A look at Graham DeLaet: how can he join the world’s elite golf pros?

Graham DeLaet showed plenty of improvement throughout 2015 as he continues his climb up the world rankings. The 34-year-old, who turned professional back in 2007, is now ranked 111th in the world and the Canadian already has one eye on breaking into the top 100 in 2016. DeLaet is one of the best Canadian players in the sport and he has represented his country in various competitions in the last few years. If nothing else, DeLaet has shown enough quality to suggest he can perform at a major tournament and 2016 could be his year to truly make a name for himself on the world stage.

Compared directly to the likes of Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy, DeLaet simply cannot compete. However, he has shown some glimpses of success throughout his career. In 2014, he finished tied for 15th at the PGA Championship, finishing ahead of Spieth after the American failed to make the cut. In that particular year, McIlroy lifted the title and DeLaet was left to rue a disappointing final round. In 2015, however, DeLaet opted to focus primarily on the PGA Tour and participated in just one major event, the Open Championship. DeLaet finished in a respectable 68th position whilst Spieth fell just short to Jason Day and McIlroy was forced to sit out and watch on after suffering an injury in the build-up to the event.

At one stage, it looked as though he might be in contention for a top-five finish but he quickly slipped down the leader board and failed to recover. This is something that Spieth and McIlroy rarely do. At the time of writing, Spieth and McIlroy are the two leading candidates for this year’s Masters and the top two players in the world are both priced at 7/1 in the odds with 32Red Canada. Who knows, DeLaet might join them at the top of the rankings at some point in the future, especially if he continues to ply his trade in the PGA Tour against some of the best players on the planet.

DeLaet hails from Saskatchewan and was actually an ice hockey player during his younger years. With most sportsmen, DeLaet’s ability to evolve and adapt to various sports and situations is clear for all to see and those traits will stand him in good stead as he seeks to make a major impact on the PGA Tour this year. If nothing else, DeLaet has an exceptional work ethic but he also knows the importance of family life and being around his wife and children. The PGA Tour golfer spends a lot of time on the circuit, entering tournament to tournament as he seeks to truly establish himself as one of golf’s major players.

This summer, we might see DeLaet on our television screens once again if he is selected to represent the Canadian national team at the Olympic Games. On current form, he’s got every chance of making the team and Canada will stand an outside chance of sneaking into the medals if DeLaet is on top form. As of March 8th, 32Red and 188Bet price the Canadian at 150/1 to win the gold medal in Rio de Janeiro this summer, which isn’t a bad price at all if he continues to develop and improve his overall skill on the golf course. In Rio, he’ll be hoping for fine weather as he bids to win the gold medal for his country.

Beautiful view from the 12th tee at Torrey. Anchoring umbrellas. +2 thru 2. Play suspended… pic.twitter.com/lv0xmc61mT

— Graham DeLaet (@GrahamDeLaet) January 31, 2016

So, how can Graham DeLaet break into the world’s elite? Ultimately, he should just continue doing what he’s doing. It might be wise for him to try his hand in The Masters in April – at least that way he can see how he fares in a major tournament. But for now, the PGA Tour remains central to his chances of representing Canada at the Olympic Games and, with a bit of luck, DeLaet could well shock the world on the biggest stage of all in Rio this summer.