Golf Draft Kit: 2018-19 Top Rookies

This year's PGA Tour has a notable rookie class. Here's a rundown on the first-year tour players, ranked by projected earnings.

Cameron Champ
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $1,950,000

The 23-year-old out of Texas A&M burst onto the scene in 2017 at the U.S. Open, when he finished the first two days in a tie for eighth before ultimately posting a T32 in his major championship debut. His 2018 Web.com Tour campaign was highlighted by a win at the Utah Championship top-25s in half of his 20 starts. Champ missed just four cuts while ranking sixth in birdie average, fourth in GIR percentage and first in driving distance. It wouldn't be a surprise to see him in the running for Rookie of the Year honors on the PGA Tour in 2019.

Sungjae Im
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $1,750,000

The 20-year-old enjoyed success on the Japanese Tour in 2017 before leading the Web.com Tour's money list wire-to-wire this year, having won both the season-opening Bahamas Great Exuma Classic and WinCo Foods Portland Open. Im not only reached the top-100 in the Official World Golf Ranking, but he also qualified for a pair of majors, missing the cut at the U.S. Open before placing T42 at the PGA Championship. The young Korean ranked fifth on the Web.com Tour in birdie average and 19th in GIR percentage.

Anders Albertson
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $1,600,000

Albertson missed just three cuts in 22 starts on the Web.com Tour in 2018, adding a win at the Lincoln Land Championship as one of his 14 top-25 finishes. He ranked top-three in both birdie and putting average, while also finishing top-20 in GIR percentage. Albertson lacks PGA Tour experience with just one career start, however, posting a MDF at the 2016 RSM Classic.

Wyndham Clark
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $1,050,000

Clark appeared in three PGA Tour events during the 2017-18 season, notably finishing 17th at the Sanderson Farms Championship before missing cuts at the OHL Classic and Waste Management Phoenix Open. On the Web.com Tour in 2018, he collected to top-three finishes and four top-10s, but missed 11 cuts in 23 starts. Clark struggled with his accuracy off the tee, but made up for it with distance as he ultimately finished top-30 in birdie average.

Kramer Hickok
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $900,000

Hickok won the Web.com Tour's DAP Championship in early September during the Finals after finishing 23rd on the regular season money list, having also notched two top-three results and nine top-25s. With four career starts to his name on the PGA Tour, Hickok impressively finished top-20 at the 2017 RBC Canadian Open. He also won two events on the Canadian Tour that same year, so he's ascended to top-150 status in the Official World Golf Ranking.

Jim Knous
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $875,000

Knous will be a 28-year-old rookie on the PGA Tour after earning his card by finishing top-25 in the Web.com Tour Finals, where he brought his total amount of top-25s on the season to eight. He also made the cut during his lone start at the PGA Tour level during the 2017-18 campaign, posting a T41 at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. Knous was fourth in the all-around ranking on the Web.com Tour in 2018, so he could be a deep sleeper candidate.

Adam Long
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $825,000

Long's five top-10s and 12 top-25s put him comfortably inside of the top-25 on the Web.com Tour's regular season money list in 2018. The 30-year-old ranked 16th in birdie average and 13th in GIR percentage while also finishing top-25 in scrambling. He's made just one career appearance at the PGA Tour level, missing the cut at the 2011 U.S. Open.

John Chin
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $800,000

Chin flashed his clutch gene during the Web.com Tour regular season finale, notching a runner-up finish at the WinCo Foods Portland Open to vault inside the top-25 on the money list and therefore earn a PGA Tour card. He posted three top-10s in 23 starts, but his missed cuts ballooned into double digits. The 31-year-old ranked 11th in both GIR percentage and total driving, but wasn't stellar with the flat stick.

Chase Wright
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $740,000

Wright's 2018 Web.com Tour campaign was highlighted by a victory at the Rust-Oleum Championship, but he ultimately gathered only six top-25s in 24 starts. He still managed to finish top-10 on the regular season money list while ranking top-30 in putting average, birdie average and driving accuracy.

Kyoung-Hoon Lee
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $730,000

Lee failed to find the winner's circle on the Web.com Tour in 2018, but he posted a trio of runner-up finishes to ultiamtely finish fifth on the regular season money list. The 27-year-old Korean placed T47 during his lone start on th PGA Tour last October at the CJ Cup. Lee ranked top-25 on the Web.com Tour in both GIR percentage and birdie average, but was outside of the top-100 in total driving which could hurt his productivity at the next level.

Martin Trainer
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $715,000

The former USC Trojan was one of only two players to win twice on the Web.com Tour in 2018, claiming victories at both the El Bosque Mexico Championship and Price Cutter Charity Championship. He cooled off a bit near the end of the season, however, missing thre consecutive cuts from the Ellie Mae Classic through the Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship before placing outside of the top-50 at the Albertsons Boise Open. He still managed to rank 12th or better in birdie average and driving distance.

Cameron Davis
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $700,000

Long, lanky and 23-years old, Davis made a splash in his first Web.com season by winning the Nashville Open and posting three other top-3 finishes. After a T3 at the Web.com Tour Championship, Davis sealed the deal by earning his first PGA Tour card. David was top-10 in driving distance, greens in regulation and putting average on the Web.com Tour in 2017-18, so expect that well-rounded game to fare well on the PGA Tour. There's plenty of upside but it may take a couple years before he posts a $1 million season on the PGA Tour.

Kyle Jones
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $700,000

Jones had a relatively busy schedule with 26 starts on the Web.com Tour in 2018, racking up five top-10s and two second-place finishes to come in 11th on the regular season money list. The 25-year-old Baylor product ranked top-20 in both driving accuracy and GIR percentage, but he lacks significant power off the tee. A shortcoming in distance could hurt him at the next level, having earned a PGA Tour card for the first time in his career.

Chris Thompson
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $625,000

Thompson has achieved his lifelong dream of securing a PGA Tour card at the ripe age of 42. The Kansas product turned professional back in 1999, so it's been quite the journey for nearly two decades. In 2018 on the Web.com Tour, Thompson racked up five top-10s and nine top-25s in 23 starts to finish 20th on the regular season money list.

Sepp Straka
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $575,000

The 25-year-old Austrian ranked top-25 in both GIR percentage and total driving on the Web.com Tour in 2017-18, leading to a win at the KC Golf Classic and a third-place finish at the Web.com Tour Championship to earn a PGA Tour card for the first time in his career. Concerns lie in the fact that Straka posted only three top-25s in 26 events last season, but solid ball striking is an intriguing quality for the rookie.

Jose de Jesus Rodriguez
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $550,000

The 37-year-old from Irapuato, Mexico, has spent much of his professional career bouncing around various Tours all across the Americas, but he's finally reached the pinnacle of a PGA Tour card thanks to seven top-25s in 23 starts on the Web.com Tour in 2018. The 5-foot-10, 188-pound veteran embraces the nickname ""El Camaron"" (the shrimp) while he ranked just 135th in total driving this season. El Camaron is the all-time money leader of the PGA Tour Latinoamerica and he also won the United Leasing and Finance Championship at one of the toughest venues on the Web.com Tour this season.

Adam Svensson
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $525,000

The Canadian 24-year-old missed the cut during his lone start on the PGA Tour in 2018, which came on native soil at the RBC Canadian Open in July. Svensson racked up four top-10s and a win at the Bahams Great Abaco Classic on the Web.com Tour, however, climbing to 14th in the regular-season money list. He ranked just 131st in total driving, but was fourth in par-three scoring.

Joey Garber
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $450,000

Garber missed the cut in half of his 24 starts on the Web.com Tour in 2018, but he also won the Rex Hospital Open en route to a trio of top-10 performances. The former Georgia Bulldog hit less than 60 percent of his fairways in regulation as he ranked just 119th in ball striking. He went six consecutive starts without a top-25 heading into the Web.com Tour finale, so he may struggle at the start of this PGA Tour season as well.

Brady Schnell
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $425,000

Schnell collected just two top-10s in 24 starts on the Web.com Tour in 2018, but a win at the Wichita Open earned him a spot in the top-25 of the regular season money list. The 33-year-old was carried by a hot flat stick as he ranked second in putting average, but he fell outside of the top-115 in both GIR percentage and driving distance. It's looking like an uphill battle for Schnell to finish top-125 in the FedExCup standings during the 2018-19 PGA Tour season.

Hank Lebioda
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $400,000

Lebioda snuck in the top 25 on the Web.com Tour regular-season money list in 2018 with a T34 at the WinCo Foods Portland Open before struggling through the first three legs of the Finals. He's made 18 of 25 cuts and collected four top-10s to go along with seven top-25s. Lebioda has never played in an event on the PGA Tour, but he ranked 32nd in ball striking at the Web.com level in 2017-18.

Seth Reeves
2018-19 Projected Earnings: $300,000

Reeves secured his first PGA Tour card with a tie for fourth at the DAP Championship in a season that saw four top-10 finishes on the Web.com Tour. The long-hitting lefty will have his work cut out for him on the PGA Tour next season, but a full schedule should give him every opportunity to continue his career ascension. Just don't expect anything huge in his first taste of the PGA Tour.