Max Greyserman is up to No. 31 in the world ranking and can count on a return trip to the Masters next year if he stays in the top 50 over the next few months.
But this runner-up business is getting old.
Greyserman now has five runner-up finishes in his 53 starts over two years, the most recent when Xander Schauffele outlasted him at the Baycurrent Classic. Schauffele birdied the 17th hole for a two-shot lead, and Greyserman went down swinging — a 7-iron from 187 yards that stopped about 6 inches away from the cup.
“Kind of more of the same,” Greyserman said. “Feel like I executed. I did well, just didn’t play good enough.”
The PGA Tour is off this week, and the 30-year-old Greyserman might do well check in with South Florida neighbor Cameron Young.
Young, had seven runner-up finishes in three years — five of them as a rookie, when he nearly won two majors — before breaking through at the Wyndham Championship this year.
There are similarities, mainly the fact someone else has played better. Young had a Sunday scoring average of 67.5 in his six runner-up finishes (the other was in match play). Greyserman, who closed with a 65 in Japan, has a 65.8 scoring average in his five runner-up finishes.
Greyserman has earned $4,210,400 — more than half his career earnings — from those second-place finishes. That’s a mere consolation.
“I could take this a few different ways,” he said. “Another second would be one thought. Disappointed would be another thought. But on the flip side, I could say I played really well. I shot 65 on Sunday when I was tied for the lead and in the last group, so a lot of good.
“I don’t really know how to feel because I’m obviously very disappointed. But it’s the PGA Tour. You need to play exceptional on a Sunday to win a golf tournament. I played great, but I just didn’t play good enough.”
