Breaking down the 10 sweetest swings on PGA Tour

Rory McIlroy
Listed at 5-foot-1- and 160 pounds, you wouldn’t think McIlroy could possibly rank second on tour with a 317.7-yard average drive. That’s the reality, though, and it’s translated to four major championships and a slew of other accolades.

McIlroy has unique hip action, a powerful lower body and a great understanding of how to generate maximum power. In addition to being blessed with sensational hips, the Northern Irish sensation has great hands and among the most natural-looking swings in the world. That skill set makes for a stunning blend of firepower and finesse.

There’s an uncanny, free-flowing nature to McIlroy’s swing that makes his move look effortless. When he’s firing on all cylinders, and the bouncy-stride swagger is in full force, there are few golfers more fun to watch. As long as his putter cooperates better in the coming years, McIlroy should cement himself as an all-time great.

Louis Oosthuizen
Considered for years to have a swing that’s the envy of many of the world’s classiest golfers, Oosthuizen was never better than when he lapped the field by seven strokes at St. Andrews in the 2010 Open Championship. Check out Golf World’s breakdown of his swing from 2012 to see the poetry in motion.

It doesn’t even look like Oosthuizen has a care at all when he’s taking the club back and through. He has a deceptive amount of acceleration through the ball, similar to Fred Couples, and as a result drives the ball nearly 300 yards on average.

Oosthuizen has generally been one of the better all-around drivers in his career. Where his consistency lacks is in approach to the green, where he ranks 164th on tour this season. That seems impossible for someone with his swing. Nevertheless, the South African’s best golf may still be ahead of him, and he holds runner-up finishes in all four majors.

Justin Rose

The Olympic gold medalist and U.S. Open champion could’ve easily had more majors to his name by now, thanks to arguably the most technically sound swing in the sport.

Rose has a workmanlike, methodical approach in his pre-shot routine. The world No. 2 appears to visualize the shot and has razor-sharp focus as he prepares to execute, getting a feel for the swing he’s about to make. The results are absolutely majestic.

A perfect position at the top clears the way for Rose to make a tremendous transition to the downswing, where he rarely misses the center of the clubface. Never was that on better display in a pressure situation than his final approach at the 2013 U.S. Open, where he struck a perfect, 229-yard 4-iron to set up a clinching par.

Adam Scott
Scott is also in the conversation with Rose for most technically-sound swing. He’s always near the top of the PGA Tour in strokes gained off the tee and on approach to the green. The only thing that really holds him back is putting, where he ranks 196th in strokes gained this season. Ouch.

Woes on the green don’t detract from Scott’s full swing, though. The Aussie takes it away a little to the outside, as many pros do, but drops it into the slot perfectly on the way down, with a frequently pleasant end result. Swing coach Claude Harmon said in 2015 if he could craft a golf swing, he’d use Scott’s as the blueprint.

If only Scott could capitalize on the numerous opportunities he’s given himself throughout the years through his long game, he’d have more than one major title on his resume. Nevertheless, he has won the Masters and 28 other times around the world as a professional, so he can’t exactly be classified as an underachiever.

Dustin Johnson

For someone who’s 6-foot-4 and so muscular, Johnson has incredible flexibility, enhancing a package of athleticism the game of golf has never seen before. Fresh off a third win of the season at the Canadian Open — my goodness, that tee shot on No. 2 — DJ has reminded everyone again why he’s the No. 1-ranked golfer on the planet

A bowed left wrist at the top of his swing and a massive shoulder turn allow Johnson to create maximum torque and load up his weight so much. That leads to an absolutely explosive follow-through that allows him to hit the darn cover off the ball.

Johnson is just better than everyone. No modern course is safe from him when he’s got all the elements of his game working. He ranks first on tour in strokes gained tee to green in 2017-18, and should be the favorite at the PGA Championship to grab a second career major.

Rickie Fowler
One of the brightest young talents in American golf to emerge in the past decade, Fowler owns top-five finishes in all four majors and has won the “fifth major,” the Players Championship. His swing is a big reason for steady results on golf’s biggest stages.

Fowler has tightened his motion since beginning work several years ago with renowned Butch Harmon, but the organic DNA of his free-wheeling swing is still there. A unique, loopy takeaway gets Fowler pretty far inside on the backswing, but he uncorks and really releases through the strike zone with a fine finish.

There’s something about Fowler’s swing and attack-oriented course management that make him one of the most magnetic golfers. Detractors will argue he hasn’t won enough, but Fowler is still only 29 and has plenty of time to stack trophies in his 30s. It stands to reason he will due to a wealth of major experience and his reliable, highly original swing.

Justin Thomas
For as much clubhead speed as Thomas generates, he stays in sync remarkably well. The 145-pounder is among the longest hitters in the game, which sets him up for short irons to the green — and he takes advantage of those ideal positions off the tee.

Thomas is on track to finish inside the top 10 in strokes gained: approach to the green for the second season in a row. The reigning FedEx Cup champion and PGA Championship winner will defend both titles very soon, and has the swing to hold up to the scrutiny.

All that trips up Thomas sometimes is his wayward driving accuracy, which is a product of his violent, aggressive swing. He ends up on the proper side of that risk-reward often enough to justify the occasional off-target drive, though.

The newly minted Champion Golfer of the Year has been among the best ball-strikers around in recent years. All he needed was a little putting adjustment to rattle off a torrid streak of late, where in his past six worldwide starts, he has three wins and two runner-up finishes.

Molinari claimed The Open Championship this year with a steady stream of quality drives and irons, culminating in a bogey-free final round of two-under 69 to win. His simple, sensational swing held up as he chased down his maiden major.

It’s a rather fast move from backswing to downswing, yet Molinari is always on balance and is first on the PGA Tour in total driving efficiency, highlighting his blend of distance and precision off the tee. He will keep hitting soft fades and making birdies — and may even win more tournaments before the calendar year is through.

Tommy Fleetwood
An excellent run at the 2018 majors has seen Fleetwood finish tied 17th at the Masters, second at the U.S. Open by only one stroke and joint 12th at The Open Championship. The final-round 63 Fleetwood shot at Shinnecock Hills showed off his phenomenal golf swing, particularly a sweeping draw into the 18th green.

The 5-foot-11, 168-pounder averages about 306 yards on drives and hits almost 65 percent of fairways, setting him up often for ideal approach shots. A slight head dip at impact puts Fleetwood in danger of hitting it heavy, yet he never seems to, and that doesn’t take away from the grace nor the fundamentally-sound foundation of his swing mechanics.

It goes to show how adept Fleetwood is at striking down at the ball and catching it clean so often that he’s able to use the slight head movement to his advantage, squeezing out some extra distance to keep up with the bigger, longer hitters. He’s only recently joined the PGA Tour, so it’s a matter of “if” not “when” the Englishman will claim a stateside victory.

Matthew Fitzpatrick
The 23-year-old phenom qualifies on a technicality, since he was granted special temporary tour membership as of late June. Get used to hearing Fitzpatrick’s name far more often, though. He has already won four times on the European Tour and was part of Europe’s 2016 Ryder Cup team too.

All those achievements are largely thanks to a beautiful move through the golf ball. Fitzpatrick doesn’t hit it as far as all the players on this list. However, he knows how to keep drives in the fairway, and shows great distance control with his irons. Check out his final-round performance in a win at the 2016 DP World Tour Championship for proof.

Fitzpatrick can flight the ball down when necessary with his compact motion and has a quick tempo that doesn’t go past parallel, creating ideal consistency. If he can putt better and add distance as his body continues to mature, Fitzpatrick has the makings of being one the truly elite, most well-rounded players in golf when he hits his prime.