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Fantasy Fix
Spencer Levin had a rough finish in Phoenix, but we see him bouncing back this week.
Welcome to another edition of Fantasy Fix, where we wonder who is feeling worse this week: Spencer Levin or Wes Welker? Maybe it's a good thing for the up-and-coming golfer that he doesn't have a cell phone or even an email address. He could disappear into his own little hole Sunday evening and watch the big game by himself. We just hope he isn't a Patriots fan as well. But onto this week. Will we see another final-round collapse? Can Levin find quick redemption like Kyle Stanley did? How long will David Feherty go without cutting his hair? Let's dive in.
ON TAP
The PGA Tour's West Coast Swing continues with the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. This tournament has it all from incredible scenery to A-list celebrities. Oh, and guys like Kenny G.
Random tournament fact: Tom Gillis finished solo third here. Last year. Yeah, I forgot about that too...
THE DEFENDER
D.A. Points. Last year, Points and celeb teammate Bill Murray had quite the week, winning the pro-am portion of the event thanks in large part to Points finishing first in the field of tour pros. Points is off to a terrific start in 2012, but it's safe to say most of this week's coverage of him will focus on last year's triumph with Carl Spackler. It's a good thing that "Caddyshack" references never get old.
STUD OF THE WEEK
Tiger Woods. No, he hasn't won a PGA Tour event since 2009. And no, he's not the biggest fan of Pebble Beach's greens. So why do we like him? Well, he's finished in the top three in three-straight worldwide events. Oh yeah, once upon a time he did win a little tournament here by 15 shots...
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Starters: Nick Watney, Tiger Woods, Dustin Johnson and Harris English
Bench: Rory Sabbatini, Bryce Molder, D.A. Points, Sang-Moon Bae
GUEST PICK OF THE WEEK
This week's pick comes from Jim Gleitman via Twitter (@JGleitman) in Austin, Texas: "Tiger hasn't stormed back on the scene just yet, but with a watered down field and Vegas setting him as a clear favorite by a significant margin, it seems silly to go with anyone else."
Well put, sir. Care to make a guest pick? Be bold and email me at Alex.Myers@GolfDigest.com or tweet at me (@AlexMyers3
) for a chance to appear in next week's column. Or if you just feel like making fun of my picks or discussing how much money I made you with my fantastic Super Bowl prediction.
WHAT WILL PHIL DO NEXT?
Phil Mickelson. Who knows? He bounced back last week a bit after a poor season debut, but he's still a question mark from week to week. What's certain is he's a three-time winner with a total of seven top 10s in 16 tries here and he also finished T-4 at 2010 U.S. Open. Those numbers count for something.
DEJA VU ALL OVER AGAIN?
Spencer Levin. Last week's most-disappointed golfer has been hot -- and cold -- here. But of late, he finished T-4 last year and has posted just one round higher than 71 in 11 career rounds in this event as a pro. Could we possibly see back-to-back incredible bouncebacks? We're not ruling it out.
KNOCKOUT PICK OF THE WEEK
Bryce Molder. Since we want to save Tiger for a bigger event, we're going with Mr. Molder. After missing the cut in his first four attempts at this event, he's placed in the top 10 each of the past two years. And those results would have been much better if not for averaging a 75 in those final rounds.
WILDCARD WATCH
Dustin Johnson. The 2009 and 2010 champion of this event (also the 54-hole U.S. Open leader here in 2010), has gotten off to good starts in each of his last two events, before slowing down over the weekend. Could this have something to do with his recovery from off-season knee surgery? Yes. Would we still put him in our lineup this week? Yes.
Rory Sabbatini. Talk about feast or famine, Sabbatini has one of the oddest tournament histories you'll ever come across at this event. He's teed it up at Pebble 10 times, finishing in the top 15 (including a solo second in 2006) five times, and not making it to the weekend the other half of the time.
SURPRISING DUDS OF THE WEEK
Brandt Snedeker. For a guy coming off hip surgery, he's certainly playing a lot of golf. Surprisingly, he's never finished in the top 20 in this event (he did finish T-8 at the 2010 U.S. Open) and has missed the cut two of the past three years. (UPDATE: Snedeker withdrew from the tournament on Wednesday. We told you it seemed like he was playing too much golf too soon...)
Hunter Mahan. After a strong performance at Torrey Pines, Mahan flew across the globe to play the Qatar Masters and missed the cut. He's back in California again this week, but despite a pretty good track record here, it's tough to endorse a guy who is probably running on fumes at this point.
FREE FANTASY FOOTBALL ADVICE
Yes, you caught me. I'm only talking football because I just wanted to mention that Eli The Great and the Giants (Woo!) won one more time. But seriously, did you see some of the catches Hakeem Nicks made? I have him slotted as the No. 2 fantasy wide receiver behind Calvin Johnson heading into next season. You know, when the Giants take the field again as defending Super Bowl champs. (Side note: Despite mocking from my boss, I wore a Giants jersey to work the day after they won, but it's OK since I'm not 30 yet. At least, that's what I keep telling myself...)
SLEEPER OF THE WEEK
Harris English. One of my "top 10 sleepers to watch in 2012
" just won, so why can't another one do it this week? The rookie has made his first four cuts and is coming off a T-15 in Phoenix. Plus, even among this Hollywood-infused field, he just might have the best movie-star name...
*-- Alex Myers is a contributing editor for GolfDigest.com. Feel free to email him
and please follow him
since he has self-esteem issues.*
And join the discussion on GolfWRX.com.