This article is part of our Golf Barometer series.
January has thus far been owned by the hottest golfer on Tour, Justin Thomas, so to place him in the "Value Rising" category again would just seem like overkill. Back-to-back wins at the SBS Tournament of Champions and Sony Open (including a first-round 59) have launched Thomas 14 spots up the Official World Golf Ranking and into the top 10, placing him ahead of such names as Patrick Reed, Justin Rose, and Rickie Fowler. While Thomas grabs the trophies, there are other golfers playing well, a few others struggling, and one big name banged up.
VALUE RISING
Russell Knox
The 18th-ranked player in the world has zero finishes outside of the top 20 in six events since the end of the 2015-16 season. So far in the new campaign Knox is tied for second in top-10 finishes with three, behind only the red-hot Justin Thomas, who has four such results. Knox ranks ninth on Tour in putting from inside 10 feet, cashing in on 138 putts out of 149 attempts from that distance and in. Having already surpassed the $1 million mark, Knox could be in for quite the year if his ball-striking improves, ashe currently ranks 142nd in strokes gained: off-the-tee and 84th in strokes gained: tee-to-green. Last year Knox took about a month off following the Sony Open (which was just held last week), so he
January has thus far been owned by the hottest golfer on Tour, Justin Thomas, so to place him in the "Value Rising" category again would just seem like overkill. Back-to-back wins at the SBS Tournament of Champions and Sony Open (including a first-round 59) have launched Thomas 14 spots up the Official World Golf Ranking and into the top 10, placing him ahead of such names as Patrick Reed, Justin Rose, and Rickie Fowler. While Thomas grabs the trophies, there are other golfers playing well, a few others struggling, and one big name banged up.
VALUE RISING
Russell Knox
The 18th-ranked player in the world has zero finishes outside of the top 20 in six events since the end of the 2015-16 season. So far in the new campaign Knox is tied for second in top-10 finishes with three, behind only the red-hot Justin Thomas, who has four such results. Knox ranks ninth on Tour in putting from inside 10 feet, cashing in on 138 putts out of 149 attempts from that distance and in. Having already surpassed the $1 million mark, Knox could be in for quite the year if his ball-striking improves, ashe currently ranks 142nd in strokes gained: off-the-tee and 84th in strokes gained: tee-to-green. Last year Knox took about a month off following the Sony Open (which was just held last week), so he may not return to action until sometime in February.
Gary Woodland
Woodland has moved back inside the top 50 of the OWGR thanks to a sixth-place result at the Sony Open, in which he busted out of the gates with back-to-back 64s in his first two rounds. This performance followed a two-month break, which came on the heels of a runner-up at November's OHL Classic in his second start of the 2016-17 season. The long-hitter has been putting well as of late, finishing 11th among the field in strokes gained: putting at the Sony Open, and he ultimately placed T6 in total strokes gained. He won't be in the field for the upcoming CareerBuilder Challenge, but will likely appear in the Farmers Insurance Open, where he notched a top-20 finish in 2016.
Jamie Lovemark
Lovemark is driving the ball with power and putting with grace, and he used a fourth-place result at the Sony Open to jump 15 spots up the OWGR and into the No. 85 slot. In that event, he finished sixth in putts per GIR and drove the ball an average of 316 yards off the tee. Lovemark finished sixth at the upcoming CareerBuilder Challenge last year, so it appears he has taken a liking tothe Tour's West Coast Swing.
VALUE FALLING
Colt Knost
The struggles continued for Knost last weekend, as he missed the cut at the Sony Open in his return from a wrist injury. While the setback provides a reason for his recent issues, Knost has not finished inside the top 70 of a Tour event since the Barracuda Championship in early July, which featured quite a weak field. He will have a chance to turn things around at this week's CareerBuilder Challenge, where he posted a top-25 result one year ago, but it may be awhile before he feels confidence in both his swing and his wrist.
Harris English
English's 2017 campaign got off on the wrong foot, as he failed to advance to the weekend at the Sony Open, missing the cut by one demoralizing stroke. Currently ranked 75th in the OWGR, English is trending in the wrong direction after missing the cut in the last three events he appeared in. He has been struggling with accuracy off the tee, which is having a negative effect on his greens hit in regulation and ultimately keeping his scores right around par while he is forced to scramble from the rough. English's next event will likely be the Farmers Insurance Open, where he finished tied for second in 2015 after losing in a playoff to Jason Day.
Kyle Reifers
Reifers' scoring average of 71.75 so far this season has resulted in just one top-40 finish to go along with three consecutive missed cuts. While stronger competition still awaits, the 33-year-old has fallen to No. 146 in the world after climbing as high as No. 101 entering August of 2016. Reifers' putter has been his downfall thus far, while an acceptable GIR rate of 76.2 percent has taken a backseat to his debilitating putting woes. He will be a risky fantasy option again this week at the CareerBuilder Challenge, where he made the cut in 2016 but was only able to break 70 twice.
INJURY UPDATE
Rory McIlroy (ribs)
McIlroy was forced to withdraw from this week's Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship on the Euro Tour due to a stress fracture in his ribs, news that came out shortly after his runner-up finish at the BMW SA Open. The injury, which may have stemmed from McIlroy's focus on testing new equipment during the offseason, could keep McIlroy off the course for a month or more and could affect his preparation for the Masters. A Green Jacket has to be priority No. 1 for McIlroy, but his setback puts that in jeopardy, and the world's No. 2 golfer may return to action until early March, at the WGC-Mexico Championship.
