 player in the world a disappointment, but you just wonder what might have been had a healthy DJ played the Masters.
Danny Willett’s post-Masters swoon reached into its second year in 2017. After starting the year 11th in the world, Willett is now outside the top 100. A year of changes, Willett replaced his caddie and hired Sean Foley as his new swing coach. In October, he announced his season had come to an end when he damaged his rotator cuff.
Hampered all year by a nagging rib injury, Rory McIlroy went winless in 2017 for the first time since 2008. He also changed his clubs and his caddie, moving on from J.P. Fitzgerald and retaining his friend Harry Diamond.
Since winning the PGA Championship in 2016, Jimmy Walker has struggled to shake off the effects of Lyme Disease. He registered just one top 10 in 2017 and dropped to 68th in the world, down from 21st.
Lydia Ko failed to win an LPGA event in 2017 for the first time since 2011, when she was a 13-year-old amateur. After starting the year No. 1 in the world and appearing set for a one-on-one rivalry with Ariya Jutanugarn, Ko was leapfrogged by eight other women and now sits ninth in the Rolex rankings.
Michelle Wie appeared set to break a winless drought that dates back to the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open. Wie had racked up four top-four finished over the summer - including three in a row - but missed nearly two months of events after needing an appendectomy. Another case of what could have been if not for a freak occurrence.
Lexi Thompson was poised to put her ANA demons behind her. Thompson had a 2-foot putt on the 18th hole in Naples to win the CME Group Tour Championship, the Race to the CME Globe’s $1 million jackpot, the Player of the Year Award, and the No. 1 ranking in the world. She missed. After losing a playoff, she still took home the $1 million, but she left a lot on the table.
Jason Day started 2017 No. 1 in the world, but his winless streak now dates back to the 2016 Players Championship. In the midst of his struggles, Day split with his longtime caddie Col Swatton, who remains his swing coach.
From one Aussie to another, Adam Scott received plenty of attention when he went winless in 2015. He didn’t get nearly that same attention in 2017. Nonetheless, he is down to 31st in the Official World Golf Ranking, his lowest position since 2010.