Yearly PGA Tour Putting Leaders (Including Strokes Gained)

Who are the best putters on the PGA Tour? Let's take a look at the yearly leaders in the tour's main putting stats. We'll start with the most-recent putting stat to be invented, strokes gained, which is now considered the gold standard. Then we'll also share the first putting stat invented, putts per round, plus the one that superseded it, putts per GIR (which has since been superseded by strokes gained).

These are the golfers who've been, statistically, the best putters on the PGA Tour.

Annual Strokes Gained Putting Leaders on PGA Tour

Strokes Gained Putting was only introduced as a PGA Tour statistical category in 2011, but the tour has calculated the stat going back to 2004. It's a complex mathematical formula that places a golfer's putting performance in each round within the context of the performance of his fellow golfers in that same round. In other words, Strokes Gained Putting measures a golfer's putting prowess taking into effect strength of field and difficulty of golf course.

So far, only two golfers in the history of Strokes Gained Putting have topped 1.000 — Jason Day in 2016 and Maverick McNealy in 2023. That means that in 2016, Day was an average of more than a stroke per round better on the greens than his peers. (Read more about strokes gained on PGATour.com.)

2023 — Maverick McNealy, 1.058
2022 — Lucas Herbert, .853
2021 — Louis Oosthuizen, .824
2020 — Denny McCarthy, .988
2019 — Denny McCarthy, .926
2018 — Greg Chalmers, .790
2017 — Michael Thompson, .840
2016 — Jason Day, 1.130
2015 — Aaron Baddeley, .722
2014 — Graeme McDowell, .882
2013 — Greg Chalmers, .857
2012 — Brandt Snedeker, .860
2011 — Luke Donald, .870
2010 — Luke Donald, .870
2009 — Luke Donald, .934
2008 — Corey Pavin, .973
2007 — Jesper Parnevik, .979
2006 — Ben Crane, .849
2005 — Ben Crane, .939
2004 — Tiger Woods, .853

Putts Per Round Leaders on the PGA Tour

Putts Per Round is the oldest and simplest of golf's putting stats. It has been an official stat on the PGA Tour since 1980. It measures exactly what it sounds like: the average number of putts a golfer takes in each round. Take a golfer's total, cumulative number of putt attempts, divide by his rounds played. That's Putts Per Round.

2023 — Taylor Montgomery, 27.13
2022 — Lucas Herbert, 27.70
2021 — Cameron Smith, 27.76
2020 — Ian Poulter, 27.88
2019 — Jordan Spieth, 27.71
2018 — Daniel Summerhays, 27.82
2017 — Wesley Bryan, 28.12
2016 — Jordan Spieth, 27.82
2015 — Jordan Spieth, 27.82
2014 — Justin Leonard, 27.77
2013 — Brian Gay, 27.51
2012 — Jonas Blixt, 27.89
2011 — Kevin Na, 27.75
2010 — Brandt Snedeker, 27.97
2009 — Brad Faxon, 28.00
2008 — Corey Pavin, 27.92
2007 — Tim Clark, 27.88
2006 — Aaron Baddeley, 27.96
2005 — Steve Stricker, 27.79
2004 — Brian Gay, 27.96
2003 — Aaron Baddeley, 27.88
2002 — Bob Heintz, 27.57
2001 — Craig Kanada, 27.90
2000 — Brad Faxon, 28.05
1999 — Robert Damron, 28.24
1998 — Rick Fehr, 27.71
1997 — Brad Faxon, 28.17
1996 — Brad Faxon, 28.26
1995 — Jim Furyk, 28.02
1994 — Ben Crenshaw, 27.88
1993 — Dick Mast, 28.38
1992 — Ed Fiori, 28.39
1991 — Lance Ten Broeck, 28.02
1990 — Morris Hatalsky, 28.11
1989 — Isao Aoki, 28.13
1988 — Don Pooley, 28.04
1987 — Morris Hatalsky, 28.33
1986 — Bernhard Langer, 28.39
1985 — Bobby Clampett, 28.63
1984 — Gary McCord, 28.57
1983 — Morris Hatalsky, 27.96
1982 — Ben Crenshaw, 28.65
1981 — Alan Tapie, 28.70
1980 — Jerry Pate, 28.81

Putts Per GIR Leaders on the PGA Tour

Putts Per GIR (green in regulation) became an official PGA Tour stat in 1986, and is considered an upgrade on the basic putts per round metric. Putts Per GIR takes into account only those putts attempted after a golfer has reached the green in regulation. Using putts per GIR eliminates the effect on putting average of barely missing the green and then chipping close. (Note that the PGA Tour officially calls this stat "Putting Average.")

2023 — Taylor Montgomery, 1.659
2022 — Cameron Smith, 1.679
2021 — Cameron Smith, 1.689
2020 — Webb Simpson, 1.691
2019 — Jordan Spieth, 1.694
2018 — Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, 1.699
2017 — Justin Thomas, 1.699
2016 — Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, 1.710
2015 — Jordan Spieth, 1.699
2014 — Rory McIlroy, 1.708
2013 — Phil Mickelson, 1.718
2012 — Jonas Blixt, 1.718
2011 — Luke Donald, 1.700
2010 — Brandt Snedeker, 1.710
2009 — Steve Stricker, 1.726
2008 — Bob Tway, 1.718
2007 — Tim Clark, 1.727
2006 — Daniel Chopra, 1.712
2005 — Arjun Atwal, 1.710
2004 — Stewart Cink, 1.723
2003 — John Huston, 1.713
2002 — Bob Heintz, 1.682
2001 — David Frost, 1.708
2000 — Brad Faxon, 1.704
1999 — Brad Faxon, 1.723
1998 — Rick Fehr, 1.722
1997 — Don Pooley, 1.718
1996 — Brad Faxon, 1.709
1995 — Jim Furyk, 1.708
1994 — Loren Roberts, 1.737
1993 — David Frost, 1.739
1992 — Mark O'Meara, 1.731
1991 — Jay Don Blake, Corey Pavin, 1.733
1990 — Larry Rinker, Payne Stewart, 1.747
1989 — Steve Jones, 1.734
1988 — Don Pooley, 1.729
1987 — Ben Crenshaw, 1.743
1986 — Greg Norman, 1.736

Photo credit: "Golf Putting" by Esteban Maringolo is licensed under CC BY 2.0