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TSN Senior Reporter

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Ahead of 2016, TSN golf analyst Bob Weeks looks at what to expect in the coming year in a series of columns. Today, it’s a look at five major champions who have something to prove in 2016.

 

Jason Dufner

Since withdrawing from the 2014 PGA Championship with a neck injury, the Duf has failed to show that form that saw him win that same tournament a year earlier as well as earn more than $3 million for three consecutive years. At the start of last year, Dufner lost a healthy chunk of weight and later in the season he and his wife Amanda parted ways. You wonder if now, with the off-course distractions in the past, he can get back to the form that saw him earn spots on both the Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup teams. While unofficial, a good sign may have been his win in December in the Franklin Templeton Shootout, where he partnered with Brandt Snedeker to win the silly season event. The popular player should rebound in 2016, though winning a major may be a big order at this point.

 

Webb Simpson

It was a decent year for the 2012 U.S. Open winner as he logged five top 10s in 22 starts and collected more than $2 million. However he was a non-factor in the three majors he played. In fact, since his U.S. Open win, Simpson hasn’t had a top-20 finish in a major and has missed the cut in five. Of note is that his four tour wins, including the Open, all came with the long putter, which Simpson ditched at the start of the 2015 season – in fact he snapped it across his knee to prevent a return. So far, the move hasn’t paid off that well as Simpson was ranked 174th in Strokes Gained: Putting, last year. Still the rest of his game is very good and keeps him competitive. It would seem that if he can warm up the putter, he would be a threat to win again.

 

Tiger Woods

This one might be obvious but the 14-time major champion is in injury limbo at the moment. We not only don’t know when he’s going to play again, we don’t even know when he’s going to swing a club again. At last report, he hadn’t even begun physiotherapy treatments for his latest operation. Woods, who turned 40 on Dec. 30, hasn’t been healthy for most of the last three seasons but it appears this time he’s going to take the long road back to the tour, saying he won’t rush things. He’s set no deadline. Will we see him at the Masters? I’d bet no, but when he does return he’ll want to show that he still has game. I believe he still can win but not like he did in his heyday.

 

Phil Mickelson

For the second consecutive year, Lefty failed to win a tournament. He did tie for second at the Masters but was a non-factor at the other three majors. Over the last two years, he’s managed just four top-10 finishes. And now we begin to wonder if this is a blip on his resume or the start of the decline for the 45-year-old Mickelson. He is likely wondering the same thing and to that end, he’s parted ways with longtime coach Butch Harmon and hired little known Andrew Getson, hoping to get some inspiration for the twilight of his career. Although he’s accomplished a lot in his career, the missing piece is a U.S. Open title. Does he still have a chance? It would appear that while he is still exceptionally talented, the window on his career is closing fast. Mickelson may still win events but his best years are behind him.

 

Ernie Els

It was another disappointing year for Els, who didn’t win, missed eight cuts in 18 starts and failed to register a top-10 finish. It’s been that way since Els won the Open Championship in 2012 and it gives cause to think that the Big Easy has somehow lost some desire. Adding fuel to that was the embarrassment of badly missing two putts of gimmee length, which he conceded were due to the yips. At the end of the season, Els withdrew from a big South African event, the NedBank Challenge, citing an undisclosed injury. Els, like Mickelson, will turn 46 in 2016 and his game is starting to show its age. There’ s nothing to indicate he’s set to turn it around this season.