May. 2, 2007 Who are the sleepers? Tournament Coverage Play TOUR Fantasy Games
Which player will win this weekend's Wachovia Championship? Our experts weigh in:
T.J. Auclair
PGA TOUR.com Interactive Producer
Pick: Tiger Woods
Lately we've witnessed an uncharacteristic Tiger Woods. There was the missed short putt that would have defeated Nick O'Hern at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship, which eventually led to an unlikely Woods loss. Then there was the charge that never was in the Masters, where he coughed up a final-round lead for the first time in his career at a major. Something tells me Tiger is just fine. By the sounds of things, Quail Hollow will be played under major-like conditions this week. Nobody in the Wachovia Championship field is better than Tiger in major-like conditions.
Brett Avery
The Fantasy Insider
Pick: Phil Mickelson
Phil Mickelson. Life's becoming a soap opera for the left-hander, what with the change in teachers and the travel plans and all. That 66-65 finish at the Nelson was one of his best back-to-back performances in ages and there's no reason to think he won't play more like his first two visits to Quail Hollow Club(tied for fifth and seventh) than last year (tied for 35th). Don't look now but he was third in putting last week (after ranking mid-pack for the first half of the season).
Lauren Deason
PGA TOUR.com Editorial Coordinator
Pick: Sergio Garcia
Sergio Garcia. In his three starts at the Wachovia Championship, Garcia has not missed the cut and even tied for second in 2005. The young Spaniard held a six-stroke lead over Jim Furyk, Vijay Singh and D.J. Trahan heading into the final round two years ago, but shot a 72 on Sunday and lost in a playoff with Furyk and eventual winner Singh. Furyk -- who outlasted Garcia in that playoff by going three extra holes with Singh after Garcia was eliminated in one -- got his victory the next year in Charlotte. Maybe that's a good omen for Garcia to earn his payback this year.
Melanie Hauser
PGA TOUR.com Correspondent
Pick: Tiger Woods
Ummm... Tiger. Yes, we know about Veege, Luke, Jimmy F., Phil and Adam -- to name a few. . . But...TW's had three weeks off. Chilled with MJ in the pro-am, goofed around with Robin Roberts for GMA. He's rested, relaxed and playing his way to Ponte Vedra. No, he hasn't won here yet, but he will. A tie for third and a tie for 11th in his only two starts.
Dave Lagarde
PGA TOUR.com Correspondent
Pick: Ken Duke
Ken Duke. The 2006 Nationwide Tour player of the year struggled early in the season, but has located his comfort zone and caught fire with three straight top tens worth almost $1 million. Plus he has some history at Quail Hollow. He was a Monday qualifier for Wachovia Championship last year following a victory at the Nationwide Tour's BMW Charity Pro-Am at The Cliffs and went on to finish tied for 14th. Why not go with the man on a sizzle to pull a huge upset?
Helen Ross
PGA TOUR.com Chief of Correspondents
Pick: Vijay Singh
Look for Vijay Singh to pad his FedExCup lead this week. He came from six strokes off the pace with a 66 to win the Wachovia Championship in 2005 and finished second in 2003. Not to mention, he's playing extremely well -- surprise, surprise -- with two wins already this year. He hasn't missed a cut in 12 starts this season and hasn't finished out of the top 20 in his last six starts. Why argue with success?
Dave Shedloski
PGA TOUR.com Senior Correspondent
Pick: Vijay Singh
Vijay Singh. Too obvious to ignore. The FedExCup point's leader won the 2005 edition and has been in the top-10 in three of his four starts. A tie for 38th last year was an aberration, when he'd fallen into a few bad habits. He's back and better and with two wins this year already, he's got to be feeling good going to such a friendly venue.
The Champions Tour is in action this week at the FedEx Kinko's Classic in Texas. PGA TOUR.com editorial coordinator Lauren Deason gives us her pick:
Going with Bill Haas as a sleeper on the PGA TOUR this week and Jay Haas as a winner pick on the Champions Tour. The elder Haas defends his title for the second consecutive event. He did so successfully at the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf, so why not do it again in Austin at the FedEx Kinko's Classic. And who knows, maybe they'll become just the third father-son combo (Bob and David Duval did it in 1999 and Craig and Kevin Stadler in 2006) to win the same week on different tours?
The Nationwide Tour is in action this week at the Fort Smith Classic Presented by Stephens Inc. in Arkansas. PGA TOUR.com contributor Dave Lagarde gives us his pick:
Darron Stiles. There has never been a successful title defense in the Tour's 18-year history. Stiles has an opportunity this week. And he's a homegrown product. He catches lightning in a bottle.
| How they're doing |
| The 2007 record of PGA TOUR.com experts after last week's EDS Byron Nelson Championship |
| PGATOUR.com Experts |
1st |
2nd |
3rd |
Top 10s |
Missed Cuts |
Total FedExCup Points |
| Dave Shedloski |
3 |
2 |
1 |
7 |
7 |
28733.7 |
| Helen Ross |
3 |
1 |
1 |
7 |
5 |
26409.3 |
| T.J. Auclair |
2 |
3 |
2 |
8 |
7 |
25046.2 |
| Melanie Hauser |
3 |
2 |
0 |
7 |
12 |
23567.3 |
| John Maginnes |
3 |
1 |
0 |
5 |
8 |
20474.9 |
| Dave Lagarde |
3 |
1 |
0 |
8 |
9 |
22775 |
| Brett Avery |
2 |
1 |
0 |
6 |
6 |
19684.3 |
| Lauren Deason |
1 |
3 |
1 |
7 |
3 |
18162.3 |
|
.