Expert Picks: Sony Open in Hawaii

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Jan. 14, 2011

The PGA TOUR travels to Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, Hawaii this week for the Sony Open. Here's how the PGATOUR.COM experts sized 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.
SLEEPER PICKS
Of the players who didn't make the cut for our top picks, which have the best chance as sleepers? To see who our experts picked, click here.

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Expert picks: Sony Open in Hawaii

Expert	Pick order	Player selected
John Swantek			STEVE STRICKER. Doesn't take long for the Wisconsinite's game to thaw out in Hawaii. After a very sharp T4 at in Kapalua it's on to Honolulu, where he's finished inside the top 5 three of the last four years.

Brian Wacker			JUSTIN ROSE. Rose has a couple of top-20 finishes at the Sony, including a tie for 12th last year. More importantly, he's hitting his stride and coming off a career year that included two wins. Rose also played well the last three rounds last week.
If Wacker had the top pick ... Rose
Mike McAllister			ERNIE ELS. Hard to not pick a guy who has won the Sony Open twice and has a second-place finish in the last eight years. Els had one really good round last week at Kapalua, but if he can find his putting stroke for more than just one day, watch out.
If McAllister had the top pick ... Els
John Schwarb			JIM FURYK. A 72-70 weekend at Kapalua kept him from making any noise, but going into it he was 10-under. He puts four rounds together here to get back to where he ended 2010 -- atop the FedExCup standings.
If Schwarb had the top pick ... Furyk
Helen Ross			CARL PETTERSSON. Hard work during the offseason appears to have paid off for Pettersson, who was in the mix all week at Kapalua before tying for fourth. Maybe Waialae will be even kinder than it was a year ago when the Swede tied for fifth.
If Ross had the top pick ... Pettersson
Anne Szeker			MATT KUCHAR. He was one of the most consistent players on TOUR last year, and kicked off 2011 with a T6 at last week's Hyundai Tournament of Champions. I'm surprised he's an even an option this late in the picks!
If Szeker had the top pick ... Kuchar
Chris Dunham			ROBERT ALLENBY. Last year's runner-up in this event has been active since the 2010 PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup with top-15 finishes in both the Australian Masters and the Aussie PGA. I look for Allenby to notch his first victory since 2001 this season.
If Dunham had the top pick ... Els
Ryan Smithson			CHARLES HOWELL III. Obviously a risky pick, but for some reason loves this layout. Would have won here last year had he not shot 73 in the opening round. Probably should have taken Jonathan Byrd just for kicks.
If Smithson had the top pick ... Els
Lauren Deason			TIM CLARK. The reigning PLAYERS champion has a decent record at the Sony Open in Hawaii, finishing in the top 25 in his past two starts. This will be his second week in Hawaii, after last week's T17 finish thanks to a final-round 68.
If Deason had the top pick ... Furyk

Standings after Week 1

LAST WEEK: Graeme McDowell's final-round 62 and third-place finish gave Lauren Deason the lead through one week of prognostications.
Position	Name	Wins	Top-5s	Top-10s	Top-25s	FedExCup points
1	Lauren Deason Editorial Coordinator, PGATOUR.COM	0	1	1	1	190.00
2	Ryan Smithson Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	0	1	1	1	123.00
3	Chris Dunham Editorial Coordinator, PGATOUR.COM	0	0	1	1	95.00
4	Anne Szeker Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	0	0	1	1	75.00
5	Helen Ross Chief of Correspondents, PGATOUR.COM	0	0	1	1	75.00
6	John Schwarb Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	0	0	0	1	53.50
7	Mike McAllister Managing Editor, PGATOUR.COM	0	0	0	1	51.50
8	Brian Wacker Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	0	0	0	1	49.00
9	John Swantek Host, On The Tee	0	0	0	1	45.00