Jhonattan Vegas

Vegas is coming off a disappointing season that included just a lone top-10 finish at the alternate event Corales Championship. He's usually prone to some spike weeks due to his long hitting and strong iron play, while his short game leaves much to be desired. His solid ball-striking makes him a darkhorse for a bounce back season in 2022-23.

Vegas has been on the PGA Tour for more than a decade now and prior to 2020-21 the formula for his success was simple - if he won, it was a good year; if not, it was a poor year. That changed last season as he did not win but finished runner-up three times. The result was his best season since 2017, when, you guessed it, he last won on the PGA Tour. Vegas has always been wildly inconsistent, and considering he's coming off a good season, it's likely that he'll come back down to Earth this season. That and his number is set pretty high considering he's never cracked $3 million.

Vegas had a pretty disappointing end to his season, which featured four straight missed cuts to close things out. He drove the ball very well, ranking fifth in SG: Off-the-tee, but outside the top 140 on Tour in approaching the green, around the greens, and putting. Vegas had finished in the top 100 in the FedEx Cup standings each of the last four years prior to this season.

Vegas picked up his first victory on the PGA Tour in 2011 and while he had his moment in the three years that followed, he wasn't often a factor. The turn-around came in 2016, when he picked-up win number two and cracked the $2 million barrier for the first time. He backed that up with another win the following year and it looked like this might becoming the norm. The past two years however, haven't been as productive. He's coming off a decent season, but he obviously can do better. As such, he should get a look in salary cap formats.

Vegas has three wins in his PGA Tour career and coincidently, he's had three good seasons on the PGA Tour. In other words, when Vegas wins, he winds up with good numbers at the end of the season. It seems like an obvious correlation, but there are plenty of guys on the PGA Tour that can put up good numbers even when they don't win. The good news is, even though he had an "off" season, his numbers were much better than in previous "off" seasons. In other words, his floor looks to be higher now than in year's past. His number is set pretty low entering this season, which makes Vegas a very intriguing salary cap option this year.

Vegas won as a rookie in 2011, but his game left him soon after and by the end of the 2015 season, it felt like his lone victory was a total fluke. Vegas put all of that fluke talk to rest with a win in 2016 and the narrative changed again last season. Though Vegas lost some of his consistency last season, he had more high-end finishes than he ever had before. Vegas appears like a legit player on the PGA Tour, so a regression shouldn't be expected, but neither should an major improvement either. As such, he's not a great salary cap option this season.

Vegas experienced immediate success as a rookie on the PGA Tour in 2011 when he picked-up a win, a third-place finish and one other top-10 on his way to nearly $2 million in earnings. His success was short-lived however as over the following four years, Vegas failed to break the $1 million mark in any season. Entering last season, it was debatable as to whether he had already burnt-out or he was just going through a lull. Vegas answered that question with authority last season however as he picked-up another victory and earned nearly $2.5 million. While it was a great year for Vegas, the fact remains that he's had two good years on tour and three poor years. That's not a great ratio when considering anyone for a salary cap spot. In draft leagues, Vegas looks like a fifth- or sixth-round pick.

There was a time, not so long ago that Vegas looked like the next big thing. Believe it or not, that was actually the beginning of the 2011 season. Since that short stretch of fantastic play, Vegas has been either average or below average. Last year he was good enough to earn his card for 2015, but he showed no signs of that guy who nearly won back-to-back events in 2011. The upside is still there, but he likely won't tap into it this season. In draft leagues he may go undrafted.

Vegas is on the comeback trail after left shoulder surgery last February sidelined him for almost 10 months.

Vegas hasn't been the same since his early season run ended in March 2011. Vegas started his rookie season in style win a win and a T3 in consecutive weeks two years ago, but after a couple more decent outings, his game just left him. Not to the point where he fell out of the top 125, but if you remember back to the beginning of the 2011 season, people were pegging Vegas as the next big thing. As it turns out, it looks like he might have just been a flash in the pan. He still has upside, but Vegas hasn't been near his top form for almost two years now. As such, it's wise to pass on him this year. In draft leagues, he could be worth a late-round selection.

For a brief moment last season, Jhonattan Vegas was the man, the next big thing, the next Tiger. Remember? How soon we forget. Vegas set the PGA Tour on fire out of the gates last season when he won the Humana Challenge in January and followed that up with a third-place finish the following week. Yes, it looked like Vegas could be the real deal, but as often happens with young golfers, his play began to fade as the season wore on. In fact, in a span of six months, between March and September, Vegas had only one Top-10. He may well be the next big thing, but his performance during the heart of the PGA Tour season left a lot to be desired.

Vegas had a very nice season on the Nationwide Tour last year as he captured one victory, two runner-ups and one third-place finish. In all, he carded nine top-25s in 23 starts. Vegas also made the cut in his lone PGA TOUR start last season.