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Where Are They Now? How the stars of Netflix's breakout hit golf show 'Full Swing' are faring so far in 2023

Tyler Lauletta   

Where Are They Now? How the stars of Netflix's breakout hit golf show 'Full Swing' are faring so far in 2023
Joel Dahmen throws a ball into the crowd at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.AP Photo/Darryl Webb
  • Netflix's documentary series "Full Swing" brought new attention to the sport of golf.
  • Through the start of the 2023 season, some of the stars of the first season are already making moves.

Jordan Spieth was featured in the premiere episode of "Full Swing."

Jordan Spieth was featured in the premiere episode of "Full Swing."
Jordan Spieth plays a shot at Pebble Beach.      AP Photo/Eric Risberg

Jordan Spieth is still one of the top players in the world, ranked 17th in the Official World Golf Rankings as of the start of March.

Spieth's most recent solid finish came with a T-6 performance at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. He hasn't won an event since the 2022 RBC Heritage, which fans saw in the premiere episode of "Full Swing."

Spieth still is looking to complete the career Grand Slam, needing only a win at the PGA Championship to become the sixth man in the history of the sport to accomplish the feat.

Justin Thomas is still enjoying his major win at the PGA Championship.

Justin Thomas is still enjoying his major win at the PGA Championship.
Justin Thomas plans a shot with caddie Jim "Bones" Mackay.      AP Photo/Ryan Kang

Justin Thomas has continued his hot run of play to start the 2023 season, with a solo fourth finish at the Waste Management Phoenix Open in February and a T-20 finish at the Genesis Open the following week.

He's ranked ninth in the world according to the OWGR as of the start of March. After his playoff win over Will Zalatoris at the PGA Championship last year, which included a thunderous comeback on Sunday, Thomas will look to add a third major victory to his resume this year.

Brooks Koepka's year with LIV Golf has just begun.

Brooks Koepka
Brooks Koepka lines up a putt at a LIV event in Florida.      AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Brooks Koepka's episode of "Full Swing" was an impressive look inside the life of one of golf's fiercest competitors at a crossroad.

Last year, Koepka, a four-time major winner, made the jump to LIV Golf, securing guaranteed money as his game was not at the level it once was.

Koepka is currently the captain of Smash GC in LIV, playing alongside his brother Chase, as well as former PGA Tour players Jason Kokrak and Matthew Wolff.

Smash GC finished ninth out of 12 teams at Mayakoba, the first LIV event of 2023, with Koepka finishing T-27 in the individual competition.

Koepka is currently ranked 90th in the OWGR; LIV events remain ineligible for World Ranking points as things currently stand.

Still, Koepka is exempt to play in all four majors through 2024 thanks to his win at the 2019 PGA Championship.

Matthew Fitzpatrick's US Open win still doesn't feel real.

Matthew Fitzpatrick
Matthew Fitzpatrick reads the green at the US Open.      AP Photo/Julio Cortez

Matthew Fitzpatrick was one of the breakout stars of the first season of "Full Swing," with Netflix's cameras following the young Englishman as he secured his first career major win at the 2022 US Open.

Fitzpatrick is ranked 13th in the world, as of the start of March, but has not been at the top of his game to open his 2023 schedule, missing two of his past three cuts.

Still, Fitzpatrick is well-positioned to hit his stride at the Arnold Palmer Invitational this week, where he has finished in the top 10 in four straight years, including a solo second-place finish in 2019.

Sahith Theegala is still looking for his first win.

Sahith Theegala is still looking for his first win.
Sahith Theegala watches his shot at Torrey Pines.      AP Photo/Gregory Bull

Sahith Theegala was one of the young rookies that "Full Swing" featured in its first season.

Theegala is still looking for his first PGA Tour win, but the 25-year-old has looked sharp to start his 2023 season. He's already got a pair of top 1o finishes: a T-4 at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines and a T-6 at the Genesis Open at Riviera.

Ranked 31st by OWGR at the start of March, this should be Theegala's first year playing all four majors in a single season.

Joel Dahmen is the most enjoyable player on the PGA Tour.

Joel Dahmen is the most enjoyable player on the PGA Tour.
Joel Dahmen throws a ball into the crowd at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.      AP Photo/Darryl Webb

Joel Dahmen was another breakout star from the first season of "Full Swing," endearing himself to golf fans with his loose demeanor, a sharp contrast to some of the more intense personalities on the PGA Tour.

Dahmen is currently ranked 89th in the world, not too far off from where he was last year.

One huge difference for Dahmen this season, though — he won't have to battle through open qualifying for the US Open this year.

While Dahmen's journey through qualifying made for compelling television, thanks to his T-10 finish at The Country Club in 2022, he will get an automatic invite to this year's US Open at Los Angeles Country Club in June.

Tony Finau and his family are doing well.

Tony Finau and his family are doing well.
Tony Finau flips his putter at the Farmers Insurance Open.      AP Photo/Gregory Bull

Tony Finau's status as a great golfer and a great dad were both cemented during his episode of "Full Swing."

Finau was ranked 12th in the world at the start of March, and has finished in the top 20 of five straight events to start the calendar year.

As viewers of "Full Swing" learned, he's also quite a family man.

In addition to the back-to-back wins Finau recorded at the 3M Open and Rocket Mortgage Classic last summer that were depicted in the show, Finau also secured a win at the Houston Open in November 2022.

Mito Pereira has jumped to LIV to play with his countrymen.

Mito Pereira has jumped to LIV to play with his countrymen.
Mito Pereira plays a shot out of the bunker.      AP Photo/Sam Morris

Mito Pereira's collapse at the final hole of the PGA Championship was one of the most compelling moments of the first season of "Full Swing."

He would finish 2022 still without a PGA Tour victory, and is currently ranked 48th in the world.

That ranking will likely be dropping in the weeks to come though, as Pereira announced in February that he had joined LIV Golf to play alongside fellow Chilean golfer Joaquin Niemann on Torque GC.

Pereira finished T-15 at LIV Mayakoba, his first event in the new league, and Torque finished third in the team competition.

Ian Poulter's first LIV event of 2023 did not go well.

Ian Poulter
Ian Poulter plays a shot at the Dubai Desert Classic.      AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili

Ian Poulter's move to LIV was prominently featured in the first season.

Poulter's ranking has dropped to 149th in the world due to missing much of the 2022 PGA Tour season after jumping to LIV.

He is currently co-captains with Henrik Stenson and Lee Westwood of Majesticks GC, which finished 11th out of 12 teams at LIV Mayakoba. Poulter was the best player of the bunch at the event, however, finishing T-11 as a solo competitor.

Dustin Johnson and 4Aces GC are doing just fine at LIV.

Dustin Johnson and 4Aces GC are doing just fine at LIV.
Dustin Johnson reads a putt at a LIV event in Florida.      AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Former World No. 1 Dustin Johnson was one of the biggest players that LIV Golf was able to poach, and in "Full Swing," Johnson was clear that the move was about money and comfort.

Johnson is now ranked 54th in the world, and plays as captain of 4Aces GC, who won the inaugural LIV team competition in 2022.

At LIV Mayakoba, Johnson finished T-35 in the solo competition, but 4Aces GC was still able to get second in the team race.

Johnson will still be a feature at the majors this year, as his win at the 2020 Masters gives him an exemption to all four majors through 2025.

Collin Morikawa wants to get back in the winner's circle.

Collin Morikawa wants to get back in the winner
Collin Morikawa reacts after making a birdie at the Genesis Invitational.      AP Photo/Ryan Kang

Collin Morikawa has been up-and-down to start 2023. He finished a solo third at the Farmers Insurance Open in January, and T-6 in a packed field at the Genesis Invitational, but he missed the cut at the WM Phoenix Open.

Still only 26, he already has two major wins, but Morikawa has not won a PGA Tour event since his win at the Open Championship in 2021.

He's currently ranked 10th in the world.

Scottie Scheffler continues to dominate.

Scottie Scheffler continues to dominate.
Scottie Scheffler reads the green at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.      AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack

Scottie Scheffler stormed to four wins in three months in 2022, taking over the spot as the No. 1 golfer in the world for a stretch.

While he has since ceded the top spot to Jon Rahm, Scheffler is still ranked second in the world, and in February, successfully defended his title at the WM Phoenix Open, winning the event by two strokes.

As the reigning Masters champion, Scheffler will host the Champions' Dinner in April, when the golf world returns to Augusta National.

Rory McIlroy is looking to complete the career grand slam.

Rory McIlroy is looking to complete the career grand slam.
Rory McIlroy watches his shot at the Genesis Invitational.      AP Photo/Ryan Kang

Rory McIlroy established himself as the voice of the PGA Tour in 2022 as several star players began to jump to LIV.

On the course, McIlroy backed up his words with his play. While he fell short in the Open Championship, McIlroy won three times in 2022, including taking the Tour Championship at the end of the season.

McIlroy is currently ranked third in the world, trailing only Jon Rahm and Scottie Scheffler.

McIlroy only needs a green jacket to complete his career grand slam, and has finished in the Top 10 at the Masters in seven of the past nine years. Could he finally break through in 2023?

Cam Smith has his own team at LIV now.

Cam Smith has his own team at LIV now.
Cam Smith plays out of the bunker at the Australian Open.      AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake

Cam Smith's jump to LIV Golf was one of the shocks of the 2022 golf season, coming just after his win at the Open Championship.

Smith leads Ripper GC, a team of Aussie golfers, this year at LIV.

Smith finished T-5 at Mayakoba, with Ripper GC finishing fifth in the team competition.

Thanks to his win at the Open last year, Smith will be eligible for all four majors through 2027.

Rickie Fowler is finding his form.

Rickie Fowler is finding his form.
Rickie Fowler watches a shot from the tee.      AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill

Rickie Fowler didn't get his own episode of "Full Swing," but rather, he served as a narrator throughout the series.

Fowler hasn't won on the PGA Tour since 2019 at the WM Phoenix Open, but has been in solid form of late.

After recording just one Top 10 finish in 2021, Fowler already has three Top 20 finishes in 2023.

Even without a recent win, Fowler is still one of the most popular players on Tour, earning $2 million in the Tour's PIP rankings last year after finishing 16th.

Max Homa could soon be the best in the world.

Max Homa could soon be the best in the world.
Max Homa plays out of the bunker at the Genesis Invitational.      AP Photo/Ryan Kang

Max Homa didn't get his own episode of "Full Swing," but he was heavily featured as one of Joel Dahmen's best friends on Tour.

Homa has been on a tear of late, winning the Farmers Insurance Open in January and finishing second behind Jon Rahm at the Genesis Invitational.

Homa is ranked eighth in the world, and this year will look to make an impact at the majors, where he has just one Top 20 finish in his career.

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