Quietly, Martin Kaymer becomes best young talent since Tiger

In four weeks, Martin Kaymer will turn 26. Young for any sport not named women's tennis, Kaymer has put together a pretty respectable resume for himself since turning pro in 2005.

Kaymer has shot 59 in a professional event, won seven European Tour events, been a member of a winning Ryder Cup team, moved up to third in the world rankings, won a major championship and, on Sunday, took home the Race to Dubai, the award given to the top European Tour member.

Along with that, Kaymer became the first European to win three successive tournaments since Nick Faldo did so in 1989, and just this season, went from "solid golfer that is on a short-list to win big events" to "greatest young player since Tiger Woods."

Yep, as us golf writers spent months and months rambling on about Rory McIlroy, Ryo Ishikawa, Anthony Kim and Rickie Fowler, Kaymer was going about his business. He finished in the top-eight in the last three majors in 2010 after missing the cut at the Masters, and his win at the PGA Championship really solidified his position.

Could Kaymer get to number one in the world at some point next season? Absolutely, he has all the tools to move there, and has played well enough in the past to keep the momentum going. He led the European Tour in stroke average this year, along with finishing in the top-35 in all the major statistical categories.

So why is it so easy to forget about Kaymer? Maybe it's because a lot of these other young players have a bit more appeal. While Martin appears to be a genuinely nice guy, you can't help but root for the McIlroys and Kims of the world.

Kaymer is just another quiet, solid player that could win six or seven majors before this is all said and done. Like I've written before, at this point, for a young player to win a major, they're probably going to have to fall into it. There is so much pressure on the leaders as they head into the final day, that without the experience of a win at one of the big four, it is really tough to control your emotions.

Kaymer got lucky at the PGA Championship, but if not for his solid play to end, he wouldn't have been there to land in a playoff to begin with. His win just means he's a step up on all the other young players, and he's now a force in golf that won't be going away anytime soon.

Related: Martin Kaymer, Rory McIlroy, Anthony Kim, Ryo Ishikawa, Rickie Fowler, Nick Faldo, Tiger Woods

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Hunter Mahan plays for the first time since Celtic Manor

Hunter Mahan is back on the golf course. What remains to be seen is if his golf game sticks with him.

When last we saw Mahan swinging a club, he was coming up painfully short in the Ryder Cup, flubbing an approach that would have kept pace with Graeme McDowell in the Cup's final singles match. A few moments later, and McDowell had won their match and, as a result, Europe claimed the Ryder Cup.

In a later press conference, Mahan broke down in tears, feeling he'd let his team down. Obviously, that wasn't the case at all, and his teammates rushed to defend and support him.

He's in the field at the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals Open, and he'll no doubt say all the right things about being prepared and putting the past out of his mind. Still, failing under that kind of pressure can weigh on a man. How will he react to the next pressure situation? Will he be stronger as a result of what he went through, or will his failure at Celtic Manor haunt him?

If there's any saving grace about Mahan's failure to come through, it's that it could have been much worse. Mahan was simply trying to keep pace with McDowell; it wasn't like he gave away the Cup with his missed chip. And, in a team framework, it's obviously not all his fault. (Stewart Cink, we're looking at you.) So it's not like he gave away a championship all on his own; Dustin Johnson, for one, would have a lot more of a claim to that dubious act.

Even so, there is precedent here. In the 1995 Ryder Cup, Jay Haas needed a win on the 18th against Philip Walton to give the United States the cup. But Haas miserably flubbed his tee shot, only hitting it about 150 yards, and the Europeans would win the Cup. Haas was coming off a year in which he had three top 10s in majors, but after that, he'd never win another PGA Tour event. Still, he's won 11 Champions Tour events, including three Champions majors, so there's hope. 

And in 1991, Mark Calcavecchia and Bernhard Langer both took turns wearing the goat's horns. Calc was dormie with Colin Montgomerie (whatever happened to that guy?) with four holes to play, and ended up halving the match. But a few minutes later, Langer missed a 6-footer that would have given Europe the Cup. A few months later, Calcavecchia won the Phoenix Open, and less than two years later, Langer won the Masters, so again, both rebounded well enough.

Mahan is young, and there's a reason U.S. captain Corey Pavin put him in that anchor position -- he's confident and secure in his own skills. He's had three top-10 major finishes in the last two years, and he should be just fine.

Still, we won't know -- indeed, probably he won't know -- what will happen until Mahan gets out there and starts swinging again. As long as he's not paired with McDowell again anytime soon, he should be fine.

Related: Colin Montgomerie, Corey Pavin, Graeme McDowell, Hunter Mahan, Stewart Cink, Jay Haas, Dustin Johnson, Mark Calcavecchia

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