Projecting the game’s next stars is usually an impossible task.
Case in point: I tabbed 20 names in last year’s breakout predictions, and most of them didn’t exactly take off.
However, I did hit on a few, most notably David Puig, who added another Asian Tour win to start the year before notching a pair of late-season top-5s on the DP World Tour; Chris Gotterup and Kevin Yu, who broke through for their first career PGA Tour titles; and Ricky Castillo and Noah Goodwin, who aren’t stars yet, but they did both graduate from the Korn Ferry Tour this year.
Before I try again, here’s a reminder of the criteria:
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Yet to crack top 100 in Official World Golf Ranking
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Yet to win on PGA Tour, DP World Tour or LIV Golf
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25 years old or younger
So, now that we know the rules (no, Luke Clanton does not meet the criteria), here are 10 names to monitor as potential breakout stars in 2025:
ALSO CONSIDERED
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Joshua Berry, 19
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Yubin Jang, 22
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Neal Shipley, 24
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Jacob Skov Olesen, 25
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Ryan van Velzen, 23
10. Josele Ballester
Age: 21
OWGR rank: 4,572 (still amateur)
Main tour: N/A
Why it will be him: If there’s anybody from this current crop of college seniors who can catch fire this summer, it’s the Spaniard, who won last year’s U.S. Amateur and has the power and hands to be a PGA Tour winner.
Why it won’t be him: He’s in a battle with David Ford for the top spot in PGA Tour University, which would come with a PGA Tour card. If he doesn’t get that, his chances of rocketing up the world rankings greatly diminishes – unless, of course, he goes international for his early playing opportunities.
9. Johnny Keefer
Age: 23
OWGR rank: 215
Main tour: Korn Ferry Tour
Why it will be him: The athletic Baylor product was a solid college player, but not many could’ve envisioned what he did this past summer in Canada, winning once and notching eight other top-6 finishes. That’s an insane clip, and if he can transfer some of that over to the KFT, we’ll see him finish in the top 20 in points easily.
Why it won’t be him: He didn’t win at all in college, so if he wants to finish among the top 20 in KFT points next season, he’s going to need to buck that trend or rack up a handful of those top-6s again.
8. Kensei Hirata
Age: 24
OWGR rank: 114
Main tour: Korn Ferry Tour
Why it will be him: He was the highest-ranked player in the field at final stage of PGA Tour Q-School before earning 12 guaranteed starts with a T-8 finish. He’ll be a favorite to win the KFT points title after grabbing three wins on the Japan Tour this past season.
Why it won’t be him: As we’ve seen numerous times in the past, the translation to U.S.-based professional golf isn’t always easy for international players.
7. Christo Lamprecht
Age: 23
OWGR rank: 476
Main tour: Korn Ferry Tour
Why it will be him: The 6-foot-9 bomber has re-tooled his swing to alleviate the strain on his lower back following a long run of MCs on the KFT this summer, and a T-2 finish at the DPWT’s Mauritius Open shows that those changes are taking effect.
Why it won’t be him: The KFT is a demanding tour where guys often find themselves playing five or six straight weeks, which isn’t ideal for Lamprecht and his large frame.
6. Frederik Kjettrup
Age: 24
OWGR rank: 240
Main tour: LIV Golf
Why it will be him: The Florida State grad won three times on the PGA Tour Americas this past summer before joining LIV Golf and the Cleeks for next year. While he’s not an immediate threat to win on LIV, he has the potential to do what David Puig did this year, showing out on the Asian Tour and earning his way into some majors the hard way.
Why it won’t be him: The lack of world-ranking points on LIV is especially tough for a young guy coming out of school. It’ll be the most uphill a climb of anybody in this group of potential breakouts.
5. William Mouw
Age: 24
OWGR rank: 167
Main tour: PGA Tour
Why it will be him: The former basketball player has some pop and does a lot of things well, which explains how he compiled top-25 finishes in nearly half of his 22 starts, including three runners-up, on the KFT this year. He might not be a guy who wins on the PGA Tour next season, but he’ll make a lot of cuts.
Why it won’t be him: He can sometimes struggle to hit fairways, and those close-calls could start affecting him if he gets into contention more.
4. Robin Williams
Age: 23
OWGR rank: 203
Main tour: DP World Tour
Why it will be him: He finished just behind van Velzen on the Sunshine Tour order of merit to earn full DP World Tour playing privileges. He’s added some muscle and length in recent years and rolls it very nicely.
Why it won’t be him: He’s already missed three of his first four cuts of the DPWT season, and his short game has held him back in the past.
3. Aldrich Potgieter
Age: 20
OWGR rank: 219
Main tour: PGA Tour
Why it will be him: He’s got tons of speed, which should slot him in the top 10 on the PGA Tour right away. He was wildly inconsistent on the KFT this year, but he did win, and he could easily be a guy who pops a few times a season and makes most of his money in those weeks. Or he could mature rapidly and find that consistency next season.
Why it won’t be him: He’s still really young, and I’m not quite sold on the shorter clubs. He also missed 13 cuts on the KFT this year.
2. Frankie Capan III
Age: 25
OWGR rank: 148
Main tour: PGA Tour
Why it will be him: He has a ridiculous short game and putting profile, which explains why he can go so low; he shot 58 this year on the KFT, where he won once and added a pair of seconds. Add in plenty of power and when he’s flushing his irons, which happened more the latter part of the year, he can be dangerous.
Why it won’t be him: For as good as he was this year on the KFT, Capan didn’t exactly blow the doors off as an amateur or in his first year as a pro.
1. Karl Vilips
Age: 23
OWGR rank: 246
Main tour: PGA Tour
Why it will be him: The former prodigy turned pro this summer with conditional KFT status, which he quickly turned into a full-time gig with a win and runner-up. That hot start eventually booked Vilips a spot on the PGA Tour in 2025. He is an intriguing prospect considering he has the potential to be above average in three of the four facets (minus short game, though it’s not like that’s a huge weakness, either).
Why it won’t be him: He was banged up a bit as an amateur, including a serious finger injury a few years back. He’ll need to stay healthy.
