Last Week

In a season that has been loaded with close tournaments settled in playoffs, it’s ironic that the U.S. Open Championship was a total blowout. Rory McIlroy, just 22 years old, cruised to victory by eight strokes, finishing a record 16-under. After blowing the Masters, among other late-round struggles in his young career, some questioned when the “Celtic Tiger” would be able to close out a big one. That answer didn’t take long.

My weekly picks were on the money as I tabbed McIlroy and three others that finished in the top 20. Brandt Snedeker finished T11, his third straight finish of 16th or better. Matt Kuchar (T14) extended his streak of cuts made to 29, second only to Steve Stricker. Stricker rebounded from a 3-over 75 to finish T19. My Must Start, Hunter Mahan, and Nick Watney missed the cut.

My lineup for CBSSports.com Majors Matchup struggled, leaving me 1,228th in the standings. In ESPN Best Ball Majors Challenge I finished in the 85.7th percentile.

This Week’s Fantasy Golf Picks

Bubba Watson

In addition to winning the Travelers Championship last year, Watson has not finished worse than 14th in three straight starts at TPC River Highlands. Even though he’s won twice this season, Watson has not cracked the top-40 in four straight. Watson is indeed a boom-or-bust selection. However, this week’s field is rather light and favorable for a title defense. Watson ranks first in greens in regulation, second in driving distance, fourth in eagles, 11th in birdies and 12th in total driving.

Nick Watney – Must Start

While Watney missed the cut in the U.S. Open and has not competed here since 2007, I have no issues making him the Must Start. Back in 2005 and 2006, Watney finished T9 each time while missing the cut in his other two other starts. In 11 stroke play events this season, Watney owns six top-10s, including a win, and eight top-20s. Watney is fifth in scoring, seventh in total driving, 11th in birdies, 15th in driving distance, 16th in strokes gained – putting, 20th in greens in regulation and fifth in All-Around Ranking.

Zach Johnson

After missing two consecutive cuts in April, Johnson began to turn things around. Over the next three starts, he finished 12th or better each time with two top-six finishes. In 2009, his most recent starts at TPC River Highlands, Johnson finished 18th while firing all four rounds in the 60s. Johnson ranks eighth in driving accuracy percentage and strokes gained – putting.

Bo Van Pelt

Since 2007, Van Pelt has two-10s at TPC River Highlands in four starts and has been playing well as of late. He’s coming off a T14 in the U.S. Open, giving Van Pelt three consecutive top-15s. He’s currently sixth in total driving, eighth in eagles, 26th in greens in regulation and 17th in All-Around.

Brandt Snedeker

With a missed cut last year and a T47 in 2008, Snedeker’s history at TPC River Highlands is not very impressive. However, he’s finished 16th or better in nine of his last 15, including three straight, highlighted by a win in The Heritage and T11th last week at the U.S. Open. Snedeker ranks third in strokes gained – putting, seventh in scoring, 10th in eagles and 15th in All-Around.

Webb Simpson

In three career starts at TPC River Highlands, Simpson has only gone over par once in a total of 12 rounds. While his best finish at the site is a T26 in 2009, you aren’t starting Simpson based on past history. He’s in the midst of a career year with six finishes of 21st or better over the last seven and enters with a T14th in the U.S. Open. Simpson is currently seventh in birdies, ninth in scoring, 17th in greens in regulation and total driving as well as first in All-Around.

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Last Week

Despite some ugly shots down the stretch, Steve Stricker held on to win the Memorial Tournament by one stroke. All four of Stricker’s rounds at Muirfield Village were in the 60s, the only player this week to do so. In addition, he banked a hole-in-one in Round 2. Stricker now owns 10 career victories, seven coming after age 40.

I turned in a pretty strong selection of picks. My Must Start, Matt Kuchar, finished with a share of second thanks to matching a tournament-best round of 65 on Sunday. Luke Donald finished T7, adding yet another top-10 finish to his blistering season. Stewart Cink, T30. J.B. Holmes, T51. Defending champion Justin Rose and Jeff Overton both missed the cut.

This Week

Lee Westwood – Must Start

With a fairly uninspiring field loaded with first timers, Westwood is the easy top-tier selection to make. Westwood won this event last year in a three-way playoff, his first start at TPC Southwind. The Englishman was last seen stateside with a T11 in the Masters but recently finished second to Donald in an epic playoff at the BMW PGA Championship.

David Toms

After losing a heartbreaker in THE PLAYERS Championship, Toms rebounded the very next week to win the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. He’s taken some time off since then and returns to a site where he’s been very successful. Since 2002, Toms has six finishes of fourth or better at Southwind, highlighted by back-to-back wins in 2003 and 2004. This season, Toms is currently second in greens in regulation, third in driving accuracy, sixth in strokes gained – putting, seventh in scoring and first in All-Around Ranking.

Zach Johnson

With three finishes of 12th or better over his last three starts, Johnson is starting to rediscover the form that allowed him to finish third in the 2009 standings. He earned a T12 last year at Southwind, his only start at the venue since finishing T5 back in 2006. Johnson rates fourth in strokes gained – putting, seventh in driving accuracy and 16th in All-Around.

Webb Simpson

Even though Simpson only finished T29 last year at Southwind, he did so by shooting for par or better in each round. However, he’s coming off a T7 at the Memorial and has finished 16th or better in seven of his 13 starts this season. Simpson ranks ninth in birdies and scoring, 15th in greens in regulation and second in All-Around.

UPDATE: Simpson has withdrawn from this event, I’ll take John Senden in his place.

Sergio Garcia

Prior to skipping this event a year ago and missing the cut in 2009, Garcia finished T4 at Southwind in 2008. In seven Tour starts this season, Garcia has yet to miss a cut and has finished 20th or better on five occasions. He sits first in eagles, sixth in scoring and 17th in All-Around.

Brian Gay

Since 2007, Gay has three finishes of 15th or better, including a win in 2009. Over his last three starts, Gay has been productive with pair of finishes 14th or better. He currently ranks first in driving accuracy and fifth in scoring average.

Want my fantasy golf picks for both Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Golf and Kerplookee? Need an expert to answer your fantasy golf question? Follow me on Twitter!

Fantasy Golf Picks

If you haven’t signed up for the Rotoff.com Challenge yet, read the information below on how to play for over $350.00 in cash and prizes!

With all the New Year’s festivities‎ and several other sports in high gear, it could be easy to forget that the 2011 PGA Tour season is only days away! Thankfully, like waking up with a New Year’s hangover, we get to start things off nice and slow. The Hyundai Tournament of Champions, as the name implies, features a field that is limited to golfers that won a tournament during the previous season. Since there are only 34 players to choice from, fantasy owners, particularly in allocation formats, will need to aim high while keeping in mind the long season ahead.

The Plantation Course, named for nearby the pineapple plantation, at Kapalua Resort in Lahaina, Hawaii is the only par 73 on tour, despite the birdie fest that typically ensues. The course features amazing paranoiac views of the surrounding mountains and ocean. Depending on the direction of the trade winds, golfers can blast it off the tee or have it come up far shorter than expected.

[Note: My picks are sorted by the player's rank in the Official World Golf Ranking.]

Ernie Els

In addition to recording the most regular season FedExCup points, Els ended 2010 sixth in Scoring Average. Although he ran into a few bumps in the middle of the season, Els ended the year with a Sunday best 5-under 65 in THE TOUR Championship. The offseason has been pretty good, too. Els won the PGA Grand Slam of Golf, in addition to finishing no worse than a share of sixth-place in the CIMB Asia Pacific Classic Malaysia and the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions. Els’ last trip to his event, in 2009, resulted in a T6 with no rounds over par.

Zach Johnson

Last year was an uneven one for Johnson, but he did start to turn things around late in the season. Over his last five events, Johnson had three finishes of 15th or better, highlighted by a T3 in the PGA Championship and T9 in the THE TOUR Championship. Despite finishing 18th at Kapalua a year ago, Johnson looks closer to the player who finished T6 in 2009.

Geoff Ogilvy

You don’t need a fantasy golf expert to tell you to start Ogilvy this week, regardless of the format. He’s won this tournament in two straight years with a combined score of 46 under par, averaging 26.5 birdies in his pair of victories. Last year, Ogilvy finished 11th in Birdie Average and should eat this course up once again.

Bubba Watson

Among the golfers playing in this event for the first time, Graeme McDowell should get a lot of love. However, Watson’s big stick should also carry some weight. In 22 events last year, Watson missed six cuts despite finishing second in Driving Distance, third in Eagles and eighth in Birdie Average. He’s a boom-or-bust player, but always a threat to shoot some very low rounds.

Stuart Appleby

The 2010 PGA Tour Comeback Player of the Year gets his ticket to Hawaii thanks to winning the inaugural Greenbrier Classic, aided by a historic 59 in the final round. In 31 events, Appleby missed 12 cuts and is not without plenty of risk. Still, some may not remember he won this event three consecutive times, from 2004-06. In a tournament with such a small field, many will overlook Appleby. Take a flier if you are looking for an early value.

For my entire Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Golf lineup, follow me on Twitter @ericmcclung

The Rotoff.com Challenge is our group in the popular Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Golf game. Not only can you see how you stack up against Erik Planer, fellow Rotoff readers and myself, the winner of each segment (Winter, Spring and Summer) will score $50.00 per segment! The leader after the Full Season concludes will receive $100.00 and a lifetime fantasy golf league on Rotoff.com ($125.00 value). All payouts will be paid at the end of the PGA Tour season by Nov. 11, 2011.

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