Why 2013 will be better than 2012- what Hawaii showed us

Dustin Johnson claimed his 7^th PGA Tour title at the weather delayed season opener, the Tournament of Champions, finishing 4 shots ahead of an injured Steve Stricker; reigning FedEx cup champion, Brandt Snedeker, continued his 2012 form finishing a shot further back in outright third. 

Steve Stricker admitted that he was suffering with nerve damage in his leg and was unsure that he would even be able to complete 18 holes, so his 4^th top 5 finish  in the event was a surprise.  He now looks to take a 6-week break in a season in which he only expects to compete in about 12 events. 

As numerous people on twitter have pointed out, Dustin Johnson has achieved two very interesting accomplishments with his win this week.  Firstly he now has the most Tour wins of anyone under 30, one more than McIlroy who has six wins.  But, perhaps more interestingly, Dustin Johnson has now won all of the last 3 PGA Tour events that have been shortened to 54 holes.  While I don’t wish to detract from his victories, some people might argue that he struggles to play four rounds especially if they remember his US Open meltdown in 2010.   The stats however don’t quite match- he was 36^th in final round scoring average in 2012 with an average score of 70.434, granted he didn’t have a full season, but it is something that will be interesting to look for as 2013 season unfolds.   

What can the season opener tell us?

There has been a lot of talk that the Tournament of Champions needs to be moved to later in the season because the weather often plays a factor and it often fails to attract the eligible big names; McIlroy and Woods who won 4 Events and a Major collectively in 2012 did not play for example.  However, I think that it works as a season opener and I like that you have to earn your place from the season before.  I understand that it is always a little disappointing not to get the big names but this is the same at all events and this event would really not work midway through the season.  However, because there is such a limited field it does not really give us an indicator of who might do well this season.  Obviously following their performances, Johnson, Stricker and Snedeker are firm favourites to do well but based on previous seasons this was a no brainer anyway, no great incites based on last week’s results.  However, I thought the field was very diverse and this is a sign of the strength in depth on the Tour.  There were proven winners in Dustin Johnson, Stricker and Poulter; Major winners like Bubba and Bradley but there was also new winners such as Charlie Beljan and Tommy Gainey.  There were also simple effective golf swings like that of Stricker and Snedeker but players such as Gainey and Bubba who swing it their own way also performed well and I think that this shows how much strength and depth there is on tour at the moment.  While the proven champions will always be the favourites, literally anybody could win on tour this year and that’s why I think 2013 will be an even better season than 2012.