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By John Maginnes
PGATOUR.com Contributor

Editor's note: John Maginnes played the PGA TOUR for a decade and also won three times on the Nationwide Tour. Maginnes now works as an analyst for the PGA TOUR Network on XM Satellite Radio. He will be contributing regularly to PGATOUR.com.

I hate statistics. The only other thing I hate is lima beans. I know what you are thinking. How can a good southern boy not like butter beans? Well, I just don't.

You are probably wondering how a guy who makes a living as an analyst can say that he doesn't like statistics. The answer is a little more complicated than my problem with lima beans.

As a playe,r I never utilized all the stats that are available to the players on the PGA TOUR. The number of stats available is mind-boggling. The ShotLink tournament tracker, which is called TOURCast, is available to players and golf fans alike right here at PGATOUR.com. There's also a private site for the players that allows them to utilize statistical archives. So if a player played well at the Nissan Open he can review those stats in preparation for the upcoming tournament.

I never did that either. Perhaps I should have.

As an analyst for the PGA TOUR Network on XM Radio, I have, reluctantly, become a believer in the entertainment value of statistics. Mike Vitti, PGATOUR.com's ShotLink analyst, and the boys from the TOUR have a long way to go to prove to me that you can use previous results to predict future performance. There are too many contradictions. Look at the number of players who struggle all year and then win a golf tournament or even a major. You can fill in the blanks with whatever names you want.

But this week at the Mercedes-Benz Championship there are a few stats that can not be overlooked. With the drastic elevation changes and the strong trade winds it is not unusual for players to hit drives over 400 yards. The 12th hole is a downhill down-wind par 4 that measures in the 420-yard range. Believe it or not, this week No. 12 is drivable. As a matter of fact, Brett Wetterich drove it over the green there in the first round. According to ShotLink, Brett's drive traveled an unbelievable 437 yards. Of course, he made a par. Chris Couch only managed to drive his ball 428 yards on the on No. 12 on Friday but he did manage to make birdie.

The 13th hole runs parallel to No. 12 and rises back up the same hill. At 407 yards, it measures 13 yards shorter but plays considerably longer. How much longer? In the first round, Couch hit the longest drive of the day there but only managed 276 yards -- or 152 yards shorter than he would hit his drive the next day on No. 12. Wettrich had the longest drive on the 13th hole in the second round at a pedestrian 262 yards. That is essentially a medium-length par 3 of 175 yards shorter than he drove it on No. 12 in the first day.

OK, so I guess there are some stats that I like. Now, if there was only a way to make lima beans fun.