Ready to shine

It's not hard for novice golf fans to name the big names on Tour -- Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia and Ernie Els. But you may not know the up-and-comers who are ready to explode onto the scene. You should, because one of these guys will win a major in either 2005 or 2006. You heard it here first.

At 24, Scott is probably the best known. He's already won the Players Championship, an impressive addition to his resume. With a swing that would remind anyone of Woods, Scott finished seventh on the money list in 2004, making the cut in 12 of the 16 events he entered (with seven top-10 finishes). Ranked 12th in the world, Scott became the youngest Australian to win four times on the European Tour.

With the exception of driving accuracy, he's improved on all facets of his game over the past year. The biggest improvement was with the flat stick, where he went from 153rd in putting in 2003 to 37th in 2004.

His biggest negative? By his own admission, he's too nice on the course. If Scott wants to take his game to the elite level, he'll have to get that killer instinct and come up with some sort of scowl or evil-eye. But he shouldn't take it to the extreme and turn into the next Scott Hoch. If Scott decides to play in a few more tournaments in the U.S., look out. When he has the putter working, there's no stopping him.

Rose, 24, had spent most of his time on the European Tour until 2004, his first full season on the PGA Tour. At age 17, Rose was the youngest Walker Cup player ever at the 1997 event. But turning pro at such a young age was rough for Rose, who missed the cut in his first 21 starts on the European Tour.

Now he's headed in the right direction. On the PGA Tour last year, he made the cut in 18 of 22 events with four top-10 finishes. He even led the Masters after 36 holes before fading on the weekend.

The biggest plus to Rose's game right now is his ability to get on the green in regulation -- he ranked 31st in 2004. Although his best finish on the Tour was third at the 2003 Deutsche Bank Championship, many victories are in Rose's rosy future. Like many of the young guns, his biggest problem is keeping the ball in the fairway. He'll need to tame the big dog if he's going to take his game up a notch or two.

At 22, Mahan is the youngest of the bunch. But that doesn't mean his game isn't at the same level. Mahan made the cut in 16 of 30 events in 2004, with his best finish a tie for second at the Reno-Tahoe Open. Mahan was a standout at Oklahoma State University, where he was co-recipient with Ricky Barnes of the 2003 Ben Hogan Award. He also won the Jack Nicklaus Award and Fred Haskins Award as top collegiate golfer in 2003.

If that isn't enough, Mahan was also a two-time member of the U.S. Palmer Cup team and was named the Big 12 Player of the Year twice (2002 and 2003). But will he translate his college success to the Tour? Like Rose, he'll need to tighten up his game off the tee in order to contend on Sunday.

Johnson, 28, dominated the Nationwide Tour in 2003 -- making the cut in 19 of 20 events en route to Player of the Year honors. His success on the Nationwide Tour earned him a promotion to the Tour in 2004. He didn't disappoint, making the cut in 24 of 30 events.