Expert picks: Timberlake Shriners Hospitals Open

text size

Oct. 13, 2009

The second tournament of the Fall Series is the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open held at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas. Here's how the PGATOUR.COM experts sized up the top contenders:

EXPERT PICKS
How it works: Our 10 experts from PGATOUR.COM select the player they think will win this week's event. By using a draft process, no two picks can be the same.

Expert picks: Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open

Expert	Pick order	Player selected
Win McMurry			JIM FURYK. Riding his competitive juices after representing the USA in the Presidents Cup, Furyk is playing this week with a mission: to lift a trophy solo (last victory 2007). He has won in Las Vegas three times and has six top-10s in 13 starts.

Mike McAllister			TIM CLARK. His point production may not have shown it, but he was arguably the best International player at The Presidents Cup. If he remains in form, then this should be the week he gets his first PGA TOUR win (he's currently 0 for 193).
If McAllister had the top pick ... Clark
Ryan Smithson			HUNTER MAHAN. Considering the guy has a penchant for shooting 62s, I don't see any problem asking Mahan to shoot 30 under in the desert. As Mike said, everyone marvels that Clark hasn't won. It's equally amazing that Mahan has won only once.
If Smithson had the top pick ... Furyk
Lauren Deason			BRANDT SNEDEKER. He's been my go-to guy for the past few weeks and hasn't let me down. With zero missed cuts in his last five starts and six top-15s in his last 11 events, he's one of the hottest players on TOUR right now and is ready for his second victory.
If Deason had the top pick ... Furyk
John Swantek			CHARLEY HOFFMAN. Hoffman makes a ton of birdies and knows how to go low in the desert. He will be the first UNLV alum to cash in in Vegas.
If Swantek had the top pick ... Clark
Ceri Mobley			DAVID TOMS. It has been 11 years since Toms played Vegas, so I'm not taking past results into consideration. He's obviously playing for a reason: He wants to win. With his stellar year, I don't blame him for being frustrated. Let's see if he can pull it off.
If Mobley had the top pick ... Furyk
Mark Spoor			ANTHONY KIM. Sure, the results haven't been there for Kim like in 2008. However, as we all know, golf - and sports in general - are all about confidence. After a 3-1 performance last weekend at Harding Park, Kim should have plenty of it. The turnaround will continue.
If Spoor had the top pick ... Clark
T.J. Auclair			NICK WATNEY. I believe he's feeling a little stung by missing the Presidents Cup team -- especially after seeing how much fun his boys had. Watney is playing solid golf right now, and I see him returning to the form that earned him a victory at the start of the year.
If Auclair had the top pick ... Furyk
Helen Ross			MATT KUCHAR. Why not go with the hot hand? In his last start, Kuchar shot four rounds in the 60s at the Turning Stone Resort Championship and beat Vaughn Taylor in a playoff. Not to mention, he finished second in Vegas last year.
If Ross had the top pick ... Furyk
Brian Wacker			RYAN MOORE. He's gone low on courses that give up a lot of birdies -- most notably in Hartford and Greensboro -- and TPC Summerlin is just that. The former UNLV standout also just missed a top-10 in Las Vegas last year.
If Wacker had the top pick ... Clark

LAST WEEK: Win McMurry took the lead in the Fall Series picks standings when Rory Sabbatini tied for 12th at the Turning Stone Resort Championship.

Fall Series picks standings after Turning Stone Resort Championship

Pos.	Expert	Wins	Top 5s	Top 10s	Top 25s	Money earned
1	Win McMurry Host, PGA TOUR Today	-	-	-	1	$126,000
2	Mike McAllister Managing Editor, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	1	$78,240
3	Lauren Deason Editorial Coordinator, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	-	$38,150
4	John Swantek Fantasy Insider, PGA TOUR Productions	-	-	-	-	$28,328.57
5	Ceri Mobley Associate Producer, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	-	$21,000
6	Mark Spoor Coordinating Producer, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	-	$15,225
7	T.J. Auclair Interactive Producer, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	-	$13,620
8	Helen Ross Chief of Correspondents, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	-	0
9	Ryan Smithson Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	-	0
10	Brian Wacker Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	-	0