Week 17 Power Rankings: Quail Hollow Championship

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EDITOR'S NOTE: Officially, Mike Vitti is the Director of Research and Development in the TOUR's Marketing Department. Unofficially, he's a stats guru who analyzes all kinds of data from our ShotLink numbers.

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Mike Vitti discusses this week's Power Rankings in his weekly Talk of the TOUR segment on the PGA TOUR Network (XM 146, SIRIUS 209).Click to listen

Vitti will size up the field each week and provide his top 10 players going into the tournament, based on factors such as the player's strengths, the course setup, recent performances, etc.

With playoff finishes occurring in three of its first six years, the Quail Hollow Championship always seems to have an exciting conclusion. Plus, the list of champions is very impressive for such a young event.

The winners' scores have all been at least 10-under par so there are scoring opportunities to be found, but players better find them before reaching the 16th hole. The 16th, 17th and 18th holes at Quail Hollow have had an average aggregate score for the field around 1-over par each year since its inception. It is the only course to rank in the top 3 in toughest finishing holes for each of the last six seasons.

So who could be the winner this week?

Power Rankings: Quail Hollow Championship

Rank Player   Comment Tiger WOODS Unable to defend his title last year due to a knee injury, Woods returns this season healthy and ready to go. Dating back to 2007, Woods has finished in the top 10 in 13 consecutive stroke play starts. This week will not be the one that breaks that streak. Geoff OGILVY He has finished in the top 25 all five times at Quail Hollow, but has never placed better than 10th. Entering this week ranked in the top 10 in putts per greens in regulation, one-putt percentage and putts per round, he is poised for his best finish at this event. Rory SABBATINI He has only had one strong showing at Quail Hollow -- he tied for third in 2007 -- but has placed in the top 10 in his last two starts and is ranked seventh in putts per greens in regulation. He also tied for second at last week's Zurich Classic. Phil MICKELSON He's notched three top 10s in five starts at Quail Hollow and has earned top-10 finishes in half of his eight starts in 2009. He's been scoring well and ranks third in birdie conversion percentage, but has struggled around the greens and is 119th in scrambling. Anthony KIM In two starts at Quail Hollow, Kim has tied for fifth and won. As he defends a title for the first time in his young career, he will face some of the distractions that come with the territory. He has made the cut in five of six starts in '09, but has just one top-10 finish. Brian GAY Coming off a record-setting victory in his last start, Gay is currently seventh in the FedExCup standings and is not going to sneak up on anyone this week. He's ranked first in proximity to the hole and third in both driving accuracy and scrambling. Jim FURYK The winner at Quail Hollow in 2006, Furyk has finished in the top 10 three times in five starts at this event. He has missed the cut twice in his last two starts, but ranks ninth in scrambling and comes into Charlotte with his short game in top form. Charles HOWELL III He has made the cut in 11 of his 12 starts this season; ranks 11th in scoring average; and is coming off a tie for second at last week's Zurich Classic. Howell tied for seventh in his first start at Quail Hollow, but has not finished in the top 10 in the five starts since. Ian POULTER Poulter has finished in the top 20 in four of his five starts on the PGA TOUR in 2009. He missed the cut in his first two starts at Quail Hollow, but figured out the course last year and tied for 25th. He's also averaging fewer than 28 putts per round. David TOMS With a victory and two missed cuts in four starts in Charlotte, Toms has had mixed success. He comes ranked second in driving accuracy, sixth in putts per greens in regulation and has finished in the top 10 in four starts in 2009, including last week.