The Tour this week is in San Diego for the Farmers Insurance Open. For those who may have never heard of the tournament, it was sponsored by Buick last year. Whatever the name, Torrey Pines is the venue, and Phil Mickelson is heavily favored to win. But for those who don’t want to pick Phil this week, those who aren’t sure how much early-season rust is on his game, or those who just like to be contrary to the masses, here are a few other names to consider:
Bubba Watson. Bubba finished 7th at Torrey Pines last year, and was tied for second last week at the Bob Hope Classic.
Dustin Johnson. Dustin didn’t have a spectacular finish at Torrey Pines last year, but 19th is respectable, and he’s got the length to neutralize the 7500+ yard South Course.
Matt Jones. An out-of-the-box pick that many probably haven’t even heard of. Jones finished 5th at Torrey Pines last year, and finished 8th last week at the Bob Hope Classic.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week is:
“Front 4": Bubba Watson, Dustin Johnson, Kevin Sutherland, Matt Jones
“Bench team”: Phil Mickelson, Nick Watney, Lucas Glover, John Rollins
My pick for last week, Mike Weir, was a popular one, but he came through to some extent, finishing in 6th place. He and Ryan Moore helped boost my Yahoo Fantasy Golf points to 508, in the 72nd percentile, despite only having one B-level player going into the final round. Hopefully, this week will continue the positive momentum.
Best of luck to all!
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Predictions: Bob Hope Classic
The Tour moves back to the mainland this week with the first event in the “California swing”, the Bob Hope Classic. This is the last remaining 90-hole event on the Tour.
My pick to win this week is a popular one, Mike Weir. Weir is a past champion at the event (2003) and tied for third in last year’s tournament.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week is:
“Front 4": Ryan Moore, Chad Campbell, Charles Howell III, Mike Weir
“Bench team”: Justin Leonard, Mark Calcavecchia, Scott Piercy, Paul Goydos
My 2010 predictions aren’t off to a great start this week. Last week’s picks, Kevin Na and K.J. Choi, finished 52nd and 39th, respectively, proving that “past performance is no guarantee of future results” indeed. But there’s still a lot of season left.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team finished the week with 338 points, in the 67th percentile, hampered especially by both of my C-level players (Matt Kuchar and Parker McLachlin) missing the cut, and keeping Steve Stricker benched for Zach Johnson in the final round. Oh well, there’s a lot more of the 2010 season left.
Best of luck to all, and here’s hoping the rain holds off!
My pick to win this week is a popular one, Mike Weir. Weir is a past champion at the event (2003) and tied for third in last year’s tournament.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week is:
“Front 4": Ryan Moore, Chad Campbell, Charles Howell III, Mike Weir
“Bench team”: Justin Leonard, Mark Calcavecchia, Scott Piercy, Paul Goydos
My 2010 predictions aren’t off to a great start this week. Last week’s picks, Kevin Na and K.J. Choi, finished 52nd and 39th, respectively, proving that “past performance is no guarantee of future results” indeed. But there’s still a lot of season left.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team finished the week with 338 points, in the 67th percentile, hampered especially by both of my C-level players (Matt Kuchar and Parker McLachlin) missing the cut, and keeping Steve Stricker benched for Zach Johnson in the final round. Oh well, there’s a lot more of the 2010 season left.
Best of luck to all, and here’s hoping the rain holds off!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Predictions: Sony Open
This week kicks off the full-field PGA Tour season, with the Sony Open in lovely, warm Hawaii (yes, I’m still jealous as I look outside at snow still on the ground and a near-record year so far for sub-freezing temperatures).
Most of the fantasy-golf prognosticators this week are picking some combination of Zach Johnson, David Toms, Rory Sabbatini, and Steve Stricker. It’s hard to argue against any of them. Johnson is the defending champion. Toms was runner-up at this tournament last year. Sabbatini was runner-up in 2008, and is coming off a blazing-hot Sunday at Kapalua last week. Stricker finished in the top 5 in 2007 and 2008, and is almost always a solid bet.
This week, I’ve got two picks that are a bit off the radar. I’m picking Kevin Na to win. Yes, I said at the beginning of the year that Na would win on the PGA Tour in 2010, and it could very well come this week. Na has finished in the top 5 in the Sony each of the last two years, and should come into 2010 full of confidence after a very strong 2009 season.
My second pick is K.J. Choi. Choi is the 2008 Sony champion, and also finished 4th in 2007. His 2009 season was uncharacteristically weak, but I doubt that he’ll have two lackluster seasons in a row.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week is:
“Front 4": Steve Stricker, Rory Sabbatini, David Toms, Matt Kuchar
“Bench team”: Zach Johnson, Kevin Na, K.J. Choi, Parker McLachlin
Last week’s predictions didn’t go as well as I’d hoped, but there’s a long season ahead:
Zach Johnson: 18th
Stephen Ames: 20th
Steve Stricker: 10th
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team finished with 209 points, placing me in the 72nd percentile, primarily thanks to the strength of Matt Kuchar’s 3rd-place performance, and bringing eventual winner Geoff Ogilvy off the bench for the final two rounds.
Best of luck to all in Oahu!
Most of the fantasy-golf prognosticators this week are picking some combination of Zach Johnson, David Toms, Rory Sabbatini, and Steve Stricker. It’s hard to argue against any of them. Johnson is the defending champion. Toms was runner-up at this tournament last year. Sabbatini was runner-up in 2008, and is coming off a blazing-hot Sunday at Kapalua last week. Stricker finished in the top 5 in 2007 and 2008, and is almost always a solid bet.
This week, I’ve got two picks that are a bit off the radar. I’m picking Kevin Na to win. Yes, I said at the beginning of the year that Na would win on the PGA Tour in 2010, and it could very well come this week. Na has finished in the top 5 in the Sony each of the last two years, and should come into 2010 full of confidence after a very strong 2009 season.
My second pick is K.J. Choi. Choi is the 2008 Sony champion, and also finished 4th in 2007. His 2009 season was uncharacteristically weak, but I doubt that he’ll have two lackluster seasons in a row.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week is:
“Front 4": Steve Stricker, Rory Sabbatini, David Toms, Matt Kuchar
“Bench team”: Zach Johnson, Kevin Na, K.J. Choi, Parker McLachlin
Last week’s predictions didn’t go as well as I’d hoped, but there’s a long season ahead:
Zach Johnson: 18th
Stephen Ames: 20th
Steve Stricker: 10th
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team finished with 209 points, placing me in the 72nd percentile, primarily thanks to the strength of Matt Kuchar’s 3rd-place performance, and bringing eventual winner Geoff Ogilvy off the bench for the final two rounds.
Best of luck to all in Oahu!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Predictions: SBS Championship
It’s time for my first tournament predictions of 2010. This week’s tournament is the winners-only SBS Championship in sunny, warm, beautiful Hawaii (reporting from 13-degree weather and snow flurries, I’m terribly jealous of those in Kapalua).
My pick to win this week is Zach Johnson. Yes, I’m one of the millions on the Zach bandwagon, and why not? He played the best golf in his career in 2009, and had two top-10’s in last year’s “Hawaii swing”, with a 6th at Kapalua and a win at Sony.
My “runners-up” are Stephen Ames and Steve Stricker. Again, very popular picks. Both had top-5 finishes at Kapalua in 2008.
For those readers who play Fantasy Golf on Yahoo, here’s my roster for SBS:
“Front 4”: Zach Johnson, Nick Watney, Dustin Johnson, Matt Kuchar
“Bench team”: Stephen Ames, Geoff Ogilvy, Pat Perez, Paul Casey [Casey would ordinarily start, but I’m waiting to see if he is in fact completely recovered from last year’s oblique injury.]
Best of luck to all in Kapalua this week! Possibly-humbling prediction results coming after the conclusion of the tournament…
My pick to win this week is Zach Johnson. Yes, I’m one of the millions on the Zach bandwagon, and why not? He played the best golf in his career in 2009, and had two top-10’s in last year’s “Hawaii swing”, with a 6th at Kapalua and a win at Sony.
My “runners-up” are Stephen Ames and Steve Stricker. Again, very popular picks. Both had top-5 finishes at Kapalua in 2008.
For those readers who play Fantasy Golf on Yahoo, here’s my roster for SBS:
“Front 4”: Zach Johnson, Nick Watney, Dustin Johnson, Matt Kuchar
“Bench team”: Stephen Ames, Geoff Ogilvy, Pat Perez, Paul Casey [Casey would ordinarily start, but I’m waiting to see if he is in fact completely recovered from last year’s oblique injury.]
Best of luck to all in Kapalua this week! Possibly-humbling prediction results coming after the conclusion of the tournament…
The blog is back! 2010 predictions
When I decided to take a six-week sabbatical from blogging to work on 2010 scheduling and some issues in “real life”, little did I realize that “the Tiger Woods story” would explode a week later and pretty much dominate golf media until…well, it hasn’t really stopped yet.
But it’s a new year, and I’m turning the page on 2009 and its scandals and looking forward to watching the action on the links in 2010. Here are my predictions for 2010.
When will Tiger return? Probably the most-asked question leading up to the 2010 season. I’ll assume that there will be no more major developments in this case, and say that he’ll be back for the Masters, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s back at Doral. Of course, if there are further major developments, all bets are off.
The impact of some young guns. Rickie Fowler will win at least once on the PGA Tour in 2010, likely in a weaker-field event. Rory McIlroy will win at least once outside the U.S., and possibly win a major (see major predictions below). If McIlroy does win a major, he will be Rookie of the Year. If he does not, Fowler will be.
On the other side of the success coin… Anthony Kim, Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, and Camilo Villegas will combine for a total of one win worldwide between the four of them, and it may be a European Tour win.
Kiss the trophy. Kevin Na gets his first PGA Tour win in 2010. Robert Allenby gets his first PGA Tour win in almost ten years in 2010. Jim Furyk gets at least one PGA Tour win in 2010.
Major winners: Phil Mickelson wins the Masters. Nick Watney wins the U.S. Open. Tiger Woods wins the Open Championship, unless he doesn’t play; if he doesn’t, Rory McIlroy wins. Ross Fisher wins the PGA Championship.
Ryder Cup: Europe wins the Ryder Cup in Wales. Each team fields four rookies. The margin will be 3.5 points.
Enjoy the 2010 season!
But it’s a new year, and I’m turning the page on 2009 and its scandals and looking forward to watching the action on the links in 2010. Here are my predictions for 2010.
When will Tiger return? Probably the most-asked question leading up to the 2010 season. I’ll assume that there will be no more major developments in this case, and say that he’ll be back for the Masters, and it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s back at Doral. Of course, if there are further major developments, all bets are off.
The impact of some young guns. Rickie Fowler will win at least once on the PGA Tour in 2010, likely in a weaker-field event. Rory McIlroy will win at least once outside the U.S., and possibly win a major (see major predictions below). If McIlroy does win a major, he will be Rookie of the Year. If he does not, Fowler will be.
On the other side of the success coin… Anthony Kim, Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, and Camilo Villegas will combine for a total of one win worldwide between the four of them, and it may be a European Tour win.
Kiss the trophy. Kevin Na gets his first PGA Tour win in 2010. Robert Allenby gets his first PGA Tour win in almost ten years in 2010. Jim Furyk gets at least one PGA Tour win in 2010.
Major winners: Phil Mickelson wins the Masters. Nick Watney wins the U.S. Open. Tiger Woods wins the Open Championship, unless he doesn’t play; if he doesn’t, Rory McIlroy wins. Ross Fisher wins the PGA Championship.
Ryder Cup: Europe wins the Ryder Cup in Wales. Each team fields four rookies. The margin will be 3.5 points.
Enjoy the 2010 season!
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