
To preview the 2013 PGA TOUR season, PGATOUR.COM is counting down the Top 100 Players to Watch in 2013. For an archive page with the top 100 players and for an explanation on how the list was compiled, click here .
MORE TOP 100: Back to No. 48 | Forward to No. 46 | Top 100 archive
2013 PREVIEW: This year will be Davis Toms' 24th on the PGA TOUR, and the soon-to-be 46-year-old has shown no signs of slowing down -- other than each fall to watch his beloved LSU Tigers play football. He managed five top 10s last year, including the 15th runner-up finish of his career, despite his scoring average falling just over a stroke and his GIR dropping four percentage points. Shore that up in 2013 and Toms knows how to win.
2012 DEFINING MOMENT: Toms came close to his 14th PGA TOUR victory when he closed with a 63 at Sea Island as he chased Tommy Gainey at The McGladrey Classic. Interestingly, Toms' final round scoring average ranked third on TOUR while his overall mark was 77th. –- Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM
ALBERS’ QUICK TAKE: David turns 46 in January and shows few signs of an eroding golf game. He won $1.6 million last year. David has never been a big hitter and I think that is actually a benefit as he ages. Other players have a hard time adjusting to a lack of length but Toms has never been long and has always found a way to score. Toms is a future Ryder Cup Captain. -- Fred Albers, SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio
BOLTON’S FANTASY OUTLOOK: Will turn 46 before his first tee ball is aloft in 2013. Dipped below 20 starts for the first time in 2012, so we must adjust immediately. Interestingly, made only five starts after the U.S. Open but didn't cite injury as cause for a pair of mini-sabbaticals. Still nabbed five top 10s, however, proving that he can still pick his spots. Returned from his second break to finish second at The McGladrey Classic. Might be evolving into the Bruce Lietzke of his generation. Coincidentally, both have 13 career victories. -- Rob Bolton, PGATOUR.COM Fantasy expert
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2012 QUICK REVIEW
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Regular Season ranking 69th |
Final Playoffs ranking 95th |
| Best finish | 2nd | The McGladrey Classic |
| By the Numbers Starts: 19 Cuts made: 13 Rounds played: 58 Top-10 finishes: 5 Money List rank: 47th |
TOUR ranking Driving distance: 184th Driving accuracy: 6th Greens in regulation: 74th Strokes gained-putting: 118th Scoring average: 77th |
NOW IT’S YOUR TURN What is your prediction for David Toms in 2013? Fill out the form below and let us know
Watch Steve Stricker and Jerry Kelly -- teammates in this week's Franklin Templeton Shootout and fellow residents of Madison, Wis. -- during this interview from 2010.
Rory McIlroy is in line to pick up some more honors in 2012. The United States Sports Academy has nominated McIlroy for its Male Athlete of the Year award. He's one of a dozen athletes -- including NBA star LeBron James, top-ranked tennis player Novak Djokovic and record-breaking footballer Lionel Messi -- to be in the running for this annual award. The USSA, in conjunction with NBC Sports, will reveal the award winner on Christmas Day, Dec. 25. Click here for more information, or to vote on the award. McIlroy also made the shortlist for the 2012 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award, joining 11 Olympic or Paralympic athletes. Cyclists Bradley Wiggins and Sir Chris Hoy, tennis star Andy Murray, athletes Jessica Ennis and Mo Farah, rower Katherine Grainger, boxer Nicola Adams and sailor Ben Ainslie are other hopefuls. Paralympians Sarah Storey, Ellie Simmonds and David Weir also make the list for the award, which will be announced on Dec. 16. While the shortlist was selected by a panel of experts, the winner will be decided by a public vote. For more information, click here McIlroy had four victories in 2012, including the PGA Championship in record fashion and a pair of FedExCup Playoffs events. He had 10 top-10 finishes in all and is one of the nominees to win PGA TOUR player of the year.
On the 72nd hole of the British Open, Ernie Els set up his major championship victory with a brilliant approach shot into the green.
Rory McIlroy provided some clues as to what his 2013 schedule will look like recently. For one, he's looking forward to finally taming THE PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass -- an event where he's missed the cut in each of his three attempts. His post-Masters schedule at least will include THE PLAYERS Championship, which began his streak of missed cuts in 2012. He said this year the TPC Sawgrass was a course that he would have to figure out how to play, even if it took him 20 years. "I'm determined," McIlroy said. "I feel like I'm a good enough player to get around that course. But yeah, I at least want to see what the weekend is like there." McIlroy will cut back on the number of tournaments he plays, and while he didn't want to say which ones he will skip, he offered a few clues. Singapore and Hong Kong are not on the 2013 schedule, and he played both this year. McIlroy also said he likely would not play the FedEx St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tenn., the week before the U.S. Open. He added it this year because he had missed three straight cuts. "I added that this year just to try to get a little bit more golf because I was only playing two-round tournaments," McIlroy said. He said his schedule leading up to the Masters would at least include Abu Dhabi, the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship, The Honda Classic, the WGC-Cadillac Championship and the Shell Houston Open. That would mean McIlroy does not play the Dubai Desert Classic next year. -- The Associated Press contributed to this report
| Player | 2011 rank (Adj. scoring average) | 2012 rank (Adj. scoring average) | Increase in rank |
| Daniel Summerhays | 182nd (72.487) | 75th (70.722) | +107 |
| Billy Horschel | 152nd (71.512) | 53rd (70.494) | +99 |
| Ernie Els | 121st (71.062) | 25th (70.131) | +96 |
| Kevin Stadler | 139th (71.295) | 54th (70.525) | +85 |
| Robert Garrigus | 105th (70.931) | 23rd (70.066) | +82 |
| Player | 2011 rank (Adj. scoring average) | 2012 rank (Adj. scoring average) | Decrease in rank |
| Gary Woodland | 15th (69.875) | 158th (71.552) | -143 |
| Robert Karlsson | 26th (70.211) | 148th (71.453) | -122 |
| Robert Allenby | 33rd (70.284) | 139th (71.355) | -106 |
| Andres Romero | 54th (70.495) | 157th (71.543) | -103 |
| Aaron Baddeley | 28th (70.230) | 123rd (71.113) | -95 |
| Player | 2011 rank (Adj. scoring average) | 2012 rank (Adj. scoring average) | Difference in rank |
| Rory McIlroy | 3rd (69.48) | 1st (68.873) | +2 |
| Tiger Woods | 51st (70.46) | 2nd (68.904) | +49 |
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Jay Haas isn’t perfect after all.
One day after his Champions Tour-record-tying 60 at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, Haas bogeyed his third hole in Round 3. He’s even through five holes at Desert Mountain but at 14 under and holding a three-shot lead over playing partner Tom Lehman.
Lehman is 2 under and sitting well in his chase to overtake Bernhard Langer for the Schwab Cup title. The defending champion in the year-long race needs at least a top 5 to be in the conversation and is doing his part. If he doesn’t win he needs help from Langer, and Langer is stuck at even through eight holes and 10th on the leaderboard. That combination would hand the Schwab Cup to Lehman.
Fred Couples is in third at 10 under.