Weir to wire winner
February 12th 2009 01:32
The Pebble Beach pro-am is often a test of a player’s mental patience as well as his golf game given the number of distractions he has to face in the form of celebrity playing partners and general hijinks.
So players who have performed well in the past at the famed California course are my tips to perform well again – they’ve obviously got the head for it.
My top tip is Mike Weir. Forget his missed cut at the FBR Open at his last start – he kicked off the season in style confirming his form boost from late 2008. And his form at Pebble Beach is sensational with a string of top-10s including a second place and third place.
With Phil Mickelson still not in control of his game, Vijay Singh coming back from knee surgery and Camilo Villegas not in attendance, I like Weir to win.
My other bets will be slightly longer shots. Hunter Mahan has been in good shape all year and has done OK around Pebble Beach and his closing 66 at Torrey Pines last week was classy. Dustin Johnson is an up and comer who did well at Pebble beach last year. For a real longshot I like a guy called Nicholas Thompson, who seems to play well on tough courses – witness his top-10 last week at Torrey Pines.
In Europe, Anthony Kim is the star turn at the Malaysian Open but I’m overlooking him because his form so far in an injury-hit year hasn’t been good.
There are two guys who play well in Asia that I like: Simon Dyson of England and Francesco Molinari of Italy. I will also have a bit on Alexander Noren, a Swede who has a sweet swing and is close to a win following some good performances on the middle east swing.
And I expect Louis Oosthuizen to bounce back from his last-round collapse in Dubai and put himself in the mix.
Last week, my tips weren’t so good, with Luke Donald going OK before he hit a shank in the final round which led to a double-bogey – at that point he was at seven-under alongside eventual winner Nick Watney. Whereas Watney went forward, Donald went back and tied for seventh, but don’t discount him in the future.
Finally to my Masters power rankings; with no tournament in Europe and no big guns firing at Torrey Pines there is no big change bar the inclusion of Villegas.
1) Sergio Garcia – his consistency so far this season is remarkable and if can stay steady that first major is not far away
2) Paul Casey – After the form reversal from Abu Dhabi (win) to Qatar (missed cut), Casey was back and looking good in Dubai
3) Justin Rose – The Englishman was is class and has a proven major temperament.
4) David Toms – the guy has got his head together and his putting looks sharp. He can handle Augusta.
5) Camilo Villegas. This guy thrives on tough courses and has a major pedigree to suggest Augusta will hold no fears.
Best results each week:
European Tour: 1st, 19th, 3rd
PGA Tour: 7th, 5th, 4th, 7th
So players who have performed well in the past at the famed California course are my tips to perform well again – they’ve obviously got the head for it.
My top tip is Mike Weir. Forget his missed cut at the FBR Open at his last start – he kicked off the season in style confirming his form boost from late 2008. And his form at Pebble Beach is sensational with a string of top-10s including a second place and third place.
With Phil Mickelson still not in control of his game, Vijay Singh coming back from knee surgery and Camilo Villegas not in attendance, I like Weir to win.
My other bets will be slightly longer shots. Hunter Mahan has been in good shape all year and has done OK around Pebble Beach and his closing 66 at Torrey Pines last week was classy. Dustin Johnson is an up and comer who did well at Pebble beach last year. For a real longshot I like a guy called Nicholas Thompson, who seems to play well on tough courses – witness his top-10 last week at Torrey Pines.
In Europe, Anthony Kim is the star turn at the Malaysian Open but I’m overlooking him because his form so far in an injury-hit year hasn’t been good.
There are two guys who play well in Asia that I like: Simon Dyson of England and Francesco Molinari of Italy. I will also have a bit on Alexander Noren, a Swede who has a sweet swing and is close to a win following some good performances on the middle east swing.
And I expect Louis Oosthuizen to bounce back from his last-round collapse in Dubai and put himself in the mix.
Finally to my Masters power rankings; with no tournament in Europe and no big guns firing at Torrey Pines there is no big change bar the inclusion of Villegas.
1) Sergio Garcia – his consistency so far this season is remarkable and if can stay steady that first major is not far away
2) Paul Casey – After the form reversal from Abu Dhabi (win) to Qatar (missed cut), Casey was back and looking good in Dubai
3) Justin Rose – The Englishman was is class and has a proven major temperament.
4) David Toms – the guy has got his head together and his putting looks sharp. He can handle Augusta.
5) Camilo Villegas. This guy thrives on tough courses and has a major pedigree to suggest Augusta will hold no fears.
Best results each week:
European Tour: 1st, 19th, 3rd
PGA Tour: 7th, 5th, 4th, 7th
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