4 Golfers Who Are Yet to Fulfil Their Potential

By: Liam Moore | Thu 06 Jul 2023

When we think of all the professional golfers in the world, a few immediately stand out in prominence as they have achieved the hardest feats in the game of golf.

Major championships have long been a benchmark to contrast golfers from different eras, and these four annual tournaments will continue to hold the most importance throughout the golfing season.

Below, we have selected four names who are yet to completely fulfil their potential, but be warned, if they do find their flow, eternal relevance awaits them.

Xander Schauffele

It can easily be deemed harsh to include Xander Schauffele in this list considering he has 10 professional wins which includes the 2017 Tour Championship! Perhaps that’s also why he’s on this list, however, as he has failed to mirror that level of achievement as a professional golfer since. Arguably the most frustrating thing about Schauffele is how someone of his capabilities has failed to capture a major - or The Players Championship at the very least.

The American has finished inside the top 10 of every single major at least once, and over the last seven U.S. Opens, he has failed to finish inside the top 10 on just one occasion. The 29-year-old is not your average golfer and whilst his current progression can be viewed as slightly underwhelming since that gigantic win in 2017, there should be little doubt that Schauffele finishes his career without at least one major championship. Perhaps his 30s will be his golden decade - just as it has been for many others.

Matt Wallace

Matt Wallace captured his first PGA Tour title in 2023 when he was crowned champion of the Corales Puntacana Championship, which was an alternative event on the PGA Tour that week. He beat fellow European Nicolai Hojgaard by a sole stroke to record his maiden victory on the premium tour. That triumph marked the first win for the Englishman since 2018; during the first 18 months of his career on the DP World Tour, Wallace had won on four occasions.

After that successful spell, the name Matt Wallace seemingly appeared everywhere and ardent European golf fans wondered when he would make the journey across the Atlantic to establish himself as a household name in America. The wait continues to this day as Wallace has failed to push on since his emergence on the professional scene. He has featured in 16 major championships and only broke the top 10 once - T3 at the 2019 PGA Championship. Still, at the age of 33, there is ample time for Wallace to fulfil the potential that his earlier career highlighted.

Patrick Cantlay

Another reputable name in the golf world, but should have Patrick Cantlay achieved more than he has at this stage of his career? The American was a sensational college and amateur player and he came through sectional qualifying for the 2011 U.S. Open. He finished as the Low Amateur there and then again at the 2012 Masters Tournament as all eyes were fixated on the promising young man. Since then, he has featured in 24 major championships but only broke into the top 10 on four occasions, which can be deemed as lacklustre for someone with a golf game as silky as his.

However, we can’t simply gloss over the victories he has rightfully earned during his career. Two Memorial Tournaments, two BMW Championships and the alluring Tour Championship back in 2021 make for impressive reading. Despite this, we all know golfers are judged on major victories and Cantlay’s omission from the major circle is disappointing just as much as it is remarkable. As another player in their 30s, Cantlay certainly has time on his side… for now.

Tommy Fleetwood

(Image Credit: Kevin Diss Photography)

Tommy Fleetwood could call an early end to his career tomorrow and he will be delighted with his performance in professional golf. He has 10 professional victories but they have all taken place on European-based tours. Fleetwood has become a permanent fixture on the PGA Tour over the last five or so years, but that elusive victory still alludes him despite many heroic efforts. The Englishman endured a difficult three-year spell between victories on the DP World Tour, but he broke that duck in 2022 after he scooped the second Nedbank Golf Challenge title of his career.

Fleetwood has finished in the top 10 of every major bar The Masters, with the 33-year-old recording a T14 finish back in 2022 as his best showing at Augusta. He shows up continuously on the big stages, which is further supported by two top 10 finishes at The Players Championship and only missing the cut on one occasion in six attempts. However, one win on American soil could very much open up the floodgates and enable Fleetwood to grow to the level every golf fan believes he is capable of. At the age of 33, there’s plenty more Fleetwood in the tank for us all to enjoy - will a major championship follow imminently?

All four golfers on this list hold the potential of becoming revered names that will be remembered for years to come.

As is the way with golf, the only thing standing in their way of eternal relevance is the capture of a major championship or more.