A handful of pro golfers from North Carolina are having outstanding years on the PGA Tour.
But who is the best? That’s a tough question.
We can’t make a decision based on major championship victories. Despite the high volume of pro golfers from the Tar Heel State only three Raymond Floyd, Davis Love III and Webb Simpson have won majors. Floyd and Love are no longer regulars on the PGA Tour. Simpson’s game has fallen off sharply in recent years.
With four major titles among his 22 PGA Tour victories, Floyd, a Fayetteville native, is the easy choice as the best of all-time. Love, born in Charlotte with strong in-state ties, won 21 PGA Tour events, including two Players Championship and his one major, the 1997 PGA. But neither has played on the big tour in years.
Webb Simpson, who was raised in Raleigh and now lives in Charlotte, won the 2012 U.S. Open and the 2018 Players among his seven Tour titles, but he hasn’t won since 2020 and his Official World Golf Ranking has plummeted to 463.
That leaves three major contenders for N.C. honors who haven’t won a major — not yet, anyway: J.T. Poston of Hickory (top photo), Akshay Bhatia and Alex Smalley. Though Bhatia and Smalley moved to North Carolina as children, they developed their games here.
All three are young. All three are having great years in 2026. If this were a Ryder Cup year, each would be prime contenders for the U.S. team.
How close are they? Through the U.S. Open, Bhatia is No. 31 in the World Rankings, Poston is No. 32 and Smalley is No. 43.
Prior to this year, Bhatia was probably a clear pick. Only 24 years old, the Wake Forest (city, not university) golfer already has seven PGA Tour victories, including the 2026 Arnold Palmer Invitational. He’s been solid in other big 2026 events, too. He tied for third at Phoenix, tied for sixth at Pebble Beach, tied for 13th at the Players, tied for 16th at Harbour Town and tied for 17th Sunday in the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills.
The 33-year-old Poston has four triumphs, including his first at the 2019 Wyndham Championship. Yet he’s riding high and showing improvement in the majors. Last year, he had his first top 5 finish in a major at the PGA. This year, he won the Memorial before bolting into contention Sunday at Shinnecock, eventually tying for fourth.
Bhatia would seem to still have the edge. But that would change should one of the other two break through with a major victory.
Then there’s the 29-year-old Smalley, who was on a strong run, albeit without a victory, this spring with seven straight top 21 finishes, including a tie for second after entering the final round with the lead at the PGA, another tie for second with Hayden Springer at the Zurich Classic in New Orleans and a tie for third in the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial. After making 12 straight cuts, the Jamestown resident missed the cut at the Memorial and U.S. Open.
Bhatia would seem to still have the edge. But that would change should one of the other two break through with a major victory.
