PGA Power Rankings: 10 best players on TOUR this season

No one could have predicted the chaos of the 2021-22 PGA TOUR season. From LIV Golf's emergence to Phil Mickelson's departure from the public eye, the season was full of unexpected moments.

While the TOUR may have lost major winners in Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, and Bryson DeChambeau to LIV, other stars emerged in Will Zalatoris, Sam Burns, and - of course - Scottie Scheffler.

Here's a look at the 10 players who had the most impressive runs in 2021-22 and our pick for the PGA TOUR's Player of the Year.

10. Jon Rahm

Rahm didn't have his best season on TOUR, but the Spaniard still grabbed a win at the Mexico Open - marking the sixth consecutive year he's won at least once.

The 27-year-old deserves recognition for his consistency. Rahm made 18 straight cuts (a few of which were at no-cut events) from early January to late August, including at all four majors. The only cut he missed was the Fortinet Championship - the first event of the season. He ranked first on TOUR in strokes gained: off the tee and finished in the top 10 eight times in just 19 events.

9. Matt Fitzpatrick

It was a breakthrough year on TOUR for Fitzpatrick, the 27-year-old from Sheffield, England. Though he only had one TOUR win, it was a major - and that counts for a lot. In addition to claiming the U.S. Open title in June, he finished inside the top 25 at the other three majors.

Fitzpatrick only missed the cut three times in 20 events and held the third-lowest scoring average on TOUR, behind Rory McIlroy and Cameron Smith, at 69.217.

8. Justin Thomas

Like Fitzpatrick, Thomas' sole win came at one of the four majors. He claimed the PGA Championship in May and had three third-place finishes and six more top-10 finishes, tying for third-most top 10s of anyone on TOUR this season.

Notably, he tied for eighth at the Masters, made the cut at all four majors, and only missed two cuts in 21 events.

7. Sam Burns

Among a considerably large group of players with multi-win seasons on TOUR this year, Burns was one of four to record three wins. While his victories weren't at the most star-studded tournaments, it's still an impressive feat. He had an additional runner-up finish and four more inside the top 10 in 24 starts. The best of his season came in the front end - his third win was the Charles Schwab Challenge in May.

6. Xander Schauffele

Schauffele also recorded a three-win season. While he didn't win any majors or elevated events, his successes certainly weren't a walk in the park. He won the Zurich Classic with teammate Patrick Cantlay in a wire-to-wire contest and later defeated the impressive field at the Scottish Open. His other win was the Travelers Championship in June.

The 28-year-old finished in the top 15 at three of the four majors and placed inside the top five at the final two playoff events. He ranked fifth on TOUR in scoring average at 69.462 and missed just two cuts in 21 events.

5. Patrick Cantlay

Cantlay's season may not have garnered as much buzz as the rest of the top five on this list, but the 30-year-old had 12 top-10 finishes, the most of anyone on TOUR. What's even more impressive is that he played in just 20 events.

His two wins were the Zurich Classic with Schauffele and, more impressively, the BMW Championship on Aug. 21, where he became the first player to successfully defend a playoff title since the FedEx Cup Playoffs were introduced in 2007.

4. Will Zalatoris

Zalatoris came incredibly close to ending a stellar TOUR season without a win. However, the 26-year-old managed to sneak in his first career TOUR victory at the FedEx St. Jude Championship before a back injury ended his season early. At the time of his withdrawal, he was ranked No. 1 in the FedEx Cup Playoffs standings.

Zalatoris also came very close to winning two majors - losing to Thomas in a playoff at the PGA Championship and finishing one stroke back of Fitzpatrick at the U.S. Open. He ranked first in both strokes gained: tee to green and strokes gained: approach the green.

3. Cameron Smith

The top three on the list were in a league of their own this season. Smith was hot right out of the gate, recording two impressive wins - the Sentry Tournament of Champions and The Players Championship - before the first major even arrived on the schedule.

The 29-year-old Australian went on to win golf's must illustrious prize with the 150th Open Championship at St. Andrews. He ranked second in scoring average at 69.203 and, if not for his withdrawal prior to the start of the BMW Championship, could have been a bigger contender at the TOUR Championship.

2. Rory McIlroy

McIlroy had one of the most impactful PGA TOUR seasons both on and off the course. Beyond his efforts to improve the TOUR amid the threat of LIV Golf, the Northern Irishman won three times, including the season-finale TOUR Championship.

With the feat, he became the first person to win the FedEx Cup thrice. He also finished inside the top 10 at all four majors and had the lowest scoring average of the season at 68.67. Even more impressively, he accomplished all this in just 16 events on TOUR. For perspective, that's nine fewer events than Scheffler played in.

1. Scottie Scheffler

While he may have played in more events the McIlroy, Scheffler still had the best season on TOUR - and one of the better seasons by any player in recent years.

None of the 26-year-old's four victories were run-of-the-mill events. Two of his wins were elevated events - the Arnold Palmer Invitational and WGC-Match Play - and another was one of golf's most prestigious tournaments: the Masters. His performance was so solid at Augusta that he won by three strokes despite making a double-bogey at No. 18. He had four additional runner-up finishes and one third-place finish.

Scheffler only needed 92 starts as a professional to rise to world No. 1, the third fewest ever behind just Jordan Spieth (77) and Tiger Woods (21).