The second tournament of the Fed Ex Cup playoffs will once again be held on the TPC Boston course. The first tournament in the Fed Ex Cup playoffs offered up plenty of excitement and drama and the same is to be expected here. I am looking for current form and past form in this event. Twenty five players fell last week; these included some big names such as David Duval, European Ryder Cup vice-captain Sergio Garcia and American Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin. This week we are set to lose more big names with Vijay Singh, Kenny Perry, Boo Weekley and Mr 59, Paul Goydos all outside the cut line. I find it hard to imagine that any of these players will have a big week this week so I think that we will be saying goodbye to most of them. With all that being said, I have chosen three players who I think can win this week and I am particularly confident about my top tip.
Steve Stricker each way @ 11/1
He is the man for the playoffs. He is the only player to have played in all the Fed Ex Cup playoffs during the years and has recorded eight top tens in this time. As well as this, but TPC Boston may be his favourite course in the playoffs and here’s why. His record since 2006 has gone: 2006 T7th, 2007 T9th, 2008 T13th, 2009 1st. Now that shows that he can play this course and that he likes it. As well as all this, he recorded a tied third place last week in The Barclays which shows that he’s in good form. Steve has won nine times on the PGA Tour and there is nothing stopping him from making that number rise to double figures this week. This week, Stricker’s the man.
Dustin Johnson each way @ 18/1
Is it possible to give three tips without mentioning this man? I don’t think so. Come Sunday I would really expect this man to be in the shake up. Besides Matt Kuchar, I think that Dustin Johnson is the best in form player in the world at the moment. At some point in the coming weeks Johnson is going to have to capitalise on his great play and win a tournament. His problem is that when he gets into a final round in contention, his putting stroke seems to lose all rhythm and he becomes very tentative with his long putts. If he can sort this out and be a little more aggressive with the long putts, he will be in with a great chance this week. Also, he has form in the event coming tied 4th last year. Johnson’s odds are slack but he’s worth it.
Jason Day each way @ 40/1
I had a really difficult time picking a third pick. My final tip was between Jason Day and Ryan Palmer and, after much deliberation, I chose the young Australian. Day has had a successful season this year, recording one win and three further top tens. Luckily for him, two of these top tens have come in the last three weeks in two big competitions, the PGA Championship and the Barclays. He played in this event last year and finished in a tie for nineteenth. This isn’t overly impressive but at least it has given Day some experience of the course and what the atmosphere will be like. With the young Australian in good form, I think he has a good chance of going lose this week. 40/1 is good odds for Day.
Dustin Johnson is the man bang on form and looks like contending every week at present. His biggest issue remains his putting. Without improvement, he will find it difficult to close out tournaments, similar to Northern Irishman, Rory McIlroy. However, these guys are professionals for nothing and while putting might not be his string suit, Johnson is due a tournament where he at least holes his fair share of putts. If that is this week, don’t be surprised to see up near the top. Following on from the disappointment of the USPGA, I , like many of the golfing public would only be too happy to watch him take home the winners trophy this week.
An incredible round of 59 from Paul Goydos sees him lead the John Deere Classic. Turning in -4, Goydos birdied 8 of his next 9 holes in an exhibition of golf. I remember watching the last time 59 was done in a counting event by David Duval, way back in 1999 I think, so to see it happen again 11 years on is pretty cool. One question I have though is does it actually go down in the record books? The reason I ask is that “lift, clean and place” was in use so I’m not sure if it goes down as a course record even!!!
Regardless, it was a cracking round of golf and you would think having shot 59, you could afford the luxury of a 4 or 5 shot lead but defending champ Steve Stricker had other ideas. His round of 60 has him hot on the heels of Goydos and undoubtedly the favorite going into the final 3 days.
What an incredible performance overall from Fred Couple’s American team but in particular, that man Tiger Woods. 5pts from 5pts in what was near flawless golf, along of course with Steve Stricker. Phil Mickelson was also inspiring which has me a little worried ahead of next years Ryder Cup. However, on home soil, I am still confident our European lads will be more than capable.
Greg Normans controversial, and in my view plain stupid, decision to select Adam Scott backfired badly as the Australian failed to produce any form or much points. Normans decision in my view was a patriotic one that he should not have made. I was expecting Rory Sabbatini to get the nod ahead of the rest, especially Adam Scott, whose form has been appalling.
I did feel sorry for Scott though. Although I am sure he was desperate to play, he should not have been put in that situation. It will be interesting to see if Norman now remains at the helm after making such a critical error in judgment. I hope Colin Montgomerie is taking note!!
A chip-in birdie on No. 17 helped Steve Stricker get into a three-man playoff. Then, lucky to be playing a second extra hole, he put his approach just 3 feet from the cup and knocked it right in to win the Crowne Plaza Invitational. The victory moved him to second in the FedExCup standings. Tim Clark wasted a two-shot lead with five holes left. He left short a 9-foot putt that would’ve won it on the final hole, then pulled a 7-footer that would’ve ended the playoff on the first hole. The final kick in the gut came when his approach on the second extra hole hit the pin and rolled more than 20 feet from the cup. The third man in the playoff, Steve Marino, narrowly missed a long birdie putt on the first extra hole, then took himself out of contention with a wild tee shot on the second extra hole. Elsewhere, Jason Day finished a shot further back on -16 while Paul Casey continued his superb season finishing on -15. Woody Austin and Vijay Singh tied for 6th with Ian Poulter a further 2 shots back on -12.
Christian Cevaer of France won the European Open by a stroke Sunday, more than five years after his only previous victory. Cevaer, ranked 449th in the world at the beginning of the week, made only one birdie in a round of 74 after three bogeys on the front nine, but was solid again on the tough closing stretch of the 7,257-yard London Golf Club course. He birdied the 15th and parred the other four holes of the treacherous last five, getting on the final green with a rescue club before two-putting from the fringe for his victory. His four round total was 281, good for his first win since the 2004 Spanish Open. Steve Webster and Gary Orr with rounds of 71, shared second place with Alvaro Quiros (72). Stephen Dodd who drove home to Wales on Friday thinking he had missed the cut, carded a 68 and tied for fifth with Chris Wood (73) and Jeev Milka Singh (76). Former British Open champion Ben Curtis also shot 68 and finished in a four-way tie for eighth, with Rory McIlroy alone in 12th spot after a 75.
Mark McNulty, playing under the Irish flag these days, won the Principal Charity Classic for his seventh Champions Tour victory, beating Fred Funk with a 30ft left-to-right birdie putt to end a thrilling four-hole playoff. The 55-year-old McNulty closed with a 5-under 66 to match Funk (66) and second-round leader Nick Price (68) at 10-under 203 on the Glen Oaks Country Club course. McNulty and Funk birdied the second extra hole to eliminate Price. It was the Champions Tour’s longest playoff since Bernhard Langer beat Jay Hass in seven holes in the 2008 Toshiba Classic. Mark Weibe (69) finished fourth at 8 under, and David Eger 68) was fifth at 7 under. John Cook (64) topped a six-player group at 6 under.
Steve Stricker won the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial this week in a play-off to mark the end of a nail-biting week. I will be posting the weekly summary later but for the mean time, here as always, is the Monday backspin addition from the PGA Tour.
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