Last week Ernie Els walked off the sod the winner at the Honda Classic, but I don't think he'll go back-to-back at the PODS Championship this weekend. The TOUR Insider's Dave Shedloski over at PGATour.com points out that if you are looking for Els to win you should keep in mind that he has won in back-to-back only twice before on the PGA Tour, the last time in '03.
Shedloski also writes about the importance in driving, but also stresses the need for a steady putter in order to tame the par-71 Copperhead Course. Defending champion Marc Cacavecchia finished tied for fourth last weekend and will be a heavy favorite in a field that lack's some of the leaders on the FedExCup Points list.
Despite a field without Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, K.J. Choi or Vijay Singh -- there are still plenty of recognizable names to fill your fantasy rosters. Here are my P.T.C. and P.T.A. for the P.O.D.S. Championship.
Players to Consider:
1. Justin Rose -- It could be smart taking Ernie Els as a No. 1 favorite by the way he took control and showed he's back last weekend. I'm not going with Els, I'm going to say Justin Rose pulls an Els of his own this weekend and breaks out at the Copperhead Course. I feel like Justin's 67 in Sunday's round at the Honda Classic is a sign that a Rose is about to bloom.
2. Scott Verplank -- In his first three events this year, Verplank finished T18th, T22nd, T5th -- I expect another top finish at the PODS. On a course that demands distance, but accuracy -- Verplank is the best. In 14 rounds, Verplank's 84.86% is the best Driving Accuracy Percentage on tour.
3. Stuart Appleby -- Want to eat a top 10 fruit? Pick from the Appleby tree. So far this season, Appleby is a perfect 4/4 in finishing in the top 10 but hasn't been able to get a win. What could help Appleby get over the hump this weekend is his driver, he's hitting 14th best on Tour with 296.0 yards per drive.
4. Jeff Quinney -- Quinney will tee it up for the first time since coming up just short of winning at the Northern Trust Open in mid-February. Quinney has played well all season (14th on the FedExCup list) averaging a top 25 finish each time out. In addition, Quinney ranks third on tour in Putting average.
5. Charlie Wi -- Wi hasn't missed a cut in five events, but his best finish is a T13th that came near the end of January at the FBR Open. My hunch is that Wi is ready to bounce back from his T69th finish last weekend to score well enough in four straight rounds to break into the top 10 for his first time this year.
Players to Avoid:
1. Daniel Chopra -- Since opening the season winning the Mercedes-Benz Championship, Chopra hasn't been all too great -- missing the cut in three events. Maybe a weekend off will help get Chopra back on track, but maybe it caused more rust.
2. David Toms -- Even though Toms has been steady with his putter, I still don't trust his condition (WD at the WGC from back pain). And before missing the cut at the Honda Classic, Toms posted a 77, 75.
3. Kevin Na -- Kevin Na has been not so hot since his T4th at the FBR Open. Last weekend Na missed the cut and recorded a T55th at the Northern Trust right after finishing T43rd at the Pebble Beach. Five events finishing out of the top 40 outweigh the two top five finishes, I'm avoiding Na.
4. Geoff Ogilvy -- What's funny is Ogilvy's T33rd at the WGC match-play is his best finish of the season. Maybe Ogilvy can play past Friday for the first time this year at the PODS, but either way, I'm avoiding.
5. Lee Janzen -- Remember back in '95 when Janzen had three PGA tour victories and 14 top 25 finishes? Janzen might be playing 13 years later, but he's past his prime and won't be flirting with any top 25 finish this season.
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