Playing golf is a lot like spinning plates: Even the best will drop a few along the way. Balancing numerous, spinning objects atop narrow poles, showmen divide their attention between those in need of adjustment and those in good standing. One momentary lapse can lead to a crash, just like how a fixation over a specific area of one's game can lead to other to come falling down.
Don't believe me? Just ask Viktor Hovland. The 2023 FedEx Cup champion was arguably the best player in the world around this time last year as he captured the Memorial, raced through the postseason en route to the season-long crown and helped lead the European team to a commanding victory in the Ryder Cup.
A major championship appeared imminent for the talented Norwegian as he filled the short-game hole in his game, but the offseason need to see his golf ball move from left to right in the air led to surprising struggles in 2024. While Hovland's ball striking ultimately returned late in the year thanks to an increased focus on that skillset, his short game fell to new lows.
Hovland wasn't the only big name to fall short in crucial areas. Justin Thomas looked much like his normal self this past year after missing the FedEx Cup Playoffs in 2023 due to a downtick in his tee-to-green play. The two-time major champion made in roads leading up to the greens, but he made a couple wrong turns while on them.
Hovland's short game and Thomas' putting are just a couple of key areas of focus when it comes to some of the big names heading into the 2025 PGA Tour season. If able to improve on their shortcomings -- while continuing to spin the other parts of their games -- these players could be in line for a standing ovation on a major stage.
Max Homa's driving
The driver sets up the rest of one's game, which Homa learned the hard way in the latter stages of his year. After getting off to a wonderful start in 2024 -- during which he finished in a tie for third place at the Masters -- the popular right hander's game went awry in large part because of his driver.
Enduring long, grueling range sessions ahead of tournaments, Homa had the faintest idea of where his ball was going with the big stick in hand. All in all, it added up to the worst off-the-tee season of Homa's career as he checked in as a bottom-20 driver on the PGA Tour.
There are encouraging signs, however, as Homa continues to take ownership of his swing following a breakup with longtime coach Mark Blackburn. The six-time PGA Tour winner hit his driver much better during the fall, and that upward trajectory will need to carry over into the new year if Homa is to add new trophies to his collection.
Rory McIlroy's iron play
McIlroy's putting often draws criticism -- this was only intensified with his final-round performance at the U.S. Open -- but his iron play is what lagged in 2024 compared to historical levels. Before a strong finish on the DP World Tour, McIlroy was amid the worst approach season since his 2010 rookie campaign on the PGA Tour. This fact assuredly played a role in a recent three-week reset where the 35-year-old locked himself in his swing studio to rework the routing of his swing as a means to gain efficiency.
"It's something just to make my golf swing more efficient, and then if it is more efficient, then it means it's not going to break down as much under pressure," McIlroy said last month. "If I look at my year, the one thing that I would criticize myself on is the fact that I've had these chances to win.
"But then when I've had these chances to win, OK, some may have been because of the putter but others have been because of my ball-striking letting me down as a crucial point. I think just trying to clean all that up so that whenever I do get under that pressure, I can have a hundred per cent trust in my swing and know what's going to happen."
After making birdie on the par-4 13th in the final round of the U.S. Open, McIlroy led by two strokes with five holes to play. He then proceeded to miss two of the last three fairways and four out of the last five greens in regulation. He made three bogeys during this stretch and lost the championship by one stroke. Yes, the putter is to blame, but that club is never in that position if the iron play is up to McIlroy's standards.
Viktor Hovland's short game
Of the top 150 players in Data Golf's rankings, Hovland's around-the-green numbers are the worst among those who played on the PGA Tour in 2024. Not only was Hovland's short game the worst when pitted against his peers, but it was the worst when pitted against himself.
Hovland's short game was a clear deficiency in 2022 as it led to squandered chances at tournaments like the Genesis Invitational and Arnold Palmer Invitational. His improvement in 2023 was noticeable and helped him climb to the top of the game, but it has since dug itself to its deepest depth yet.
While his year was largely forgettable, Hovland had two memorable performances -- the PGA Championship and St. Jude Championship. His third-place finish at Valhalla was the first time he posted positive strokes gained around the green in 2024, and his runner-up result at TPC Southwind was his fourth-best performance in the same area, albeit a negative one. What this proves is that if Hovland just can be close to average around the green, he will be close to being considered one of the best players in the game again.
Justin Thomas' putting
Just how bad was Thomas on the greens in 2024? On average, he lost two strokes putting to the field over the course of an entire tournament and ranked as the 11th-worst putter on the PGA Tour. Two strokes may not seem like much, but it does for someone like Thomas who is winless since his 2022 PGA Championship title.
Thomas has yet to make a drastic putting change, although one may be required. He has employed AimPoint at various stages and alternated between a few Scotty Cameron models, but those have only been quick fixes, if fixes at all. Moving forward, something will need to give, but at least he will have options.
He can employ a new wand -- a broomstick or L.A.B. putter would be a welcomed experiment. He can try to new putting grip like left-hand low or a saw grip from close range similar to Scottie Scheffler. It will be up to Thomas how he wishes to improve on this deficiency, but one thing for certain is that what he's doing isn't working.
Jordan Spieth's health
Spieth's wrist injury first came to light the week of the 2023 Wells Fargo Championship, but he admitted that it had been bothering him as far back as 2017. The fall off in his game over the last 18 months is backed up by the statistics as whenever Spieth made contact with the turf, he struggled. On the year, he posted the second-worst approach numbers of his career and his worst short-game figures ever.
"It feels good. None of the shots, you know, I don't really have any problems with it," Spieth recently told SiriusXM. "No pain, no anything. So, now it's kind of just taking care of it, continuing to do therapy probably through the new year and just be prepared to go start playing some golf and be prepared to play three weeks in a row."
There are two positives for Spieth and his fans heading into 2025. The first is he is 100% healthy and the second is he drove the ball as well as ever and posted off-the-tee numbers similar to those from 2015. (Yes, that 2015.) If that left wrist is indeed healed, Spieth's game might be next in line.
