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Singh is a "Life Member," having won at least 20 times and played at least 15 seasons. Well into his Champions Tour career, Singh played 18 PGA Tour events last season. He made only six cuts, but two of them were top-25s, including an impressive T16 at The Players and a T14 at the Canadian Open. Those two finishes carried Singh to 178th in the point standings and earnings of $337,305. Not too shabby for a 54-year-old, but also not too valuable for fantasy purposes.
Singh will turn 54 early in 2017 and yet, he's still going strong. He had a bit of a hiccup in 2013 and at that point, it looked like he might be headed to the Champions Tour, but he's put that notion to rest over the past three seasons, finishing inside the top-125 each year. His upside is obviously limited though and he's Father Time is bound to catch-up with him at some point, so he's not a good salary cap option this season. With his age, he carries a bit of risk in draft leagues as well, but he'll likely go near the ninth or 10th round.
Vijay Singh isn't the type of player that's going to jump ship to the Champions Tour because it's easier sledding over there, but his eye might start to wander if the going gets really tough on the PGA Tour. With that in mind, his upside is now limited and he doesn't appear to be a good salary cap candidate this year. In draft leagues it's probably wise to just pass as someone is bound to take him too early.
Singh turns 50 in February, and while he has no plans to hop over to the Champions Tour, his skills are starting to fade, and we are seeing it in his results. The fact that he finished just outside the top 50 on the money list last year at age 49 is a testament to his work ethic and his enormous skill. The downward trend is bound to continue, though, as no one can outrun father time. Expect a small decline in his numbers this season. In draft leagues, he should be taken in the seventh or eighth round.
Reports of Vijay Singh's demise may have been a bit premature. In defense of those reports, Singh had shown next to nothing in the two years leading up to the 2011 season, and he wasn't getting any younger. Age will again be a question entering this season. For as well as Singh played last year, he wasn't able to capture a victory and hasn't won since 2008. Singh turns 49 in February, and although he's not the type to look ahead to the Champions Tour, you can't ignore that players nearing 50 rarely improve on their previous season. Such is the case for Singh this year as he'll again show flashes, but he'll come up short too often and likely regress a bit from last season's numbers. Singh is a mid-to-late fourth-round selection in draft leagues.
Is this the beginning of the end for Singh? It's hard to imagine that only two years removed from earning more than $6.6 million he's now on the downside of his career. But after consecutive years of little more than $1 million, it might be the case. Hey, even the great ones have to decline at some point. Singh turns 48 this season, and his skills will eventually erode. Perhaps his age affected his ability to deal with injury. Whatever the case, Singh is no longer a lock. His putting has taken a dramatic hit the last three seasons with his ranking falling below 100.
Singh struggled to find his game after undergoing early-season surgery last year, but he should be back at full health for the start of the 2010 season. If Singh is completely over his health issues, he is a must-own in salary cap leagues. It's tough to say Singh is a first-rounder in draft leagues considering his age, but he is a strong second-round option. If you happen to get Singh in round two, consider yourself lucky. He finished fifth at the end of 2008 but slipped to 26th in the final 2009 Official World Golf Rankings.
Singh pulled in nearly $4 million in earnings after the month of July last year. His earnings for the 2008 season were not a fluke, but they weren't as balanced as one would think when looking at his earnings number. In salary cap leagues, Singh is not a very prudent selection as the odds of making more than $6.6 million this year are slim. In draft leagues however, he could be the first pick and should not fall below number three in any draft.
Might Vijay Singh be on the down side of his career? After setting the bar awfully high in 2003 with over $10 million in earnings, he "slipped" next year to $8 million. At that point he was still on top of his game, but over the last two seasons, he's failed to crack the $5 million mark, which for Singh, should be no problem. The question heading into this season is this, is Singh a great value at under $5 million, or is he going to continue the down slide? I am leaning towards the later here. Let's remember that Singh is not a young man anymore, and age is going to become a factor at some point.
To put it plain and simple, Singh was not himself last year. He won only one event and had an uncharacteristic stretch were he finished in the top 10 once in eight events. A big reason why he struggled much of the year was the driver. He ranked 153rd in accuracy off the tee. Other than that, his stats were pretty solid: 31st in greens and 28th in putting. So what's the answer with Singh? Was it an off year or is he on the decline? It sounds strange to talk about a player that made $4.6 million as having an off year, but Singh has set the bar pretty high. The days of Singh winning multiple events in a row are most likely gone. The days of Singh playing solid are not. Singh should be able to top his production from 2006, but the ceiling isn't as high as it used to be.
Singh also had a tremendous season in 2005, but his only problem, if you can call it that, was too many runner-up finishes and not enough wins. Singh won four events last year, but failed to seal the deal in eight events where he finished in the top-5. In 2004, Singh won those events. That is why he was No. 1 on the money list. Is this a sign of a slow downfall for Singh? Not likely. Singh had issues with the putter toward the end of the year that kept him well behind Woods on the money list, but he puts so much work into his game he's likely to figure things out before the 2006 season. Singh should gain four to six victories this year in addition to several close calls. Unlike Woods, Singh has some room to improve earnings-wise, which makes him a good selection no matter the format.
Singh he is the best player right now in any and all draft leagues, let's make that clear. But in a salary cap league you simply cannot afford to select him. His projected earnings of $8 million will be the highest you see on the list. However, when you compare that to the $10.9 million that he earned last year, he's not worth it in a salary cap league. If you use a regular drafting system, then by all means grab him with the first pick. Singh play as much or more than almost any elite player, and will his fair share of tourneys. Another major wouldn't surprise us either.
Singh had a tremendously successful 2003, finishing with an incredible 18 Top Tens. We can't find anything negative from last year's performance. He won tourneys early on, halfway through the year and at the end. A nearly perfect year by anyone's standards. Of course, he did not win a Major which is why the year was not perfect. As for the upcoming year, it's hard to imagine Singh producing as well as he did last year. Unless your name is Tiger, you don't win back to back money titles. With that said, we have a feeling Singh is going to fall off a little bit. He will be a factor in every Major played in '04, but this season won't be nearly as awesome as last year.