Sam Horsfield has risen to the top of every class he has played in. From a young standout in the UK system to a dominant player at the University of Florida, and now, after being on tour since 2017, finally catching fire on the European Tour with two wins over that last three weeks.

Yes, there are many young players in the game who have serious potential, but I believe this situation to be different.

Horsfield is not a big kid by any stretch, standing only 5’10” and weighing 170 pounds. As far as physical stature goes, he’s more Rory than Rahm or Bryson. However, he (like Rory) has ridiculous speed naturally and has a swagger about him much like a lot of the Euro players we see at the top today (namely Rory, Rahm, and Tommy Fleetwood).

NEWPORT, WALES – AUGUST 16: Sam Horsfield of England plays his tee shot on the sixth hole during Day four of the Celtic Classic at the Celtic Manor Resort on August 16, 2020 in Newport, Wales. (Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)

The funny thing is, he’s actually two or three years behind schedule, which is odd to say. When he turned pro, Horsfield was a Nike athlete—and immediately they went out of the club business. He was full-bag Nike for his entire career, so he had to find his feet equipment-wise on day one of turning pro. That’s a huge challenge to add to an already stressful and massively difficult time for a young player.

His birdie and eagle counts on the European Tour are off the charts. Being a UK player raised in the U.S., he is already used to playing the bigger ballparks you see in the States—so that the adjustment period will be short.

To me, it’s a foregone conclusion that Sam gets into the top 10 in the OWGR sooner rather than later (currently No. 80). He has that presence about him. My needle these days is the tour reps. Every once in a while they will tell me about a player who just has it, and according to my sources, what Sam has is very special. This kid is the real deal.

Sam Horsfield WITB

Sam Horsfield’s bag, Hotel Room Edition, from Celtic Manor in Wales 8/21/2020

Driver: TaylorMade SIM (8 degrees @8.75, 1-degree sleeve)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro White 70 TX

• Sam has mega speed. He cruises in tournament play at around 184-185 mph, but in testing, it will get to 190 with little effort. 

3-wood: TaylorMade M6 (15 degrees @15.5)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD VR 8 X (42.75 inches, D2, tipped 1.5 inches)

5-wood: TaylorMade M6 (18 degrees @18.5)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD VR 8 X (42.25 inches, D3, tipped 2 inches)

• As you can see in the metal woods, Sam likes adding loft to the woods to the desired face angle. Like Collin Morikawa, he prefers a look less open then the tour norm.

Irons: TaylorMade P750 (4), TaylorMade P7TW (5-PW)
Shafts: KBS C Taper 130X (Std length, 3.5 degrees flat, D4.5 swing weight)

• Sam’s irons are VERY flat vs standard 57.5 degrees in the 5-iron. In regards to the P7TW, like Tommy Fleetwood, they have a similar look and feel to the Nike blades both played coming up and the spin and ball flight with those irons were spot on. Sam also prefers draw-biased clubs (lofted up metal woods) and with the long blade length of the P7TW, he feels the optics help him see that shot.

Wedges: TaylorMade MG Raw (52-9, 56-12 @55-11, 60-9 @59-8)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue Black Onyx S400

Putter: Bettinardi Dass BBZero (@33.75 inches)

Ball:  Titleist Pro V1x

England’s Sam Horsfield on the 6th during day four of the Celtic Classic at Celtic Manor Resort. (Photo by David Davies/PA Images via Getty Images)