Welcome to Golfweek.com’s Fantasy Aces, your weekly source for winning fantasy golf leagues. Such information is less likely to help you figure out when the Democratic primary season will end, but that’s hopefully not the reason you’re here.
The Fantasy Aces appear every Wednesday on Golfweek.com.
• • •
Site: Fort Worth, Texas.
Course: Colonial Country Club (7,054 yards, par 70).
Purse: $6.1 million. Winner's share: $1,098,000.
FedExCup points: 25,000. Winner's share: 4,500.
Last year: South Africa's Rory Sabbatini beat Jim Furyk and Bernhard Langer with a 15-foot birdie putt on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff.
Hoggard’s best bet: Jim FurykFor all the talk that Colonial is a ballstriker’s ball park, history suggests it’s putting that prevails at Hogan’s Alley. Just one of the last three Colonial winners has ranked outside the top 10 in putting for the week and Rory Sabbatini edged Furyk in 2007 thanks to a Saturday back nine that featured eight one-putts and a chip in. Point is, Furyk can putt (he ranks 41st on Tour in putting average) and has finished outside the top 30 at Colonial just twice since 1997.
Ace up Hoggard’s sleeve: Kenny Perry.Come on, Charlie Brown didn’t have luck this bad. Besides, despite his wayward karma at TPCs Sugarloaf/Sawgrass Perry is playing better than anyone else not named Tiger Woods. He hasn’t missed a cut since January, has posted seven of his last eight rounds at or under par and is at ease at Colonial – where he has two victories and four top 10s – as he is at Kenny Perry’s Country Creek Golf Course in Franklin, Ky.
Soderstrom’s best bet: Anthony Kim.While the popular choices in most leagues this week will be Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk and Kenny Perry, and considering I’m a horses for courses kind of guy, I’m going with Kim, who opened with a 63 last year at Colonial, and would have finished a lot higher than t-18 if not that for that third-round 73. My thinking here would have been momentum, considering Kim’s convincing victory at the Wachovia Championship. But then he goes and closes out the Players Championship with 79-76 and takes a week off. So my thinking now is refreshed. Kim has done the celebrating, and will probably want to get back to business.
Ace up Soderstrom’s sleeve: Scott Verplank.For some reason, I’ve made a probably stupid habit of picking Texas natives at Texas tournaments. But I’ll still be surpsied if ‘Planker doesn’t get you a top 20, at least. He finished T-7 last year, also thanks to a 63 in the third round, and I still don’t think he’s missed a fairway this year. So that helps.
Also keep an eye out for USC sophomore Jamie Lovemark, who is playing on a sponsor exemption a week before the NCAA Championship at Purdue. He is still yet to miss a cut on the PGA Tour.
Sean Martin
Martin’s best bet: Kenny Perry.Perry’s been getting plenty of time on TV as he makes a spirited push to make this year’s Ryder Cup. He’s made 12 consecutive cuts, and contended at The Players and last week’s AT&T Classic, where he lost a playoff to Ryuji Imada.
Even better, Perry loves Colonial, having won in 2003 and 2005.
Ace up Martin’s sleeve: Rod Pampling.The Aussie isn’t having his best year, but Colonial could be the place he gets back on track. The course puts a premium on ballstriking, not length, which suits Pampling perfectly. It shows in his results; Pampling has finished T-6, third and T-12 the past three years. Pampling also posted a T-8 a couple weeks ago at Wachovia.
Posted: 5/21/2008
print
email
discuss
