Expert Picks: Chattanooga Classic

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Oct. 7, 2009

Chattanooga Classic presented by Black Creek: Tee times | Field | Power Rankings

PGATOUR.COM will have expert picks and sleepers for each Nationwide Tour event this year. Our experts -- Nationwide Tour producer Ceri Mobley and former Nationwide Tour and PGATOUR.COM employee Jordan Crampton -- will each choose two players they consider favorites that week and a sleeper pick (a player who is not inside "THE 25"). Here are their selections for this week's Chattanooga Classic presented by Black Creek.
Crampton's picks Mobley's picks
Henrik Bjornstad. The pride of Norway has been my bread and butter this season, and I'm in serious need of a bounce-back week after three MCs last week (not to mention taunts from Mobley). Bjornstad is still holding strong after a red-hot August; he has missed just three cuts since the middle of April, and he has all but secured his TOUR card. Henrik did miss the cut here last season, but he tied for sixth in '07.
Garth Mulroy. It looks like Jordan and I are both returning to our old standbys this week as I take Mulroy for what must be the fifth time this year. He missed a few cuts over the summer, but he seems to be sharpening up his game as the season comes to a close. His last four starts have included a top-25, a top-20 and a top-five. I have a lot of ground to make up in three weeks if I want to catch Mr. Crampton.
Jerod Turner. Can lightning strike twice? I'm rolling the dice here and saying yes. Turner has played in only seven Nationwide Tour events this season and just nine in his career. But after registering his first ever top-10, Turner followed up with a win. He has a realistic shot at earning his TOUR card for next season (currently 17th on money list) -- not bad for a guy who was 150th on the money list just a week ago.
Won Joon Lee. The Tour's longest driver is coming off a tie for 18th at last week's Soboba Classic, and I like the sound of that as he returns to Chattanooga, where he tied for sixth in 2008. Lee tends to be hit or miss, but he was under par in all four rounds here last year, so hopefully he can find that consistency again. He is outside "THE 25," so he is aware of what is at stake over the next few events, and that's motivation.
Crampton's sleeper Mobley's sleeper
Bubba Dickerson. Dickerson has been watching his season slip away since the summer, with some poor stretches of missed cuts after his dramatic win in Louisiana. Dickerson has landed just four top-25s and no top-10s since the victory, but this is the week he ends that drought and finds himself in contention again. Dickerson finds himself outside "THE 25" for the first time since late March -- this is a big week for the Gator alum.
Hunter Haas. This is a risky pick because Haas has three missed cuts in his last four starts. But at this time of year, players like Haas (67th in money) have to take risks, so I will, too. The ray of light? The one week out of those aforementioned starts that he did make the cut, he scored a tie for seventh, closing with a Sunday 66. He also finished fourth in Chattanooga in 2008, so he has an opportunity to do something here.

LAST WEEK: Only one of our experts' six picks made the cut last week at the Soboba Classic -- Chad Collins -- who earned Ceri Mobley $18,000 with his tie for 14th. She needs more than that, though, if she's going to catch Jordan Crampton before the season ends.

Standings after week 26
Pos. Expert Wins Top 5s Top 10s Top 25s Money earned
1 Jordan Crampton
Former employee, Nationwide Tour and PGATOUR.COM
3 2 10 10 $697,440.28
2 Ceri Mobley
Associate Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM
- 7 10 12 $550,739.77
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