Sleeper Picks: Zurich Classic of New Orleans

text size

Apr. 20, 2010

The PGA TOUR heads to the Zurich Classic of New Orleans this week. Here's how the PGATOUR.COM experts size up the top contenders:

EXPERT PICKS
How it works: Our 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. The player who wins the previous week picks last the following week. Click here
SLEEPER PICKS
Of the players who didn't make the cut for our top picks, which have the best chance as sleepers? Here's how our experts see it.
MORE ZURICH CLASSIC: Power Rankings | Inside the Field | Inside the course | FANTASY GOLF: Play our game -- FREE!

Sleeper picks: Zurich Classic of New Orleans

Expert	Pick order	Player selected
Mike McAllister			STEVE MARINO. Marino has become a weekly fixture in the Sleepers' top 10, but I don't think he'll be eligible much longer. He's played well in his last three starts, and last year in New Orleans, he tied for 13th. Will this be his breakthrough week?
Helen Ross			STUART APPLEBY. The Aussie is coming off a tie for eighth at Hilton Head last week, and he tied for fourth at the 2006 Zurich Classic of New Orleans, where he has three other top-16 finishes. Maybe this is where that slump is snapped.
Casey Black			BRINY BAIRD. Baird tied for 12th in his last start at the Verizon Heritage, which was his fourth top-25 finish of the year. He finished T12 at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in 2008, so he's got a shot at finally ending his winless streak this week.
Brian Wacker			JASON DUFNER. He tied for ninth in New Orleans a year ago and has three top-25s this season. His length off the tee and with his irons -- he's 16th on TOUR in birdies -- should also help on the 7,400-yard TPC Louisiana.
Lauren Deason			BRIAN DAVIS. He called a penalty on himself in a playoff at the Verizon Heritage, which cost him a chance at his first TOUR victory. But he's more than just a gentleman -- in his last two starts in New Orleans, he's finished T19 and T33.
John Swantek			TIM PETROVIC. Horses for courses theory at work. He's 167th in the FedExCup race with seven missed cuts in 10 events this year. But in four cracks at TPC Louisiana? T7, T11, T24 and a win in 2005. Petro will find a way to bounce back on the Bayou.
Nick Zaccardi			ANDRES ROMERO. We haven't heard much from the young Argentine since his win here in 2008, and he's fallen out of the top 100 in the world ranking. Romero does have two top-15s this year, so the talent is still there.
Anne Szeker			NICK O'HERN. In his last three starts, O'Hern has notched two top-10 finishes. Plus, he's currently ninth on the PGA TOUR in driving accuracy. Will he earn his first TOUR title in New Orleans?
Ryan Smithson			AARON BADDELEY. Baddeley's hitting less than 60 percent of his fairways. Bubba Watson is actually ahead of him. But he's starting to hit the ball better, and he's still one of the best putters on TOUR. That's an asset on the large greens at TPC Louisiana.

Standings after Week 15

LAST WEEK: Casey Black and John Swantek both gained over 75 points with their sleeper picks last week:
Position	Name	Wins	Top-5s	Top-10s	Top-25s	FedExCup points
1	Ryan Smithson Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	-	1	1	3	473.92
2	Mike McAllister Managing Editor, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	1	3	321.33
3	John Swantek Host, PGA TOUR Today	-	-	2	3	316.33
4	Lauren Deason Editorial Coordinator, PGATOUR.COM	-	1	1	1	315.07
5	Brian Wacker Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	-	2	2	2	299.5
6	Helen Ross Chief of Correspondents, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	1	2	285.75
7	Nick Zaccardi Associate Site Producer. PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	2	260.5
8*	Casey Black Host, PGA TOUR Today	-	-	1	2	203.5
9*	Anne Szeker Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	-	-	-	-	-