Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele, Tyrrell Hatton: Who will be the next first-time major winner?

Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele and Tyrrell Hatton are the three highest-ranked players yet to win a major; all three will be hoping to break their duck at the PGA Championship next month, before the US Open and The Open

By James Walker-Roberts

Image: Will Jon Rahm be the next first-time major winner?

When it comes to major winners over the last few years, first time has been the charm.

Five of the last six men's major champions have been first-time winners, and four of the last six at the PGA Championship - the next major on the 2021 calendar - have been maiden major wins.

With the PGA, US Open and The Open coming up in the next few months, who could be the next players to break their major duck?

Jon Rahm

Image: Will Jon Rahm be the next first-time major winner?

World No 3 Rahm is the highest-ranked player without a major win to his name.

He has four top-five finishes at majors and came closest to winning at the US Open in 2019 when he finished in a tie for third, but it is at The Masters where his best chance of major success might be.

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Rahm has made the top 10 in his last four appearances at Augusta National and has been par or better for his last 15 consecutive rounds, one behind Tiger Woods' tournament record of 16. Rahm is also a combined 37-under par at The Masters over the last four years, which is the best score of any player during that span.

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With five PGA Tour titles and six on the European Tour, it is surely only a matter of time before Rahm, 26, wins his first major.

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Xander Schauffele

He does not have a major win to his name yet, but Schauffele does not seem overawed by the occasion at the biggest tournaments.

Image: Xander Schauffele finished a shot behind champion Tiger Woods at the 2019 Masters

He finished in a tie for fifth in his first major appearance at the US Open in 2017 and has been in the top 10 for half of his appearances since, including two tied-second-place finishes and two tied-third-place finishes.

At The Open in 2018 he started the final round tied for the lead but finished two shots behind Francesco Molinari, and at the 2019 Masters he came a shot behind Woods.

Schauffele has shown he has the game to compete in different conditions and, like Rahm, at the age of 27 he has time on his side.

Tyrrell Hatton

Hatton has enjoyed an excellent 18 months with three tournament wins, including victory at Wentworth in 2020, helping him move up to No 8 in the world.

Image: Will Tyrrell Hatton break his duck?

But lately he has not been able to produce his best golf at the majors.

He missed the cut at all three last year and finished in a tie for 18th last month at The Masters, the major he says he thinks he is "least likely to do well in".

Hatton's best finishes so far have been at The Open where he came in a tie for fifth in 2016 and tie for sixth in 2019.

Patrick Cantlay

Cantlay has won three times on the PGA Tour and is ranked No 10 in the world, but has only twice challenged for a major.

Image: Patrick Cantlay has won three times on the PGA Tour

He was tied for third at the 2019 PGA Championship, six shots behind runaway winner Brooks Koepka, but came closer to winning when he finished in a tie for ninth at The Masters that year.

The 29-year-old looked to have put himself in contention with an eagle at 15, only to follow up with back-to-back bogeys to slip back and end up three shots behind champion Woods.

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Cantlay certainly appears to have the temperament to win a major and should fare better if he gets in a position to contend again.

Tony Finau

World No 12 Finau has a very impressive record at majors without managing to get over the line.

He has made the top 10 in eight of his last 12 appearances, including a third-place finish at The Open in 2019 and tied-fourth at the PGA Championship last year.

Image: Tony Finau is a serial top-10 finisher

But Finau's struggles to get over the line have not been confined to majors; he has 45 top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour and only one win in 2016.

Surely it's only a matter of time before Finau gets a major win, isn't it?

Who else could be in contention?

Will Rickie Fowler ever get a major win? The 32-year-old finished in the top five in all four majors in 2014 and also came second in The Masters in 2018. In 2019 he had two more top-10 finishes and may still break his duck, despite slipping out of the top 100 in the world.

Viktor Hovland is among the next generation looking to challenge, while Matt Fitzpatrick is also one to watch. Tommy Fleetwood has also shown he is more than capable of contending for a major, finishing fourth and second at the US Open in 2017 and 2018, and then second at the US Open in 2019.

Watch the PGA Championship throughout the week live on Sky Sports Golf! Live coverage begins with the opening round on Thursday May 20 from 1pm on Sky Sports Golf and Sky Sports Main Event.

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