The most improved golfers on the PGA Tour when the season was halted

An is tied for second on the PGA Tour with five top-10 finishes. That's come over 13 events but is still a pretty impressive season total thus far. An has yet to win a PGA Tour event, but it seems like that's just a matter of time. In the weeks prior to when play was halted, An tied for ninth in Phoenix and finished T4 at the Honda Classic. The best still might be yet to come this year for the South Korean.

Perhaps the best way to describe Ancer's play heading into the stoppage would be inconsistent. But with signs that he is possibly trending upward. Ancer has been a "golfer to watch" for some time now, and the thinking is that he will progress to a new level of success sooner rather than later. Two of his three top-10 finishes this season have come in 2020, highlighted by a second at the American Express in January. 

Berger's most recent PGA Tour victory came in 2017. However, things appear to be going well for the veteran. That was until play stopped. Of the nine events he's entered this season, Berger's finished inside the top 25 six times. In the last three events prior to the delay in play, Berger finished tied for ninth at the Phoenix Open and T5 at Pebble Beach and earned a share of fourth place at the Honda Classic. 

If there's one golfer who should be eager to get back on the course, it's the likely little-known Dahmen. The 32-year-old is still looking for his first PGA Tour victory but played extremely well before play was stopped. In his three events prior to the break, Dahmen finished T14 at Pebble Beach, and posted matching T5s at the Genesis and Arnold Palmer. 

DeChambeau is regarded as one of the top golfers in the world; however, his tie for 52nd at the Phoenix Open in February could have been viewed as a bit concerning. But DeChambeau has turned things on since that rough outing. He tied for fifth at the Genesis, was second at the WGC — Mexico Championship and finished fourth at the Arnold Palmer. DeChambeau should be on many radars going forward. 

Things did not look all that great for Duncan prior to golf being halted, as he has missed four of his last five cuts. That's a concern, sure, but it followed a run that included three top-10 finishes and a victory at the RSM Classic in late November. That early-season success might be enough to give Duncan the benefit of the doubt — at the moment. 

Of the 11 events English has entered this season, he's made the cut in 10. He also has a notable five finishes inside the top 10. During the final three tournaments before play was halted — Phoenix Open, Honda Classic and Arnold Palmer — English placed inside the top 20 at each event. The best of the lot was a tie for ninth at the Palmer, the most recent tournament. 

One of the bigger surprises during the fall and winter portion of the Tour schedule. Griffin earned his first PGA Tour victory at the Houston Open in October. He also has two other top-10 finishes this season. That included an impressive T9 at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Griffin has been playing professional golf for a decade and finally seems to be seeing the work pay off.

A product of the powerhouse Oklahoma State golf program, Gooch is somebody to keep an eye on going forward. He has not won on the PGA Tour since turning pro in 2014, but he's made 12 consecutive cuts — most on the Tour at the moment. Prior to the break in action due to the pandemic, Gooch placed inside the top 15 twice over a stretch of three matches. He also tied for fourth at the Houston Open in October.

Though 2020 has been a crazy year professionally, it's been pretty solid for Hoge. He has two top-10 finishes and four inside the top 20. Hoge's most notable effort on the season overall came back in September when he finished second at The Greenbrier. He's earned more than $1.7 million and is currently 22nd in the FedEx Cup Playoff rankings.

There was a lot to like about Homa's game when golf was halted in March. The 2019 Wells Fargo winner, Homa posted three top-10 finishes and two within the top 25 over his five most recent events. That was highlighted by his tie for ninth at the Genesis. That all potentially bodes well for Homa, who should be one golfer looking forward to the rest of the season.

Hovland might very well be the "It" guy on Tour in 2020. There is plenty of hype surrounding the former Oklahoma State star as he navigates the PGA Tour on a full-time basis. His victory at the Puerto Rico Open in late February was the first step in what many pundits believe could be a steady rise of success he's capable of making. Stay tuned. 

The 31-year-old Hubbard has enjoyed a pretty decent run thus far during the 2019-20 campaign. In 2020 alone, Hubbard finished tied for ninth at the Phoenix Open and recorded a T11 at the Honda Classic. For those who do not know much about Hubbard, he's never won a PGA Tour event but has made nearly $1.4 million in earnings already this season.

Most probably don't know that Im sits atop the FedEx Cup Playoff rankings and is second on the PGA Tour's money list with $3,862,168. The South Korean won the Honda Classic and followed up with a third-place finish at the Arnold Palmer in March. He also has three other top-10 finishes so far on the campaign. Im is not an unknown commodity, though it will be interesting to see if he can keep up the strong play. 

Full disclosure: Landry makes this list after winning the American Express in mid-January. Since then, Landry's play has been pedestrian at best. But let's see if the stoppage in play will be what he needs to revive both the mental and physical aspects of his game in 2020. Landry might not be consistent, but his potential should also not be overlooked. 

Lee finished tied for fifth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the last Tour event before the sports world went on hiatus. That was a good sign for Lee, and the best finish he's experienced thus far on the 2020 portion of the schedule. While we don't know what to make of Lee coming out of the restart, he could be trending in the right direction.

McCarthy has made the cut in 11 of his 13 starts this season. However, both missed cuts came in his two most recent events. That would probably seem a concern to most, but others might look at the recent stoppage in play as a chance for McCarthy to regroup and get his game back to when he posted five top-25 finishes and three within the top 10. 

There were a lot of eyes on Morikawa when the 2020 season got going, and that should again be the case when play resumes this week in Texas. Morikawa turned heads with a victory last season right after turning pro. So far this season, Morikawa has made the cut in all 11 events he's entered and has three top-10 finishes, most recently, a tie for ninth at the Arnold Palmer. 

Ninth in the FedEx Cup rankings, Muñoz earned his first PGA Tour victory at the Sanderson Farms Championship in October. He also posted a top-five finish later in 2019. Munoz might not be a household name to the casual golf fan, but he finished inside the top 15 at the WGC- Mexico Championship in February. We don't know what the restart will look like for Muñoz, but there should be plenty of optimism.

Na won twice in 2019, the first of which at the Schwab, where he'll look to defend his title this week. Na is a tour veteran with four wins under his belt. Sitting 11th in the FedEx standings and 14th on the money list, Na has fared relatively well during the 2019-20 season. He should have a good deal of confidence coming out the delay at a place he knows pretty well.

It seems like we're always talking about Niemann as one of the PGA Tour's next breakout stars or golfers to watch. Will he be ready to take that next step out of the restart? Perhaps, considering Niemann has made nearly $2 million this season and won at The Greenbrier in September. However, he missed the cut in his last three three events, so his confidence might be put to the test.

The former Web.com Tour (now Korn Ferry Tour) Player of the Year, Mexico's Ortiz might be showing the potential he exhibited on the lower levels of professional touring golf. So far this season, Ortiz has recorded three top-10 finishes. He also placed inside the top 30 at three matches, Phoenix Open, Genesis and WGC - Mexico Championship, prior to the delay in play. 

Scheffler has quietly put together a nice season amid the uncertainly of 2020. He's made the cut in 11 of the 13 events he's started this season and has finished inside the top 10 on four occasions. While we don't know if Scheffler is at the point where he can seriously contend against the best in the business, his tie for 15th at the Arnold Palmer was rather notable.

The pride of Australia, Smith has made more than $2 million already this season. That was helped by an impressive victory at the Sony Open in Hawaii. Things have been a little tougher for Smith since that January win (two missed cuts), but he's still a solid option for consistent contention going forward. He's yet another golfer to keep an eye on as the season resumes.

Todd is an interesting case when it comes to confidence. He's won twice already on the schedule, but both triumphs came in November. He also had a fourth-place finish that month. In 2020, Todd's best finish is a tie for 18th. However, that came at the Arnold Palmer, the Tour's most recent event. For Todd, fourth in the FedEx Cup rankings, it's time to see if he can seriously contend again amid a more competitive field.