There are a couple things I’ve always promised myself.

I barely play golf.

But if I was ever lucky enough to score a hole in one, I’ve vowed to pluck the ball out of the cup, slide the club into the bag and head straight to my car – because it’ll never get any better.

Same goes for bowling.

I consider myself a decent bowler, but If I ever was lucky enough to string together 12 strikes, I’d unlace my shoes, put down my beer and never set foot in another alley.

Problem is, I’ve never followed that advice when it’s come to boxing.

Though I probably hit my high prediction watermark a few years ago when I said – on the eve of 2011 – that a then-unheralded and title-less Andre Ward would prove to be that year’s best fighter, it hasn’t stopped me from trying to replicate the success in each of eight tries since.

To no one’s surprise, I’ve never been nearly as prescient.

Which once again leaves me with the December task of having to recap the crystal-ball claims I made at this time last year, when I was sure I knew precisely what would happen in 2019.

Ladies and gentlemen, I present Fitz’s Hits and Misses – Edition 9.

UPSET OF THE YEAR
The pre-12/19 Guess: Charlo W 12 Golovkin
The post-12/19 Reality: Ruiz KO 7 Joshua

The longer we go, the less a win by Jermall Charlo over Gennady Golovkin will seem like an upset. But until they go ahead and sign a deal to get in a ring together, making an accurate advance forecast of such a surprise is a fool’s endeavor.

So, my award for 2019’s biggest upset will have to go to a fight that, you know… actually happened.

And there was no bigger surprise over the past 12 months than Andy Ruiz beating Anthony Joshua.

Joshua has since righted the June wrong with a December decision, but it shouldn’t take away from the jaw-dropping quality of the chunky Californian stepping in on short notice and derailing the Eddie Hearn-promoted freight train on its planned journey to the heavyweight division’s apex.

That it happened at Madison Square Garden, in the media-friendly Englishman’s U.S. debut, only made it more memorably shocking. Ruiz climbing off the deck, dropping the champion several times and basking in the post-fight glory as the media horde collectively labeled Joshua an overhyped pretender.

AJ deserves full credit for the comeback and Ruiz all the necessary scorn for letting fame rob his competitive hunger, but when it comes to heavyweight upsets, few rate as highly as June 1 in midtown.

KNOCKOUT OF THE YEAR
The pre-12/19 Guess: Spence KO 8 Garcia
The post-12/19 Reality: Wilder KO 7 Ortiz

Well, it’s nice to see that a fight I’d considered award-worthy a year ago – Spence-Garcia – occurred. Problem is, the only award is warranted in the aftermath was Snoozer of the Year.

As it turned out, Spence won nearly every second of 12 largely non-violent rounds, so the highlight-reel KO I’d forecasted was never really close to happening.

In its place, though, we heartily welcome Deontay Wilder.

The Alabama heavyweight and 6-to-1 favorite may have been on his way to an Upset of the Year candidate after losing nearly every second of six rounds against Cuban export Luis Ortiz.

But the equalizer came in the form of a right hand that rendered a 236½-pound named “King Kong” unable to continue. With a single punch.

Other 2019 knockouts were memorable, but none matched the compelling nature of this one or the high-profile stage on which it occurred.

FIGHT OF THE YEAR
The pre-12/19 Guess: Wilder W 12 Fury
The post-12/19 Reality: Taylor W 12 Prograis

The good news: Wilder and Tyson Fury will indeed fight a rematch of their December 2018 bout.

The bad news: The rematch didn’t happen in 2019, so my guess that it’ll warrant Fight of the Year consideration will have to wait until this time next December.

Yet another of the hazards of a column of this nature.

Still, there were plenty of other tussles between January and December that did leave a memorable mark and do deserve consideration as the year’s best.

To me, the debate ends with the 140-pound unification between Josh Taylor and Regis Prograis, in which the unbeaten Scot trumped the unbeaten Cajun’s capacity for imposing his will on an opponent – and thus exited with a truckload of hardware from a frenzied O2 Arena in London.

Every element of a FOTY was there. Two supremely skilled combatants. A high-profile reward. And a compelling mix of styles that provided multiple momentum shifts over 36 minutes.

If they run it back in 2020, don’t be surprised if it winds up with the same high regard.

It was that good.

FIGHTER OF THE YEAR
The pre-12/19 Guess: Errol Spence Jr.
The post-12/19 Reality: Canelo Alvarez

Make no mistake, Errol Spence Jr. didn’t have a bad 2019 in the ring.

He began the year with a one-sided decision over rising pound-for-pounder Garcia in March and finished with an action-packed decision over Shawn Porter that makes any reputable short list for the calendar year’s best fight.

It didn’t go so well on the roads in the days after the latter scrap, leaving the welterweight claimant in a significant health battle from which he’ll hopefully emerge victorious come 2020.

Regardless, any real conversation for this year’s best ought to begin and end with Canelo Alvarez.

The elite Mexican went 2-for-2 in a high-profile 2019, retaining his middleweight championship belts with a narrow, but fair unanimous decision over Daniel Jacobs in May, then climbing two divisional rungs to separate Sergey Kovalev from both his senses and his WBO 175-pound title in November.

It’s the latest page in a greatness-seeking story for the now-29-year-old, who’s gone 11-0-1 since his lone career loss against Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2013 – while surviving the treacherous leap from highly-regarded prospect to consensus pound-for-pound list resident.

It’ll be interesting to see if 2020 brings him closer to the goal: first-ballot Hall of Famer.

* * * * * * * * * *

This week’s title-fight schedule:

WBA cruiserweight title – Marseille, France
Arsen Goulamirian (champion/No. 8 IWBR) vs. Constantin Bejenaru (No. 8 WBA/No. 27 IWBR)
Goulamirian (25-0, 17 KO): Second title defense; Five straight wins by KO/TKO (36 total rounds)
Bejenaru (14-0, 4 KO): First title fight; Second fight outside the United States (1-0, 0 KO)
Fitzbitz says: Given the depth of talent in and around the cruiserweight division these days, it’s difficult to regard Goulamirian as a similarly high-end world commodity. But he’ll win. Goulamirian in 7 (90/10)

This week’s garbage title-fight schedule:

WBA “world” light heavyweight title – Atlanta, Georgia
Jean Pascal (“world” champion/No. 8 IWBR) vs. Badou Jack (No. 11 WBA/No. 11 IWBR)
Why it’s garbage: I won’t quibble about the name value of the fight. Both Pascal and Jack are championship-caliber fighters who combine to make a worthwhile crossroads matchup at this stage of their careers. But Dmitry Bivol is the WBA’s champ and this is little more than a familiar-face sideshow.

Vacant WBA “world” lightweight championship – Atlanta, Georgia
Gervonta Davis (No. 1 WBA/Unranked IWBR) vs. Yuriorkis Gamboa (No. 2 WBA/No. 10 IWBR)
Why it’s garbage: Once again, the WBA has itself a compelling fight between a rising former champion and another ex-champion who’s undertaken a remarkable career reinvention. Davis and Gamboa is worth watching and channeling its winner toward Lomachenko. But it’s not a title fight without him.

Last week's picks: 4-0 (WIN: Martinez, Charlo, Mthalane, Teraji)
2019 picks record: 102-22 (82.2 percent)
Overall picks record: 1,113-365 (75.3 percent)

NOTE: Fights previewed are only those involving a sanctioning body's full-fledged title-holder – no interim, diamond, silver, etc. Fights for WBA "world championships" are only included if no "super champion" exists in the weight class.

Lyle Fitzsimmons has covered professional boxing since 1995 and written a weekly column for Boxing Scene since 2008. He is a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Reach him at fitzbitz@msn.com or follow him on Twitter – @fitzbitz.