Quick, name as many players in the top 25 of the Official World Golf Rankings as you can. Names like Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, and Geoff Ogilvy come right to mind, but I'm willing to venture a guess that not many people would come up with the name Martin Kaymer too quickly. Kaymer, currently number six in the world after his win over Ian Poulter and a stacked field in the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship last week, is quickly proving that he is deserving of the attention he is beginning to garner in the golf world.
Kaymer shot up the lower circuits in Europe, earning his first amateur at age 19, in 2005. He then won the Order of Merit, the honor for winning the most money on tour, on the lower level EPD Tour in 2006. That success led to Kaymer's jump up to the Challenge Tour, the European Tour's equivalent to the Nationwide Tour. He played in the Challenge Tour only from August to October of 2006, in eight events, but still managed to finish fourth in the Order of Merit and grab two wins.
Kaymer moved up to the European Tour in 2007 and had a bit of a rough start. He missed the cut in his first five events, all of which were played outside of Europe. Once the Tour moved back to Europe, however, the Kaymer that had dominated on the lower levels started coming out to the golf course. He finished the season as the highest rookie on the Order of Merit, and won the rookie of the year award.
Over the past three years, Kaymer has won five times including last week. He finished Tied for sixth, in the PGA Championship last year and looks poised to compete in every major this year now that he has some top level experience under his belt. He finished third in the European Tour Order of Merit in 2009 behind Lee Westwood and Rory McIlroy despite missing significant time at the end of the year due to a foot injury. Kaymer is all but recovered from that injury--he now has a plate in his foot--and he seems to be playing some of the best golf of his life.
Kaymer is only 25. Most golfers do not hit their peak until their mid-30s, which means we should see a lot of great golf from him. He has finished in the top ten of the Order of Merit in each of the last three years and continues to improve every season. Kaymer is also proving that he is a world-class golfer and that his success at the lower levels was not a fluke. It may be unfair to lump him in with many of the other young golfers out there who have had some success so early in their careers, but Kaymer is going to be facing the same expectations that golfers like Rory McIlroy, Anthony Kim, Chris Wood, and Camilo Villegas are seeing. Based on Kaymer's track record, it's safe to assume he can live up to the expectations.
- Drew Tocco - RotoKingdom.net Staff Writer
Drew Tocco, aka Tocs, is an avid golfer out of Grand Rapids, Michigan. He graduated with a degree in Public Relations in 2009 and is currently trying to break into the sports PR industry. He is a fan of all Detroit sports and hopes to one day work for the Detroit Tigers. He has been with RotoKingdom.net since 2007 and is currently moderator of the golf section with Shadowboy0387.