Opinion & Analysis
The most overrated ball striker in the game
It is quite common to see athletes live off a certain reputation that is far from reality. While I am as big of a fan of Derek Jeter as anybody, his reputation provided him with Golden Glove awards that he was not worthy of. Michael Jordan’s defense became a liability in the latter years of his career, and it seems like anytime Bill Belichick uses a new scheme, he is credited as the inventor of that scheme.
On the PGA Tour, misconceptions about the abilities of certain golfers may be more prevalent. It surprises me that there are often so many misconceptions in a sport like golf — a game that has far fewer moving parts than a team sport. But I think a lot of these misconceptions have to do with people struggling to accurately quantify different parts of the game. There is also such a large discrepancy between a PGA Tour player and an amateur golfer that amateurs tend to overestimate the abilities of touring pros when they see them play in person — they think pros are incredible at every facet of the game simply because they are better than anybody they have seen before.
One of the myths I labeled in 2012 Pro Golf Synopsis as the “Mayfair Effect.” It occurs when a player has such an unorthodox swing or putting stroke that it is assumed that the player must be a good ball striker or putter because they are on Tour with that unorthodox motion. I called it the “Mayfair Effect” because of Billy Mayfair’s strange putting stroke. Because of its uniqueness, many golf fans and reporters labeled him as a great putter. The reality is that Mayfair was a very good ball striker who was held back by his struggles with the flat stick.
Perhaps the biggest myth on Tour today is the prowess of Sergio Garcia’s ball striking and his ineptness with the putter. No other player today quite gets the accolades of being the best ball striker of our generation like Garcia does.
Tiger gets praise for his ball striking, and the statistics show that Tiger is indeed an elite iron player. He just tends to struggle with his driver, and we acknowledge this. However, from what we hear about Garcia’s ball striking abilities, we would think he was the second coming of Ben Hogan. But the stats show this to be far from the truth.
Sergio has been a very average driver of the ball for the past three years on Tour. As far as his Zone play goes, the Safe Zone (shots from 125 to 175 yards) is his best part of his game, but his performance from that distance is just above average. And the Zone that matters the most on Tour is the Danger Zone (shots from 175 to 225 yards), which outside of 2011 he has been downright mediocre.
This does the raise the question of “How is Sergio still successful on Tour?” Well, he is a much better putter and short-game player than he is given credit for.
At one point in his career, Garcia was an elite ball striker on Tour and one of the Tour’s best putters. While those days appear to be behind him, he has become a much better putter and short-game player than most people realize, which has been a key for him in 2013.
As the editor-in-chief of this website and an observer of the GolfWRX forums and other online golf equipment discourse for over a decade, I’m pretty well attuned to the grunts and grumbles of a significant portion of the golf equipment purchasing spectrum. And before you accuse me of lording above all in some digital ivory tower, I’d like to offer that I worked at golf courses (public and private) for years prior to picking up my pen, so I’m well-versed in the non-degenerate golf equipment consumers out there. I touched (green)grass (retail)!
Complaints about the ills of and related to the OEMs usually follow some version of: Product cycles are too short for real innovation, tour equipment isn’t the same as retail (which is largely not true, by the way), too much is invested in marketing and not enough in R&D, top staffer X hasn’t even put the new driver in play, so it’s obviously not superior to the previous generation, prices are too high, and on and on.
Without digging into the merits of any of these claims, which I believe are mostly red herrings, I’d like to bring into view of our rangefinder what I believe to be the two primary difficulties golf equipment companies face.
One: As Terry Koehler, back when he was the CEO of Ben Hogan, told me at the time of the Ft Worth irons launch, if you can’t regularly hit the golf ball in a coin-sized area in the middle of the face, there’s not a ton that iron technology can do for you. Now, this is less true now with respect to irons than when he said it, and is less and less true by degrees as the clubs get larger (utilities, fairways, hybrids, drivers), but there remains a great deal of golf equipment truth in that statement. Think about it — which is to say, in TL;DR fashion, get lessons from a qualified instructor who will teach you about the fundamentals of repeatable impact and how the golf swing works, not just offer band-aid fixes. If you can’t repeatably deliver the golf club to the golf ball in something resembling the manner it was designed for, how can you expect to be getting the most out of the club — put another way, the maximum value from your investment?
Similarly, game improvement equipment can only improve your game if you game it. In other words, get fit for the clubs you ought to be playing rather than filling the bag with the ones you wish you could hit or used to be able to hit. Of course, don’t do this if you don’t care about performance and just want to hit a forged blade while playing off an 18 handicap. That’s absolutely fine. There were plenty of members in clubs back in the day playing Hogan Apex or Mizuno MP-32 irons who had no business doing so from a ballstriking standpoint, but they enjoyed their look, feel, and complementary qualities to their Gatsby hats and cashmere sweaters. Do what brings you a measure of joy in this maddening game.
Now, the second issue. This is not a plea for non-conforming equipment; rather, it is a statement of fact. USGA/R&A limits on every facet of golf equipment are detrimental to golf equipment manufacturers. Sure, you know this, but do you think about it as it applies to almost every element of equipment? A 500cc driver would be inherently more forgiving than a 460cc, as one with a COR measurement in excess of 0.83. 50-inch shafts. Box grooves. And on and on.
Would fewer regulations be objectively bad for the game? Would this erode its soul? Fortunately, that’s beside the point of this exercise, which is merely to point out the facts. The fact, in this case, is that equipment restrictions and regulations are the slaughterbench of an abundance of innovation in the golf equipment space. Is this for the best? Well, now I’ve asked the question twice and might as well give a partial response, I guess my answer to that would be, “It depends on what type of golf you’re playing and who you’re playing it with.”
For my part, I don’t mind embarrassing myself with vintage blades and persimmons chasing after the quasi-spiritual elevation of a well-struck shot, but that’s just me. Plenty of folks don’t give a damn if their grooves are conforming. Plenty of folks think the folks in Liberty Corner ought to add a prison to the museum for such offences. And those are just a few of the considerations for the amateur game — which doesn’t get inside the gallery ropes of the pro game…
Different strokes in the game of golf, in my humble opinion.
Anyway, I believe equipment company engineers are genuinely trying to build better equipment year over year. The marketing departments are trying to find ways to make this equipment appeal to the broadest segment of the golf market possible. All of this against (1) the backdrop of — at least for now — firm product cycles. And golfers who, with their ~15 average handicap (men), for the most part, are not striping the golf ball like Tiger in his prime and seem to have less and less time year over year to practice and improve. (2) Regulations that massively restrict what they’re able to do…
That’s the landscape as I see it and the real headwinds for golf equipment companies. No doubt, there’s more I haven’t considered, but I think the previous is a better — and better faith — point of departure when formulating any serious commentary on the golf equipment world than some of the more cynical and conspiratorial takes I hear.
Agree? Disagree? Think I’m worthy of an Adam Hadwin-esque security guard tackle? Let me know in the comments.
@golfoncbs The infamous Adam Hadwin tackle ? #golf #fyp #canada #pgatour #adamhadwin ? Ghibli-style nostalgic waltz – MaSssuguMusic
Episode #16 brings us Cliff McKinney. Cliff is the founder of Old Charlie Golf Club, a new club, and concept, to be built in the Florida panhandle. The model is quite interesting and aims to make great, private golf more affordable. We hope you enjoy the show!
Last week, I came across a reel from BBC Sport on Instagram featuring Scottie Scheffler speaking to the media ahead of The Open at Royal Portrush. In it, he shared that he often wonders what the point is of wanting to win tournaments so badly — especially when he knows, deep down, that it doesn’t lead to a truly fulfilling life.
View this post on Instagram
“Is it great to be able to win tournaments and to accomplish the things I have in the game of golf? Yeah, it brings tears to my eyes just to think about it because I’ve literally worked my entire life to be good at this sport,” Scheffler said. “To have that kind of sense of accomplishment, I think, is a pretty cool feeling. To get to live out your dreams is very special, but at the end of the day, I’m not out here to inspire the next generation of golfers. I’m not out here to inspire someone to be the best player in the world, because what’s the point?”
Ironically — or perhaps perfectly — he went on to win the claret jug.
That question — what’s the point of winning? — cuts straight to the heart of the human journey.
As someone who’s spent over two decades in the trenches of professional golf, and in deep study of the mental, emotional, and spiritual dimensions of the game, I see Scottie’s inner conflict as a sign of soul evolution in motion.
I came to golf late. I wasn’t a junior standout or college All-American. At 27, I left a steady corporate job to see if I could be on the PGA Tour starting as a 14-handicap, average-length hitter. Over the years, my journey has been defined less by trophies and more by the relentless effort to navigate the deeply inequitable and gated system of professional golf — an effort that ultimately turned inward and helped me evolve as both a golfer and a person.
One perspective that helped me make sense of this inner dissonance around competition and our culture’s tendency to overvalue winning is the idea of soul evolution.
The University of Virginia’s Division of Perceptual Studies has done extensive research on reincarnation, and Netflix’s Surviving Death (Episode 6) explores the topic, too. Whether you take it literally or metaphorically, the idea that we’re on a long arc of growth — from beginner to sage elder — offers a profound perspective.
If you accept the premise literally, then terms like “young soul” and “old soul” start to hold meaning. However, even if we set the word “soul” aside, it’s easy to see that different levels of life experience produce different worldviews.
Newer souls — or people in earlier stages of their development — may be curious and kind but still lack discernment or depth. There is a naivety, and they don’t yet question as deeply, tending to see things in black and white, partly because certainty feels safer than confronting the unknown.
As we gain more experience, we begin to experiment. We test limits. We chase extreme external goals — sometimes at the expense of health, relationships, or inner peace — still operating from hunger, ambition, and the fragility of the ego.
It’s a necessary stage, but often a turbulent and unfulfilling one.
David Duval fell off the map after reaching World No. 1. Bubba Watson had his own “Is this it?” moment with his caddie, Ted Scott, after winning the Masters.
In Aaron Rodgers: Enigma, reflecting on his 2011 Super Bowl win, Rodgers said:
“Now I’ve accomplished the only thing that I really, really wanted to do in my life. Now what? I was like, ‘Did I aim at the wrong thing? Did I spend too much time thinking about stuff that ultimately doesn’t give you true happiness?’”
Jim Carrey once said, “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.”
Eventually, though, something shifts.
We begin to see in shades of gray. Winning, dominating, accumulating—these pursuits lose their shine. The rewards feel more fleeting. Living in a constant state of fight-or-flight makes us feel alive, yes, but not happy and joyful.
Compassion begins to replace ambition. Love, presence, and gratitude become more fulfilling than status, profits, or trophies. We crave balance over burnout. Collaboration over competition. Meaning over metrics.
Interestingly, if we zoom out, we can apply this same model to nations and cultures. Countries, like people, have a collective “soul stage” made up of the individuals within them.
Take the United States, for example. I’d place it as a mid-level soul: highly competitive and deeply driven, but still learning emotional maturity. Still uncomfortable with nuance. Still believing that more is always better. Despite its global wins, the U.S. currently ranks just 23rd in happiness (as of 2025). You might liken it to a gifted teenager—bold, eager, and ambitious, but angsty and still figuring out how to live well and in balance. As much as a parent wants to protect their child, sometimes the child has to make their own mistakes to truly grow.
So when Scottie Scheffler wonders what the point of winning is, I don’t see someone losing strength.
I see someone evolving.
He’s beginning to look beyond the leaderboard. Beyond metrics of success that carry a lower vibration. And yet, in a poetic twist, Scheffler did go on to win The Open. But that only reinforces the point: even at the pinnacle, the question remains. And if more of us in the golf and sports world — and in U.S. culture at large — started asking similar questions, we might discover that the more meaningful trophy isn’t about accumulating or beating others at all costs.
It’s about awakening and evolving to something more than winning could ever promise.
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paul
Jun 25, 2013 at 10:09 am
for pure ball striking i think its hard to go past Adam Scott,he swings it awesome and doesn’t seem to miss fairways with the driver and gets it out there.also Bill Haas is underrated in my opinion hits it good but doesnt get the recognition he deserves.im from australia and will also say that i think geoff ogilvy is overrated he really struggles now
Charles
Jun 11, 2013 at 1:24 am
Whatever the stats say, I’ll never forget being at Torrey South some years ago and watching Sergio make the green on his second shot on the 13th, from the right fairway bunker – with an iron of some kind. I watched with binoculars from behind the back bunker. A stupendous shot.
Goldchips
Jun 10, 2013 at 2:35 pm
Good point about people’s reps preceding them. I do, however, believe that Garcia is one of the best ball strikers on tour for this reason. Stats don’t incorporate pictures, they are just numbers. Seeing Sergio work the ball in any direction (high, low, left, right) and the crispness and sound in which he hits the ball, puts him on another level. Stats aside, the dude can hit the ball better than anyone on tour, excluding Woods probably.
tim roncone
Jun 6, 2013 at 2:48 pm
great article. all players have thei ups and downs. i personally feel that srtgio is a good player but a hothead who cant control himself. to be honest the whole time he and tiger went at it you could see sergio trying to find that comment that would bring him on top in the battle. and if i remember correctly… what happened in that final round…. oh yea he completely came off the hinges and was no where near taking the top spot. and yes i hate to say it. but sergio is a racist. theres no excuse for making a comment of that caliber. he said it so stop trying to find a viable excuse for his actions as a fan.
stephenf
Jun 6, 2013 at 2:18 pm
LOVE both the idea of this analysis and its execution here in this article. So, so many misconceptions based on selective perception, the way announcers talk about a player, etc. “He’ll be disappointed with that one,” they say about the guy who hit the wedge to 14 feet, except that it turns out that’s two or three feet inside the guy’s average. “He can shoot a 63 anytime he really needs to.” “He’s a great short putter” (and then when he misses, “Oh, gosh, now that’s not what you’d expect from him”). And so on.
As for Sergio’s improvements in the short game, well…necessity really is the mother of invention.
Save Par From Afar
Jun 22, 2013 at 7:07 pm
So, so many misconceptions based on selective perception, the way announcers talk about a player, etc. “He’ll be disappointed with that one,” they say about the guy who hit the wedge to 14 feet, except that it turns out that’s two or three feet inside the guy’s average. “He can shoot a 63 anytime he really needs to.” “He’s a great short putter” (and then when he misses, “Oh, gosh, now that’s not what you’d expect from him”). And so on.
– Actually no thats just Johnny Miller. He’s an absolute buffoon and everyone involved with golf is tired of his act. At the US Open every single bad shot made by even the greats including Ernie Els and Luke Donald he would relentlessly say “Hes feeling the pressure now, that’s ‘US Open nerves’ right there”. Ernie Els and Luke Donald? How about it’s 1 of the hardest courses and setups in the ENTIRE WORLD and not a single player finished the tournament under par. Smarten up johnny, your announcing career is on the 18th hole…. and you certainly won’t be finishing with an enviable score you buffoon.
Ron
Jun 6, 2013 at 2:01 pm
Ok stinks is abit harsh, it’s well written and it is informative, just think Sergio seems to be villain of the moment,
Dane
Jun 6, 2013 at 12:42 pm
I don’t see this as a bash to Sergio, I thought it was very informative. Thanks Rich! Andy hit it on the head! I think most of us in the states would agree with that paragraph.
viper
Jun 6, 2013 at 11:00 am
At least Sergio is not a cheater lol
Ron
Jun 5, 2013 at 1:23 pm
This article stinks, why choose now to kick Sergio? There are dozens of overrated players, you might as well call this article Sergio is a racist and his ball striking is rubbish so there!
DT
Jun 3, 2013 at 6:00 pm
Great article. I’d like to see how Luke holds up in this. If anyone gets the hype crown, it’s him. I think it’s probably well deserved, but again, I haven’t seen the numbers.
Care to compare him to Sergio?
Scott
Jun 2, 2013 at 7:30 pm
Strange article?! ….nobody in Europe considers Sergio to be a top ball striker ?Westwood, Hanson or Rory are far more impressive, but lets face it, only one number counts when it comes to stats… and that’s the one on the card?!
Andy
Jun 3, 2013 at 9:20 am
Well I’m from England and I definitely consider him a great ball striker.
As a general rule we (over on this side of the pond) consider Sergio to be :-
1) Incredibly volatile (probably making any data almost useless).
2) A magician around the greens. Something that most of the Spanish golfer seem to share and a legend founded by Seve and Oly.
3) A superb Iron player.
4) In the Wilderness years he had a very bad rep with the putter.
Lee has the reputation with the Driver.
Luke has the incredible short game / putter halo.
Rory has the whole game. But he’s also very young and just been given unlimited money and a hot girlfriend. He’s not surprisingly more than slightly distracted from golf, but finds that shooting a bad first 2 days means more time on the private jet / in Monaco with the cash and the hot girlfriend !
Gary
Jun 1, 2013 at 8:43 pm
The past three years is a very poor representation of a career that to date spans about 13 years. Sergio has improved his putting over the past 3-4 years at a cost to his long game. I don’t know what the stats say, but my recollection certainly is that.
Archshaw
Jun 1, 2013 at 8:21 pm
Jordan’s defense a liability?…what are you smoking. He was great in his prime and just average defensively at the end..but never a liability.
c
Jun 1, 2013 at 11:03 am
His ball striking has regressed for sure but he was at one time one of the best ball strikers on tour. When you hit more greens you also end up putting from further away which makes your putting stats look worse. In contrast when you miss more greens you can chip close which makes your putting stats look better.
2004 he was 4th in GIR – 187 in strokes gained putting
2005 he was 1st in GIR – 164 in strokes gained putting
2006 he was 37th in GIR – 132 in strokes gained putting
2008 he was 38th in GIR – 121 in strokes gained putting
2012 he was 98th in GIR – 27 in strokes gained putting
Goldchips
Jun 10, 2013 at 2:39 pm
great point
billy bob
May 31, 2013 at 9:59 pm
Surely Harrington has to be considered more successful than Sergio????
Nick
May 31, 2013 at 12:28 pm
Sergio is a donkey. Nothing more…nothing less. Forever to be classified as unfulfilled hype.
stephenf
Jun 6, 2013 at 2:19 pm
He’s made millions of dollars and won tournaments as one of the approximately 125 best players on the planet at his game. What are you one of the best in the world at, donkey?
Tommy P
May 30, 2013 at 10:10 pm
You are the man Rich, always enjoy your articles!
John Wunder
May 30, 2013 at 8:08 pm
Great write up Rich. Im a Sergio fan, have been for years but I have to agree with on this one. He’s not the same guy. Always enjoy your stuff man, keep it up.
Mary
May 30, 2013 at 6:57 pm
Seems to be fully of haters this site
No body deserves to be forgived? pharisees
Worst of all the journalists just to gain some money, what kind of headline is this??? with Sergio’s pic to use all the controversy…
Pathetic
WedgeGuru
May 30, 2013 at 1:55 pm
I have often wondered about this very same claim about Sergio. Thanks for clearing that up with some good old fashioned data 🙂
James
May 30, 2013 at 1:47 pm
tiger is the best player of all time end of discussion
Forsbrand
Jun 8, 2013 at 3:04 pm
Didn’t realise tiger had won 19 majors? Because that’s what he needs to win before he can be judged best player of all time! Period
Mike
May 30, 2013 at 11:37 am
Probably he is the best international player of the last 10 years, just Vijay or Adam Scott achieves the same high level for several years
He is playing great this year, wish he’ll play great at the US Open and the PGA, the last round with him and Tiger matched could be memorable!
Will
May 30, 2013 at 1:36 pm
Lee Westwood, Luke Donald, Rory all more successful than Sergio and most American players for that matter!
DaddyDaddy
May 30, 2013 at 6:51 pm
No they don’t, Lee Westwood (great person and golfer) is 7 years older and has less wins on the PGA Tour than Sergio and more or less the same worldwide.
Luke Donald is 4 years older and has less wins on PGA Tour and worlwide than Sergio.
Both were not in the top level for several years as Sergio did.
To be fair Rory seems to be clarily better tan him.
Come on people, we have to be honest, you don’t like him? ok, but it’s out of doubt that he is one of the best players of the world since he turned pro
Forsbrand
May 31, 2013 at 6:28 pm
Listen, there’s guys that are equipment reps that hit it great distances and strike it better than european and us tour players, and they all share the same problem…..they can’t score. It doesn’t matter how well you strike it, or how good your swing looks, it’s all about getting it in the hole and the job done. Furyk, azinger, two gloves, all guys with swings you wouldn’t copy, but fantastic results all the same. Wasn’t tom partner the guy in the 90s that everyone labelled the best swinger out there? How many tournaments did he win though?
Forsbrand
May 31, 2013 at 6:28 pm
Tom purtzer.
Billy Cunningham
Jun 1, 2013 at 12:51 pm
I assume English is not your first language?
“But the true is that comparing to Tiger every pro lose!”
John
May 30, 2013 at 11:32 am
Sergio is an amazing player, no doubt about it
JK
May 30, 2013 at 10:38 am
Sergio would be a much better striker if Tiger Woods ever stopped pulling clubs out of his bag!
Mike
May 30, 2013 at 11:39 am
LoL!
But the true is that comparing to Tiger every pro lose!
Lee
Jun 22, 2013 at 1:52 pm
Not really. A lot better ball strikers out there than tiger. Player, no. Ball striker, yes.
Philip Nielsen
May 30, 2013 at 10:32 am
Great information. I do hear it all the time about how Sergio is an amazing striker lol. Stats show otherwise.