Fantasy Golf Picks
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Last Week
Just three tournaments into the season and we’ve already seen two playoffs. This time it was the 26-year-old Jhonattan Vegas lifting the hardware, despite putting a playoff tee shot into the drink, becoming the first Venezuelan to win on Tour. Vegas is also the first rookie to capture the Bob Hope Classic. With concerns surrounding how to grow the game these types of thrilling finishes and unexpected winners, especially those from other countries, can only help matters.
As for my picks, Brian Gay shot up the leaderboard to finish T5 thanks to Sunday-best 10-under 62. Kevin Streelman finished T33. John Senden and Alex Prugh missed the cut. Ryan Moore withdrew due to the flu.
The Must Starts proved their worth. Bill Haas finished T2 in a three-man playoff and nearly won his second BHC in as many years. Matt Kuchar just keeps on rolling, he ended the event T7. D.J. Trahan posted a 7-under 65 in the third round, but finished T61 after two bogeys and double bogey on Sunday.
This Week
The Farmers Insurance Open, formerly the Buick Invitational, will keep the West Coast Swing moving along at Torrey Pines. The event is played on both the North and South Courses, with the final two rounds being played on the more difficult South Course and its dreaded 12th hole. The 2008 U.S. Open was played exclusively on Torrey Pines South, the longest course on tour.
Going forward I’m going to stick with five highlighted players in my preview. They’ll range from top-flight options to sleeper picks. I’ll also include a bonus Must Start pick, a potential difference making player that I feel should be in every lineup, regardless of format.
Tiger Woods
This event will be the season debut for many of the big names of Tour, including Woods. While there are plenty of questions still surrounding Tiger, his uneven 2010 wasn’t all that bad. Sure, it didn’t live up to his lofty standards, but in 12 starts Tiger compiled two top fives (both in majors) and ended the year with three straight finishes of 15th or better. Again, not what we’ve seen in the past, but nothing that suggests Tiger has forgotten how to play. In 11 starts from 1998-2008, Tiger won this event five times (including four in a row) with 10 top fives and never finished worse than 10th. He also won the epic 2008 U.S. Open on a bad knee. At the very least, Tiger should be on your provisional roster and ready to deploy.
Nick Watney
In his last four starts in this event, Watney has three top-10 finishes and a win from 2009. In those 16 rounds, which exclude missing the cut in 2008, he’s a combined 30-under par. Watney struggled in the U.S. Open that year due to poor putting, but ranked first in greens hit and T8 in driving distance. Hitting greens is a top priority at this venue, which makes Watney the best top-tier alternative to Tiger.
Ben Crane
Speaking of former winners, Crane is the defending champion of this event. A year ago, he did it with the top ranking in greens and T8 in fairways. In 2009, Crane finished T7, second among the field in both fairways and greens. He also led the field with a combined 7-under on par 4 holes. In last year’s victory, Crane again led the field on par 4s, going 5-under.
Ryuji Imada
Since 2007, Imada owns a runner-up performance, a top 10 and two other top 20s in four starts. Among players in this week’s field with six or more career starts in this event, Imada’s 26.8 average finish puts him third. However, he has been erratic. In each of Imada’s last two starts, he’s posted one round of 75 during the weekend. Consider Imada a strong value play to start the tournament, but be prepared to pull him at the first sign of trouble.
Kevin Sutherland
After reeling off a streak of three straight top fives from 1998-2000, Sutherland has just one top-10 finish in the 10 starts since. However, he does own three finishes of 15th or better in the last four. What I like about Sutherland this week is his keen ability to hit greens. He finished second in the category last year and was tops among the field in last’s week BHC, despite finishing T42. Sutherland might not be prime starter material, but he’s a very good backup option.
Must Start - Rickie Fowler
In addition to finishing T5 in last year’s event, Fowler was T4 in greens. On tour, he ranked 22nd in that category last year. After opening with a 5-under 67, the Fowler would rattle off three straight rounds of 70. En route to collecting Rookie of the Year honors, Fowler would finish as the runner-up in two events before compiling three more top fives during the Fall Series. The always colorful Fowler should once again be a big part of the picture come Sunday.
For my entire Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Golf lineup, follow me on Twitter @ericmcclung
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