By Brett Avery Leave it to The Fantasy Insider's columnist partner in crime, Dave Shedloski, to sum up the way TFI's feeling heading into the FUNAI Classic at WALT DISNEY WORLD Resort. Shedloski, a Senior Correspondent with PGATOUR.com, writes the TOUR Insider column that posts on Mondays. Some readers mix up the two pieces -- message board comments sometimes slag Shedloski for TFI's picks in a particularly horrible week. TFI's typical Monday night research session begins with a PB&J, a scan of the previous week's Salary Cap Cup and League Championship Fantasy results (remember them?) and a read of Shed's column. And there, at the top of this week's TOUR Insider piece, was a recounting of the one-two-three punches the game absorbed in the past few weeks: The deaths of Patty Berg and Byron Nelson and the competitive retirement of Arnold Palmer. "Next," Shed writes, "you'll tell the TOUR Insider that Jack Nicklaus is hanging up the spikes." Makes a golfer want to crawl back into bed, pull the covers over one's head and not come out for a few weeks. TFI was fortunate to spend a goodly amount of time with Berg and Nelson (happily rising early Thursday mornings of Masters week to see Lord Byron as an honorary starter) and watched Palmer play in a few dozen tournaments. You can't pay a big enough pile of cash for those sorts of opportunity. Even from afar, viewing these legends of the game makes the rest of us walk a little bit taller -- and simultaneously feel a bit smaller, too. Perhaps those close to Palmer can convince him to stroll to Augusta National GC's first tee a little after 7:30 a.m. next April 5 for a friendly 18 holes. Heck, nine would do, too. We've got to keep hold on our heroes as best we can, girls and boys. So if you don't mind, TFI will spend part of his Monday night session daydreaming about being paired for one round with Berg, Nelson and Palmer. Pick One: Davis Love III ($290,250). His 15th start (and first since a tie for fifth in 2003) at a place where he's outside the top 25 once in the proverbial blue moon. After that Chrysler Classic in Greensboro win, anything's possible, right? Balance: $709,750.
Balance: $507,250. Pick Three: Bo Van Pelt ($189,500). Without much fanfare last week, he posts a third top-20 finish in four starts. Now he comes into a place where he's missed the cut twice in three starts but with a long shot chance at a berth in THE TOUR Championship. TFI sees him salvaging a so-so season with another big check. Balance: $317,750. Pick Four: Harrison Frazar ($111,500). Tied for third last year with the type of steady score line (67-66-66-68) that resembles last week's tie for 24th at the Frys.com Open (68-66-70-69). Problem is that in Las Vegas he made two bogeys and a double each of the last two rounds to squash a superb putting week. Still, TFI believes. Balance: $206,250. Pick Five: Daniel Chopra ($79,000). Remember earlier in the season, when he couldn't putt worth a lick? He's back to No. 1 in putts on greens in regulation and third in putts per round. Peaking at a lucrative time when it comes to 2007 exemptions for majors, invitationals -- and THE TOUR Championship next month, too? Balance: $127,250. (!) Hey, buddy, can you spare $995,500? Loved them but ran out of slots or into the salary cap: • Vijay Singh ($300,000). TFI was digging through some columns from earlier this year and found the one where he answered a mailbag question by suggesting a LCF competitor trade this guy for Tiger Woods. And, in an update, TFI likes the Yankees to win the World Series in six games over the Dodgers. • Carl Pettersson ($283,750). Back-to-back top 15s at this place are a positive but those three straight missed cuts in non-World Golf Championships events -- on second-round scores of 76, 75 and 75 -- are troubling. What say he crack the string here? • Charles Howell III ($222,000). Here's another season littered with missed cuts (eight in 28 starts) and a withdrawal but a pick bolstered by the fact that he's hit the top 20 at the FUNAI Classic at WALT DISNEY WORLD Resort three times in four years. Oh, and he's one fat check away from THE TOUR Championship in his home state of Georgia. • Mark Calcavecchia ($114,750). A forgettable season but he's got to remember that top 125 hunt with two weeks remaining in the season. The way to protect his card is to replicate his tie for eighth last year or, better yet, his share of sixth from 2004. • Hunter Mahan ($75,000). Finally awakening at season's end with a tie for 12th at the Chrysler Classic of Greensboro and tie for ninth at the 84 LUMBER Classic. And, hey, look at that: Another Classic week! Salary Cap Cup lineup for Frys.com Open: The main lineup of Jim Furyk ($54,300, tied 16th), Ryan Moore ($6,760, tied 85th), Ryan Palmer ($0, missed cut), Harrison Frazar ($31,657, tied 24th) and Charley Hoffman ($152,000, tied fifth), earned $244,717 and placed 4,949th. Through Week 41 it totals $4,129,096 and ranks 3,073rd. Thanks, again, Mr. Hoffman for propping up this lineup! The "Hey, buddy" backup lineup of Chris DiMarco ($9,472, tied 51st), Dean Wilson ($11,805, tied 44th), Bo Van Pelt ($84,800, tied 11th), Nick Watney ($0, missed cut) and Troy Matteson ($920,000, won!; includes $200,000 bonuses as round leader) earned $1,026,077 and placed 106th. Through Week 41 it totals $2,637,066 and ranks 10,662nd. And thanks, Mr. Matteson, for propping up this lineup, too! Week 41 winner: par5in2 $1,417,860. Segment Four leader: Can buy game $7,371,581. Have a question or comment for TFI? Send it to him at brettavery@aol.com. |
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