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Major championships are the tournaments which every golfer wants to win. A victory in any of these four tournaments opens up an incredible amount of doors and guarantees a place in history.
Of late, first-time major winners have been very common; out of the last 11 Major championships, nine players won their maiden Major. Who will be next to break through into golf's most elite club?
Here is a list of players I believe are next in line to have their names etched into a major championship trophy.
#1 Rickie Fowler
Official Golf World Ranking: No. 8 Best Major Finish: 2nd (2018 US Masters, 2014 US Open, 2014 The Open)
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The most unsurprising name on this list is American star Rickie Fowler, who has to be considered as one of the best players in the world.
Fowler found success and notoriety early on in his career, winning multiple tournaments and raising the trophy for these in his now famous orange outfits, which are linking to his college colours back at Oklahoma State University.
Fowler has so far had an outstanding career. He has won eight times in total, many of these being at some very significant tournaments.
His biggest success was back in 2015 when he fought off Kevin Kisner and Sergio Garcia in a playoff to win The Players Championship, which is often called golf's fifth major.
Fowler has proved himself at every Tour he has played on and is an established Top 10 Golfer in the world and it is clear to see why. With his distance off the tee, ball-striking and incredible short game, he clearly has all the qualities you need to be an all-time great golfer.
Fowler is starting to find himself in the place Sergio Garcia found himself for many years, a player with enough quality to win a major but, for whatever reason, has not been able to get it done.
Multiple top-five finishes and second places have plagued Fowler's career so far and while he has earned a lot of money from these finishes, there is nothing he would love more than to join his good friends Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth as major winners.
Patience, however, is a virtue and if Fowler can keep his confidence high and keep performing consistently, a major championship is surely just around the corner.
#2 Tommy Fleetwood
Official Golf World Ranking: No. 10 Best Major Finish: 2nd (2018 US Open)
Tommy Fleetwood has been a professional for a long time but, it was only in 2017 where he stood up and showed what a great golfer he really is.
The Englishman has now emerged at the top tier of world golf, but it has not been an easy ride to success.
The 2010 winner of the English amateur had a slow start to his career as a professional and struggled to find his feet in his first two years.
In his first year on the European Tour, Fleetwood only just managed to keep his playing rights, getting a top 10 finish in his final event of the season to scrape through into his next year.
After a win in 2013, his career went quiet once again, as he struggled to win tournaments and make a step up to the next level.
2017 saw an upturn in form for Fleetwood. Two big wins at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and the Rolex Series Open de France meant that in 2017 he went from a run of the mill European Tour player to a top 20 player in the world.
With his confidence high he kept performing well and entered the 2018 season as a real contender for any event, including the majors.
A final round 63 in the 2018 US Open gave the Englishman a real chance to get his hands on his first major but, he was just beat by now double champion, Brooks Koepka. It will not be long before Fleetwood links four rounds together to win a major.
Fleetwood is a true underdog, a player who was once upon a time, struggling to remain on the European Tour but now could be winning one of golf's most coveted events. It would be an incredible story and there are few that will argue against it happening.
#3 Hideki Matsuyama
Official Golf World Ranking: No. 12 Best Major Finish: T2 (2017 US Open)
Hideki Matsuyama is arguably the most talented golfer to ever from Asia. In his young career, Matsuyama has shown the gift he has for the game, winning several massive tournaments and is widely seen as one of the best young players in golf.
It did not take long for Hideki to step into the limelight. Just over a year after turning professional, Matsuyama won at Jack Nicklaus' Memorial Tournament, stepping into the golfing spotlight as a player to watch out for by pundits and competitors as well.
Since then, Matsuyama has not looked back, winning another seven times and establishing himself as in and around golfs top ten players.
The Japanese star has had a glittering start to his career, but yet to have mounted a serious challenge for one of golf’s biggest tournaments.
He did tie for second in the 2017 US Open but then again, he was never really in contention for the victory and finished four shots behind eventual winner Brooks Koepka.
Asia has only ever had one major winner in golf and I am sure Matsuyama will be the next. Y. E. Yang brought the continent its first major title and with Matsuyama constantly improving, there could be many more coming to Asia from this immensely talented 26-year-old.
#4 John Rahm
Official Golf World Ranking: No. 6 Best Major Finish: 4th (2018 US Masters)
Last year, John Rahm exploded onto the golfing scene. His instantly recognisable short back-swing and unbelievable power saw him winning tournaments almost immediately, is one of the brightest new young talents in golf.
The Spaniard certainly has the game to win at the highest level, best summed up by Phil Mickelson who said "Every part of his game is a strength, I think he’s one of the best players in the world."
Despite being the youngest player on this list, Rahm has the best world golf ranking at this time, with Justin Rose being the only non-american to be ranked higher.
The consistency needed overtime to get such a low world golf ranking, shows maturity beyond his years and there is many who argue that it is only a matter of time before this results in a major championship victory.
Rahm has lots to experience still in golf and has not had enough time to really impose himself on a major championship, but this could all change this year.
Rahm was right in the mix at the US Masters finishing fourth and he is still in a good run of form. The Spanish national will be looking intently at the last two majors this year, hoping for his first win.
Learning all the time and progressing even further in his career, Rahm could go to the very top of golf. Such talent at such a young age cannot go unrewarded and Rahm is likely to join his hero Seve Ballesteros in picking up several major championships throughout his career.
#5 Marc Leishman
Official Golf World Ranking: No. 16 Best Major Finish: T2 (2015 The Open)
Now there is no doubting that compared to other names on this list, Marc Leishman is no way near as famous. The Australian international may not have the fame as many others, but he certainly has the game to compete at the highest level.
He also may have better form in the majors than you might imagine. When Adam Scott pushed out Angel Cabrera in the playoff to win at the 2013 US Masters, Leishman was narrowly behind the leaders and finished in tied fourth alongside Tiger Woods.
Leishman is also the only player on this list who has tied the lead in a major, only to narrowly miss out in a playoff. In 2015, Leishman was joined by Louis Oosthuizen and Zach Johnson in a three-man playoff, after a winner could not be decided in 72 holes. Zach Johnson went on to win this but, the Australian now knows what it is like to be right on the brink of winning a major championship.
It is surely only a matter of time before Leishman joins fellow Australians Adam Scott and Jason Day as major winners.
Winning big titles such as the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the BMW Championship illustrates how good Leishman can be on his day and why he definitely deserves to be on this list as soon to be major champions.
Who do you think will win their maiden Major championship? Sound off your opinion in the comments section below!
