The Experts: Favorite moments at the midway point
 
Apr. 30, 2007

Believe it or not, the EDS Byron Nelson Championship marked the midway point of the 2007 PGA TOUR season. So PGATOUR.com asked its panel of experts to weigh in on their favorite moment, biggest surprise and top performer of the first half of the year. These are their favorite moments.

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T.J. Auclair
PGATOUR.com Interactive Producer
Pick: Boo Weekley, Verizon Heritage
My favorite moment so far in 2007 was watching Boo Weekley win the Verizon Heritage. Chipping in for par on the last two holes of any tournament is something else. To do it with a win hanging in the balance and Ernie Els chasing you is unbelievable. Weekley proved at the Verizon Heritage that you can't judge a book by its cover. The man looks and acts as though he enjoys life more than most and any interview you get to see with Boo is usually better than the best interview you'll see with any other guy on TOUR. We need some Boo TV! Give that guy a reality show.

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Lauren Deason
PGATOUR.com Editorial Coordinator
Pick: Mark Wilson, The Honda Classic; Scott Verplank, EDS Byron Nelson Championship
It's a tie. One was Mark Wilson winning a four-man playoff on Monday at The Honda Classic after calling a two-shot penalty on himself during Friday's round. If ever there was a nice guy on TOUR who deserved to get a win, it was Wilson, so watching him earn one after such an act of sportsmanship was special. The other top moment was Dallas native Scott Verplank winning his "fifth major", the EDS Byron Nelson Championship. Like Ben Crenshaw getting a little heavenly help from mentor Harvey Penick -- who passed away the week he won the 1995 Masters -- Verplank said he felt his long-time hero Nelson as a calming influence during the tournament. It's moments like Verplank's and Wilson's that remind us why golf always has been and will be considered a gentleman's game.

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Melanie Hauser
PGATOUR.com Correspondent
Pick: Zach Johnson, Masters; Scott Verplank, EDS Byron Nelson Championship
One you saw, one you didn't. Running into Zach Johnson and caddie Damon Green on the clubhouse porch at Augusta Sunday morning, telling him to have a good one and seeing him smile. Little did we know. And Scott Verplank falling to his knees in tears, then looking up and saying thank you after winning one for Byron Nelson. He had me when the putt fell. And, yes, it's a Texas thing. I've written about him since he was 17 and never seen him in tears. An improbable win by a player who's played on guts -- and through injuries -- much of his career. If that doesn't get you...

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Dave Lagarde
PGATOUR.com Correspondent
Pick: Boo Weekley, Verizon Heritage
How could you not love Boo Weekley's victory at the Verizon, a one-stroke win over Ernie Els sealed with the kiss of a pair of chip-ins on the 71st and 72nd holes? Now ask yourself, has anyone in the history of the game EVER botched two chip shots -- Weekley missed the green with his first attempts on Nos. 17 and 18 at Harbour Town -- and then followed with improbable chip-ins to win a tournament? That makes Weekley's first PGA TOUR triumph one of the most memorable -- EVER.

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Helen Ross
PGATOUR.com Chief of Correspondents
Pick: Scott Verplank, EDS Byron Nelson Championship; Zach Johnson, Masters
Seeing Scott Verplank sink to his knees in tears on the 72nd hole Sunday after he won the EDS Byron Nelson Championship definitely was a consideration. Knowing Verplank's relationship with the legendary golfer, and seeing the smile on Nelson's widow's face when the prodigy won, was the stuff of divine inspiration. But my other favorite moments came at the Masters -- seeing Zach Johnson smother his young son with kisses after he walked off the 18th green that life-changing Sunday and the following morning, seeing his wife Kim step out of a black SUV with the Green Jacket on a hanger, carefully protected with a white trash bag.

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Dave Shedloski
PGATOUR.com Senior Correspondent
Pick: Scott Verplank, EDS Byron Nelson Championship
It's hard to top Arnold Palmer's return to the first tee at Augusta National, this time as honorary starter of the Masters, but Scott Verplank's victory in what he considers his own personal "fifth major," last week's EDS Byron Nelson Championship, comes mighty close. Seeing how much the victory meant to the Dallas native who shared a close personal relationship with Nelson was touching and proved that golf is rich with great storylines every week, no matter who is competing.