Kaymer: ‘Excluding Results, I’m Better Now’

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In 2010, Martin Kaymer won the PGA Championship, his first career major – which moved him to No. 5 in the world at just 25-years old. It was the first of three-consecutive wins for Kaymer on the European Tour (PGA, KLM Open and Alfred Dunhill Links) in what was a breakthrough four-win season for the burgeoning superstar.

Just months later, he won his fourth tournament in his eight most recent starts by successfully defending at the Abu Dhabi season opener. Three starts later, in early February of 2011, Kaymer would finisher runner-up at the WGC Match Play which vaulted him into the World No. 1 position at barely 26-years old.

He would go on to win the 2014 PLAYERS and a second major a month later at the 2014 U.S. Open. He was a former world No. 1, and a two-time major winner, at just 29-years old. The sky was the limit, or so it seemed.

But following that U.S. Open win at Pinehurst, Kaymer’s game has fallen off the cliff, as he’s now in the midst of a four-year winless streak. Prior to the 2017-18 season, he even lost his PGA Tour card – although he still has privileges from winning the PLAYERS which comes with a 5-year exemption.

In his 20 most recent starts, he’s missed more than half (11) the cuts and only broken the top 40 twice – both in weakish European Tour fields (BMW Intl and Italian Open). As a result, the former all-world, can’t miss kid has plummeted all the way down to No. 157 in the world at just 33-years old.

Yet according to a profile at Golf Australia, the German star said he feels he can return to the elite player he once was. In fact he feels he’s a better player now, if results didn’t count:

“As strange as it sounds, I am a better player right now than I was back in 2011 when I was No. 1 in the world,” Kaymer said.

“My problem at the moment is that golf is a sport that is based on results and I have struggled a little bit to put every part of my game together for four consecutive rounds. I just have to continue doing what I am doing with my coach and things will fall into place again.”

After a MC (72-77) at last week’s Sky Sports British Open, Kaymer is taking the week off.

h/t Golfweek

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