Bryson DeChambeau ranks as one of the top stars who will have to improve his game in 2026

Ask any player on the PGA Tour to define their greatest weakness, and you’ll likely end up with a myriad of different answers. Some are based on feel, some are based on numbers, some are based on imagination, and some are based on past accomplishments and previous heights soared.

Of course, all weaknesses are relative. Those who have historically been good drivers of golf balls and have experienced downturns in their field may still be taking a long-term view of their skill set. The same goes for the top and bottom of the bag. At the other end of the spectrum, players may view certain parts of the game as a lost cause and almost expect the occasional strong week to supplement the fundamentals of the game.

Let’s take a look at where the players fall in 2025, both from a short-term perspective and a “he really needs to fix this” perspective. Was it just a few years down and not the beginning (or continuation) of a downward trend?

Viktor Hovland driving

Hovland’s best iron season of his career — he finished second to Scottie Scheffler in strokes gained approach in 2025 — was followed by the worst driving season of his career. Oh, golf is such a fickle game. The former FedEx Cup champion has complained all season that his big stick was in an uncomfortable spot, and it’s no exaggeration to say that it was one of the reasons he didn’t win the U.S. Open, where he finished alone in third place.

“Yeah, I’m a little bitter about my driver,” Hovland said at Oakmont. “I just can’t seem to understand it. It’s like this is a problem that won’t go away this year and I’m kind of pissed off.”

But what went wrong with Hovland’s tee shot?

Hovland driving statistics

What’s the biggest takeaway from the above? Hovland went in the wrong direction in terms of speed. In a memorable 2023 season, the Norwegian had an average ball speed of 4mph and clubhead speed of 3mph at his disposal. Coincidentally, the faster he swung, the more accurately his ball flew within a narrower radius.

Some of this regression may be due to injury. Hovland suffered a severe neck injury at the Travelers Championship and had to miss Sunday’s singles event at the Ryder Cup. Alternatively, it could be due to a decrease in speed training in general. Whatever the cause, it resulted in him being handcuffed at various times this year.

Bryson DeChambeau’s iron play

dechambeau never the best Although a world ironman player, he has always had the ability to put together high-end performances. In 2025, he had never really done it other than at the LIV Golf Event in South Korea, which was his only win of the season.

On the major stage, the two-time U.S. Open champion was held back in this area. That was a big reason why he couldn’t maintain the lead at the Masters on Sunday, even though he grabbed the lead after two holes in the final round, and why he slowed down at the PGA Championship on Saturday.

It wasn’t enough, but those venues exposed it.

DeChambeau tried to improve the situation. He replaced the 3D-printed Avoda blades that made noise during the 2024 Masters with a new set from LA Golf ahead of the U.S. Open and played with a different golf ball in hopes of reducing spin. Although it didn’t necessarily pay off late in the summer, the idea is that DeChambeau will be able to accomplish something in 2026 after working hard in the offseason.

Collin Morikawa’s short game

Mr. Morikawa is so passionate about creating fades that he even asked Santa Claus to create fades for him at Christmas. Seriously. Who knows if he achieved that under the tree, but it doesn’t matter if his short game didn’t take a step in the right direction. It’s true that Morikawa’s iron play isn’t as good as it was in 2020 and 2021, when he won two major championships, two other PGA Tour events, and the DP World Tour Championship, but that’s not the case. that Far away.

He continues to rank third on the PGA Tour this year in strokes gained approach behind Scheffler and Hovland. That’s where he can do some damage, but if he wants to win a big tournament — which he hasn’t won since the 2023 ZOZO Championship… well… the Bay Current Classic — he’ll need more than just iron play.

Morikawa will need all his weapons to keep up with Scheffler, McIlroy and DeChambeau. He lacks length and doesn’t seem to have any intention of chasing anything, so the path to victory is slim and made even tougher by the state of his short game. When everything clicks, he still has a ceiling performance, but when the fade doesn’t go away, the floor falls out from under him.

In 2025, Morikawa had the worst total strokes gained season of his career, mainly because it was his second-worst round-the-green campaign. and Second worst of them all. This came just one year after he compiled the second-best season total strokes gained, surpassing 2020 and 2021, thanks to his best season both on and around the green.

So why wasn’t it his best? Because he had the worst approach year. But you don’t have to worry about that anymore, because the iron is back. Instead, the focus should be on how he can improve his chipping, pitching, and putting.

Xander Schauffele’s putting

From a statistical standpoint, Schauffele’s running numbers are a bit noisy. His return from injury comes at a point in the schedule that includes some of the most difficult driving courses on the PGA Tour, and oh yeah, he also has a new driver in the bag.

There are many variables to adjust, but where Schauffele fell far short was another place where variables are minimized: the putting surface. This past season, for the first time in his career, he took a putter and delivered a stroke to a PGA Tour opponent. He was ranked 139th overall, lost nearly 0.20 strokes per round, and changed putters during the postseason for the second time.

Stroke Gains: Putting by Year

Just like the drive sets up a player and bleeds the rest of the game. Stalling makes it harder to score, harder to scramble, and players are less likely to get up and down from greenside bunkers. Schauffele is a perfect example.

Although he had the best season of his career in 2024, he still ranked 1st in scrambles and 12th in strokes gained putts on the PGA Tour. Last year, he was 139th in putting and 136th in scrambling. His conversion rate dropped from 71% to 58%. Sand save rate also decreased by about 5%. One putt rate from the same clip.

These are all numbers related to his saves, but his goalscoring numbers paint a similar picture. He averaged about two fewer birdies per tournament and played par 3s and par 4s in over-par fashion. This came after a season in which he led the PGA Tour in par 3 scores and played par 4s under par. Doing that, in Schauffele’s case, means winning a major championship or two.

However, there is good news too. Schauffele jumped over the field to win in Japan in his only start of the FedEx Cup fall tournament. Although the numbers for the tournament were tracked incorrectly, based on the all-important eye test, Schauffele passed with flying colors on the greens. The same was true at Bethpage Black, where he became a bright spot for the U.S. team.

There are countless reasons to be bullish on Schauffele heading into 2026. His driving continued to improve and his iron play remained sharp, proving in other ways that he is tough as nails. Perhaps the most important thing? He’s never going to make a putt this bad again.