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Breaking down the contenders for THE PLAYERS title

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Phil Mickelson will try to make up the same ground -- five shots -- as Henrik Stenson did last year.

May. 8, 2010
By PGATOUR.COM staff

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- A year ago, Henrik Stenson came from five shots down to start the final round to win THE PLAYERS Championship. Justin Leonard pulled off the same feat in winning at TPC Sawgrass in 1998.

That's the good news for those players -- including Masters champion Phil Mickelson -- who find themselves five shots behind Lee Westwood going into Sunday's final round.

On the flip side, in the 28 years THE PLAYERS has been contested at TPC Sawgrass, the champion has not started from farther back than a tie for seventh entering the final round and gone on to win (Hal Sutton, who was four shots back in 1983).

Since Mickelson is in a group tied for 11th, that's the bad news.

But expect it to be a wide-open race once the leaders tee off Sunday. As such, here's a look at the top 14 players going into the final round. One of these will likely emerge as the winner.

Top players in the final round

Pos.	Player	Score
1	LEE WESTWOOD	14 under
No player in the last 33 years has held the 54-hole lead in both the Masters and THE PLAYERS Championship in the same year. Westwood failed to seal the deal in Augusta, and that's not the only time he has struggled as a closer in big events. He gets a chance to change his reputation now.
2	ROBERT ALLENBY	13 under
Hasn't won on TOUR since 2001, but he seems to hang around the leaderboard on most weeks. Has six top-20 finishes in stroke-play events this year and his game seems suited for TPC Sawgrass. The only time he's made the top 10 in this event was 2003 when he shot a final-round 65 to finish tied for fourth. If he shoots another 65 on Sunday, expect him to hoist the championship trophy.
T3	BEN CRANE	12 under
Crane broke a five-year drought on TOUR by winning the Farmers Insurance Open earlier this year. He didn't look on the leaderboard that Sunday, and didn't even know he had won until Ryuji Imada congratulated on the 18th hole. Considering the number of leaderboards at TPC Sawgrass, it may be tough to avoid looking at them Sunday.
T3	LUCAS GLOVER	12 under
The reigning U.S. Open champion hasn't done much this year, outside of a tie for ninth at the Farmers Insurance Open. But he hasn't done much wrong this week, with just two bogeys through the first three rounds, fewest in field this week. After dealing with the pressure at Bethpage Black last year, it's doubtful he'll get rattled on Sunday.
T3	FRANCESCO MOLINARI	12 under
What a story this would be if Molinari wins. He bypassed the Italian Open -- with his brother Edoardo in the field -- in his hometown this week to play a course he's never seen before. No player has been more accurate with his approach shots this week (85 percent greens in regulation), and that usually spells success, as Henrik Stenson can attest last year.
T6	CHRIS STROUD	11 under
Stroud has never finished higher than T5 in his TOUR career but says he's been very close in recent weeks to playing "great golf." He's not lacking for confidence, and he's gotten progressively better each day this week. "I feel like I've got a good chance tomorrow," he said.
T6	TIM CLARK	11 under
In his 206th start on TOUR, will Clark -- the best player without a win -- finally break through with his first victory Sunday? Clark's scoring average is better in the first two rounds than the last two, but that 66 in the third round caught everybody's attention.
T6	CHARLEY HOFFMAN	11 under
Has been steady all week, showing no ill effects of the wrist injury that knocked him out for longer a month earlier this season. Hoffman hasn't been in contention on TOUR since Las Vegas last year, but he'll be chomping at the bit for his second TOUR win.
T6	HEATH SLOCUM	11 under
Last year's surprise winner of The Barclays didn't post his first top-10 finish this year until two weeks ago at the Verizon Heritage. In the final round at TPC Sawgrass the last two years, he shot 78 (2008) and 76 (2009) but perhaps being in the heat of the competition on Sunday will raise his game. Has 10 birdies in 12 attempts on par 5s this week.
10	BO VAN PELT	10 under
Probably should have seen this coming. Van Pelt finished T3 at the Verizon Heritage and 5th at Quail Hollow in the last two weeks, so he came in with momentum. Although he had failed to make the cut at THE PLAYERS in the last three years, he did finish T8 in 2006, so he's definitely someone to keep an eye on.
T11	PHIL MICKELSON	9 under
The reigning Masters champ -- the winner at TPC Sawgrass in 2007 -- put himself back into the tournament with Saturday's 66. But will that bogey on the 18th come back to haunt him? He may need to duplicate that 66 on Sunday, but he won't have the luxury of an early tee time in the final round.
T11	ZACH JOHNSON	9 under
A year ago, he won the tournament after THE PLAYERS -- the Valero Texas Open -- but with that event moving to a longer course at TPC San Antonio, he may have a better chance of winning Sunday than defending next week. He's looking for his first top-10 finish of the year.
T11	BILL HAAS	9 under
The winner of the Bob Hope Classic has enjoyed a nice week with his father Jay in the field this week. Haas was nowhere to be found in his first three starts at THE PLAYERS, but he's making the most of this one. His scores, though, have gotten progressively worse during the week.
T11	JOHN ROLLINS	9 under
Like Haas, Rollins' rounds have gotten progressively worse. His greens hit in regulation percentage needs to improve Sunday, but if he dials in his irons, he could post his fourth TOUR wins in his career.