BlogPGA Preview and Picks

PGA Championship

July 28th – July 31st, 2016

Baltusrol G.C.

Springfield, N.J.

Par: 70 / Yardage: 7,428

Purse: $10 million

with $1,800,000 to the winner

Defending Champion:
Jason Day

by Sal Johnson

Founder, Chief Data Officer, GOLFstats

E-mail me at:
sal@golfstats.com

This week’s field includes:

As of this minute when I write this on Monday morning, the field includes 113 of the top 115 in the latest Official World Rankings.  Those not playing are #69 Jaco Van Zyl, who feels he can get ready for the Olympics at home instead of playing in this event and #94 Ian Poulter who is hurt.

This year they were able to get 98 of the top-100, last year they could only get 96 of the top-100

The field includes all 25 of the top 25 on the FedEx point standings for 2016 are in the field.

The field includes 25 players in the top 25 on this year’s PGA Tour money list.

The field includes 32 players that have won 37 of the 37 events on the PGA Tour this year: Emiliano Grillo (Frys.Com); Smylie Kaufman (Shriners Hospitals); Justin Thomas (CIMB Classic); Russell Knox (WGC-HSBC Champions); Peter Malnati (Sanderson Farms); Graeme McDowell (OHL Classic at Mayakoba); Kevin Kisner (McGladrey Classic); Jordan Spieth (Hyundai T of C, Dean & DeLuca); Fabian Gomez (Sony Open from Hawaii); Jason Dufner (Humana Challenge); Brandt Snedeker (Farmers Insurance); Hideki Matsuyama (WM Phoenix); Vaughn Taylor (AT&T Pebble Beach); Bubba Watson (Northern Trust); Adam Scott (Honda & WGC-Cadillac); Brian Stuard (Zurich); Charl Schwartzel (Valspar Championship); Jason Day (Palmer, WGC-Dell Match Play & Players); Tony Finau (Puerto Rico); Jim Herman (Shell Houston); Danny Willett (Masters); Branden Grace (RBC Heritage); Charley Hoffman (Valero Texas); James Hahn (Wells Fargo) Sergio Garcia (Byron Nelson); William McGirt (Memorial), Dustin Johnson (U.S. Open & WGC Bridgestone); Daniel Berger (FedEx St. Jude); Billy Hurley III (Quick Loans National); Greg Chalmers (Barracuda), Henrik Stenson (British Open) and Jhonattan Vegas (RBC Candian Open)

The field includes 13 past champions: Jason Day (2015), Rory McIlroy (2014 & ’12), Jason Dufner (2013), Keegan Bradley (2011), Martin Kaymer (2010), Y.E. Yang (2009), Padraig Harrington (2008), Phil Mickelson (2005), Vijay Singh (2004 & 1998), Shaun Micheel (2003), Rick Beem (2002), David Toms (2001) and John Daly (1991).

A perfect way for fantasy golfers to check on the past performance of all the players in the PGA Championship field is our performance chart listed by average finish.  Another way to check who is the best is through a special formula worked out in Golfstats that gives us the best average performances at the PGA Championship field in the last five years or check out our sortable 8-year glance at the PGA Championship field.

A good cheat sheet is this list of odds from the top bookmakers in England.

Another cheat sheet is this list of odds from the top bookmaker in Las Vegas.

**NOTE**

One thing to look for is our new GOLFstats IQ.  For those that play in fantasy golf it’s a perfect way to help you pick those players in Draft Kings and Victiv games.  You can customize the list of those in the tournaments, to look back a couple or many years of tournament stats and you can go back a couple or ten weeks prior to the tournament.  On top of that, all the stats are fully sortable to help you pick your six players, we even give you their value for the week to help you chose.

That’s GOLFstats IQ, give it a try and tell us what you think of it

24/7 GOLF is no more.  We have retired the name and the app for a new and better app for golf.  So check out

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So if you own a Iphone or a Ipad we have developed a perfect app called GOLF IQ.

 

Time to look at our who’s hot and who isn’t:

Who’s Hot in the field for the PGA Championship

Player Memorial Tournament Quick Loans National FedEx St. Jude Classic RBC Canadian Open Barracuda Championship Barbasol Championship U.S. Open British Open Lyoness Open BMW International Open French Open Aberdeen Asset Scottish Open WGC – Bridgestone Invitational
Dustin Johnson
(551.33 pts)
3
(30)
DNP 5
(23.33)
T2
(100)
DNP DNP Win
(176)
T9
(90)
DNP DNP DNP DNP Win
(132)
Henrik Stenson
(382.33 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP WD
(-6.67)
Win
(264)
DNP Win
(88)
DNP T13
(37)
DNP
Phil Mickelson
(290 pts)
T20
(10)
DNP T2
(33.33)
DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-13.33)
2
(200)
DNP DNP DNP T13
(37)
T27
(23)
Sergio Garcia
(280 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T5
(93.33)
T5
(140)
DNP T5
(46.67)
DNP DNP DNP
Jason Day
(256.33 pts)
T27
(7.67)
DNP DNP T14
(36)
DNP DNP T8
(66.67)
T22
(56)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T3
(90)
Tyrrell Hatton
(244.67 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T5
(140)
DNP CUT
(-6.67)
T33
(11.33)
2
(100)
DNP
Andy Sullivan
(238 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T23
(36)
T12
(76)
DNP T21
(19.33)
T5
(46.67)
T6
(60)
DNP
Steve Stricker
(222.33 pts)
DNP DNP T2
(33.33)
DNP DNP DNP DNP 4
(160)
DNP DNP DNP T21
(29)
DNP
Scott Piercy
(213.33 pts)
T69
(0)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T2
(133.33)
CUT
(-20)
DNP DNP DNP DNP 2
(100)
Rory McIlroy
(213.33 pts)
T4
(26.67)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-13.33)
T5
(140)
DNP DNP 3
(60)
DNP DNP
Jhonattan Vegas
(212.67 pts)
CUT
(-3.33)
T44
(4)
DNP Win
(132)
T53
(0)
T4
(80)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
J.B. Holmes
(206.33 pts)
T4
(26.67)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-13.33)
3
(180)
DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-10)
T27
(23)
Jim Furyk
(197.67 pts)
T52
(0)
T21
(19.33)
DNP 13
(37)
DNP DNP T2
(133.33)
T59
(0)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T42
(8)
Gary Woodland
(185.33 pts)
T4
(26.67)
T21
(19.33)
CUT
(-3.33)
DNP 2
(66.67)
DNP DNP T12
(76)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
Zach Johnson
(182.67 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T8
(66.67)
T12
(76)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T10
(40)
Matt Kuchar
(175 pts)
T4
(26.67)
DNP DNP T9
(45)
DNP DNP T46
(5.33)
T46
(8)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T3
(90)
Aaron Baddeley
(172.67 pts)
CUT
(-3.33)
T12
(25.33)
CUT
(-3.33)
DNP T17
(22)
Win
(132)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
Charl Schwartzel
(168 pts)
T11
(13)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T23
(36)
T18
(64)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T7
(55)
Alex Noren
(160 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-13.33)
T46
(8)
DNP DNP 8
(33.33)
Win
(132)
DNP
Bill Haas
(158.67 pts)
CUT
(-3.33)
T3
(60)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T51
(0)
T9
(90)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T38
(12)
Branden Grace
(154.33 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T5
(93.33)
T72
(0)
DNP DNP DNP T29
(21)
T10
(40)
Kevin Na
(152.33 pts)
T74
(0)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP 7
(73.33)
T22
(56)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T27
(23)
Jordan Spieth
(147.33 pts)
T57
(0)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T37
(17.33)
T30
(40)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T3
(90)
Thongchai Jaidee
(142 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T22
(56)
DNP T38
(8)
Win
(88)
CUT
(-10)
DNP
Brandt Snedeker
(141.67 pts)
DNP DNP DNP T5
(70)
DNP DNP CUT
(-13.33)
T22
(56)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T21
(29)

How Player Rankings are Computed

Who’s Not Hot in the field for the PGA Championship

Player Memorial Tournament Quick Loans National FedEx St. Jude Classic RBC Canadian Open Barracuda Championship Barbasol Championship U.S. Open British Open Lyoness Open BMW International Open French Open Aberdeen Asset Scottish Open WGC – Bridgestone Invitational
Matthew Fitzpatrick
(-46.67 pts)
DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-10)
DNP DNP T54
(0)
CUT
(-20)
DNP DNP CUT
(-6.67)
CUT
(-10)
DNP
Kristoffer Broberg
(-36.67 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-20)
CUT
(-3.33)
CUT
(-6.67)
CUT
(-6.67)
DNP DNP
Rikard Karlberg
(-33.33 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-20)
DNP CUT
(-6.67)
CUT
(-6.67)
DNP DNP
Peter Malnati
(-33.33 pts)
CUT
(-3.33)
CUT
(-6.67)
CUT
(-3.33)
CUT
(-10)
DNP CUT
(-10)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
Jamie Lovemark
(-30 pts)
T52
(0)
T62
(0)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-20)
DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-10)
DNP
Hideki Matsuyama
(-28.67 pts)
CUT
(-3.33)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-13.33)
CUT
(-20)
DNP DNP DNP DNP T42
(8)
Soomin Lee
(-23.33 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP T79
(0)
DNP CUT
(-6.67)
CUT
(-6.67)
CUT
(-10)
DNP
Jamie Donaldson
(-22 pts)
DNP DNP T26
(8)
DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-13.33)
T72
(0)
DNP DNP CUT
(-6.67)
CUT
(-10)
DNP
John Daly
(-20 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-20)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
Victor Dubuisson
(-20 pts)
DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT
(-20)
DNP DNP 66
(0)
DNP DNP

How Player Rankings are Computed

The Buzz:

Unfortunately Olympic news may take over the early part of the week, as it becomes obvious that with the Olympics in August, you just can’t play a British Open, WGC-Bridgestone, PGA Championship, Four FedEx Cup playoffs, Ryder Cup and the Olympics in this short time period.  If the Olympics were in October everything would be ok, but something has to give and as we see by the players that won’t play in the Olympics, those other events are important for them.

The PGA returns to Baltusrol the site of the 2005 PGA and Phil Mickelson winning his first major championship.  The course is great, because of it’s design it won’t be overpowered as some other courses are and we will see some good golf.  The player that hits it straight and far will be the winner this week.

Tournament information:

This is the 98th PGA Championship. The plans for the PGA Championship were created on January 16, 1916 at a meeting of a group of PGA Tour professionals including Walter Hagen. Their vision was to create a national championship that would rival the U.S. Open in terms of importance. Just months later, their vision came to reality as the first PGA Championship Match Play event was played at Siwanoy Country Club in Bronxville, NY that year. Englishman Jim Barnes took home the inaugural crown.

After the inaugural tournament, the event took a two-year break from 1917 to 1918 because of World War I. The break in action didn’t phase Jim Barnes, as he went on to win the PGA Championship in its return to the Tour in 1919. Since the two-year hiatus, The PGA Championship has only seen one other break, that being in 1943 due to World War II. The biggest change in the event’s history occurred in 1958, when the format of the event was changed from Match Play to 72-hole stroke play.

The famed Wanamaker trophy, awarded to the winner of the PGA Championship, can trace its routes back to the beginning of golf equipment. In the early part of the 20th Century, A.G. Spalding & Bros. was the predominant maker of golf equipment; however, Rodman Wanamaker sought to create a company that would rival Spalding in the golf industry. Though his plan ultimately failed, his dream will always me remembered as he was the one that first sponsored the PGA Championship and the trophy, which today bears his name.

Course information:

  • Baltusrol Golf Club (Lower Course)
  • Springfield, New Jersey
  • 7,428 yards     Par 34-36–70

The club is named for a farmer, Baltus Roll, who was the victim of one of the most celebrated crimes of the 1800s. On Washington’s Birthday in 1831, while his wife watched in horror, Roll was dragged from his house and beaten to death by thieves who believed cash was hidden in his house.

In 1895 Louis Keller, the man who founded the New York Social Register, bought the land and, even though he didn’t play golf, started the golf club. With the help of George Hunter, they laid out a nine-hole course; in 1898, as the membership increased rapidly, Keller’s original nine-hole course was expanded to 18 holes.

In 1901 Baltusrol hosted the U.S. Women’s Amateur and, two years later, its first U.S. Open. In 1904 the Amateur was played at Baltusrol and was won by H. Chandler Egan.

The clubhouse was destroyed by a fire in 1909, but an amusing golf anecdote resulted from the tragedy. One of the members, an errant husband, returned to his New York home the morning after the fire. When his wife asked him where he had been he told her that he had spent the night at Baltusrol. She then handed him the newspaper reporting the destruction of the clubhouse the night before.

After a new clubhouse was built, the 1911 Women’s Amateur and the 1915 U.S. Open returned to Baltusrol. The next year, Keller decided that the club needed two 18-hole courses (rumor has it that Tillinghast had a lot to do with the decision) and offered to sell them additional land; the club made the purchase. Baltusrol planned to have another 18 hole course built by A.W. Tillinghast. He told the membership that the original course was becoming obsolete and suggested building two new courses. The membership approved his plan.

Six years later, in 1922, Tillinghast completed the two new courses. Despite this prolonged period, play was never interrupted because Tillinghast built the new courses from bits of the original 18 holes.

Four years after it opened, the 1926 U.S. Amateur was played on the Lower Course. George Von Elm beat Bobby Jones 2 and 1. Ten years later the Open returned and was played on the Upper Course. In 1952 Robert Trent Jones was called in to toughen up the Course for the 1954 Open. In so doing, he stirred up some of the members, who questioned the validity of a new back tee on the fourth hole. Many believed the hole was too difficult. But, when Jones played the hole for the first time, he hit his tee shot in the hole for an ace and proclaimed, “Gentlemen, I think the hole is eminently fair.”

Since then, little has changed at Baltusrol.  But when the PGA of America decided to play the 2005 championship there, they added 240 yards.  With this change five of the par 4s will be over 450 yards with the 3rd and 8th holes playing over 500 yards.  The 17th, which is the first par 5 on the course and was impossible to reach in previous Opens has been stretched to 650 yards, the longest hole in majors.  So Baltusrol will have some bite to it this year.

Let’s take a look at key stats that are important for those playing at the PGA Championship:

This is based on the most vital stats from Baltusrol, based on data from the 2005 PGA Championship and using data from all the players in the field with stats from 2016.
The lower course at Baltusrol has held many major championships including 1954, ’67,’80 and ’93 U.S. Opens and the 2005 PGA Championship. Historically the lower course has produced the lowest scores in U.S. Open history, and that’s probably why it hasn’t been back since 1993. Jack Nicklaus tied the 72 hole mark when the Open was played there in 1967 and 1980 broke that mark when he shot 272. In 1980 two of the three 63s in U.S. Open history was shot in the first round and in 1993 Lee Janzen tied the 72 hole scoring record that Nicklaus accomplished in 1980. So Baltusrol has been associated with low scoring, to the point that it hasn’t been mentioned for another U.S. Open since. By a fluke, the PGA Championship was played at Baltusrol, when Brookline decided not to hold the 2005 PGA Championship. It was shifted to Baltusrol and scores weren’t that low even though Thomas Bjorn did shot 63 in the third round. Mickelson’s 4 under par 276 winning total showed that Baltusrol did have some bite to it.
One of the reasons for the A.W. Tillinghast course being an excellent choice today is the way the greens are bunkered and the fact that from the rough, greens are impossible to hit. So it puts an importance on driving the ball into the fairways and hitting greens. Those that have played the course over this weekend report that the rough is spotty, very thick and tough to advance in areas but in some places sparse making it easy to get the ball on the green. So players that hit it long have an advantage, but the will be playing Russian Roulette if they miss the fairway. Scoring opportunities are rare as only two par 4s are under 425 yards, three of the four par 3s are over 209 yards and the two par 5s are the 17th and 18th holes so players have to hold on for dear life to get those “birdie opportunities.” So a tip, look for those high up in Strokes Gained Tee-to-Green to do well
In 2005 the course played to a 72,45 average when it staged the PGA Championship, making it the 3rd hardest course on the PGA Tour that year. Another stat from 2005 the field only averaged making 2.48 birdies per round as only one course was worst, Pinehurst for the U.S. Open. So for the players this week it will be a contest on who will make the most pars and avoid any high scores.
Heat and humidity will take its toll as each day of the championship it will be in the high 80s/low 90s with high humidity and chances of afternoon thunderstorms.

So will every phase of the game be examined at Baltusrol? From tee to green yes, it will be a tough challenge. Hitting the greens will also be important, and the greens will be fast and have medium roll to them, so good putters will have an advantage. Just like any other Tillinghast course, it will be a total grind from the 1st tee to the 18th green. Yes the second hole is only 377 yards and the 8th hole is 380 yards, but even these holes are a challenge if you miss the fairway. On top of keeping it out of the rough, there are at best guess around 130 bunkers in fairways and around the greens. You better be good from sand because they will be hard to avoid over 72 holes.

So in looking at our four categories, our first is Strokes Gained Tee-to Green. This is going to be the most important item and frankly go to the top and sort through it, I would say that someone in the top-30 will win this week. Now in 2005 they didn’t have Strokes Gained Tee-to-Green, so we have to look at several stats. First in 2005 at Baltusrol, it ranked T-37th in driving distance for the year, it was 10th in driving accuracy and 6th in Greens hit. As for the winner Phil Mickelson (who could be a poor example) he was 75th in driving distance, T-37th in driving accuracy and T-8th in greens hit.
Our second stat is putting inside of 10 feet; that is important because Baltusrol has some complex greens and if a player is going to win he needs to make every putt inside 10 feet. Easy greens bring in a lot more players in the equation and there is no two ways, the only way to separate them will be to see who makes all those putts inside 10 feet. If a player can make all of them then he will do well this week. In 2005 Baltusrol ranked 7th in putting average, 3rd in one-putt average and 12th in 3-putt avoidance. Winner Mickelson was T-3rd in putting average, so it proves the point that you need to make all of those putts inside 10 feet.
Our third stat is scrambling, lot’s of players will miss greens at Baltusrol and will have to get it up and down. In 2005 the course ranked 4th in scrambling while Hamilton was 60th (yes, hard to believe that number from him). Our fourth category is birdies, in 2005 the course ranked 3rd in hardest of making birdies as only 2.48 were made by the field for the week. Mickelson was T-2nd in birdie average making 4 birdies per round.

So you can see Baltusrol will be very special, and you can eliminate about 110 of the 156 players, I see only about 46 players having any chance of winning.
Now remember the PGA Championship is an international event and open to 20 club pros that won’t qualify for stats, so this chart only has 93 players on it. That’s because the other 63 players don’t play full time on the PGA Tour and have not played enough rounds to qualify for stats.

*Strokes Gained tee-to-green: Course may have only been 25th hardest on tour, but you need to hit it long and straight along with hitting lot’s of greens. So this is important to find a player that will do this

*Putting inside 10 feet: Very easy, counts every putt from ten feet in to see who makes the most.

*Scrambling: The percent of time a player misses the green in regulation, but still makes par or better.

*Birdie Average: The number of birdies made during a round.

Players from this year’s field with stats from 2016:

Click any column title in the table header to sort columns.

For the rest of the players, hit this link:

Here are some of the secrets of what it takes to play well at the PGA Championship:

 

Key stat of the week

Hit it long and straight, avoid the 130 of bunkers and putt well making all your putts inside of ten feet.

Here are some more key stats to look to for this week:

  • Important to see who is the best total driver of the ball going into the week and then checking to see who hits the most greens on the PGA Tour.
  • Since the greens have some roll in them, it will also be tough to not only hit the green but get it close. Sharp iron play will also help along with the imagination when you do get in trouble. But as we have seen in the last decade of PGAs with winners as diverse as Jason Day, Jason Dufner Y.E. Yang, Rich Beem, Shaun Micheel, Rory McIlroy, Vijay Singh, Phil Mickelson, Padraig Harrington and Tiger Woods anything can happen. The key is to be peaking about Wedneday right before the start of the championship. That’s what happened to Dufner, Beem, Micheel, Singh, Mickelson, Harrington and Woods so look for someone that is playing well.
  • Scrambling will be at a premium, look for good chippers like Phil Mickelson or a Jim Furyk to have a great advantage here. On this year’s scrambling list, Mickelson, Aaron Baddeley, Patrick Reed and Luke Donald are in the top-ten for 2016 so these are folks to watch this week.
  • Putting is always a key in winning but this year with greens being big three putting will be easy.
  • There is also the unknown factor in which the course could yield low scores to an unknown player. In 15 of the last 24 PGAs, the winner has claimed his first major in the PGA Championship like Jason Day did last year.  So this could be a good omen for a Sergio Garcia, Patrick Reed, Matt Kuchar or Rickie Fowler. Rich Beem and Shaun Micheel weren’t household names when they won, so you never know if that will get repeated.
  • Need for patience.  This is one of those courses that par is your friend, so don’t look for low scoring.

 

Who to watch for at the PGA Championship

Best Bets:

Phil Mickelson

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
18 2 T72 T36 T19 T12 73 T7 T32 T16 Win T6

No I haven’t made a mistake, think that he is the best player to win this week. Showed us a lot of heart at Troon a ten days ago and if you look at his stats, he has what it will take to win. So pick him without worrying because he can win this week.

Jordan Spieth

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
2 CUT CUT

This course is good for him and I can see him breaking out and having a great week.

Dustin Johnson

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
7 T8 T48 CUT T5 T10

Even when he plays average like last week in Canada, it still means a top-10 finish. This course has a lot of the same kind of features that Oakmont had so I can see Dustin doing it again this week.

Best of the rest:

Sergio Garcia

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
54 T35 T61 CUT T12 CUT CUT T2 WD T3 T23 CUT

He has been sticking around in all of the majors, this could be a very good course for him. He did finish T-23rd at Baltusrol in 2005 so maybe this is a good course for him. I still hold out hope for him winning a major, most of the first time major winners comes at the PGA Championship so I can see him doing well this week.

Rory McIlroy

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
17 Win T8 Win T64 T3 T3

If he can hit it straight and putt well he could win his third PGA Championship. He likes the course and he will showed that this week.

Adam Scott

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
CUT T15 T5 T11 7 T39 CUT CUT T12 T3 T40 T9

This is a course that favors those that are shot makers, you don’t get a better shot-maker than Scott.

Jason Day

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
Win T15 T8 CUT CUT T10

He hasn’t played well since the Players Championship, have to wonder if we should just let him go this week because he seems to be missing on big item, hitting that big shot at a key time.

Patrick Reed

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
30 T58

He has the game and Baltusrol could be good for him.

Solid contenders

Henrik Stenson

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
25 T3 3 CUT T6 T4 CUT T14 T47

I really think that his British Open win will open the flood gates, but not this week. It’s always hard to win the British and win the PGA Championship in the same year, Rory did it and so did Tiger. But I just think it’s too close to the British and he needs some time to come down from his high from winning at Troon in such a great way.

Rickie Fowler

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
30 T3 T19 CUT T51 T58

Has made a mess of the big tournaments this year, he could erase that with a win this week.

Brandt Snedeker

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
12 T13 T66 CUT CUT T39 CUT T24 T18

Watch him, once he gets on a roll he usually keeps the ball rolling. I can see him winning this week, the course is right up his alley.

Jim Furyk

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
30 T5 2 T42 T39 T24 T63 T29 CUT T29 T34 CUT

Another player that could do very well this week. I think he has a win in him coming real soon, could be this week.

Matt Kuchar

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
7 T22 CUT T19 T10 CUT

Another straight hitter who could do well this week.

Long shots that could come through:

Steve Stricker

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
30 T7 T12 T7 T12 T18 CUT T39 T23 T7

Has played well at times, just worried that he can’t put together four solid rounds.

Justin Thomas

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
18

A lot of people think he can do well and possibly win a major this week.

Scott Piercy

2016 ’15 ’14 ’13 ’12 ’11 ’10 ’09 ’08 ’07 ’06 ’05 ’04
48 CUT T5 T48 T26

Showed a lot at both the U.S. Open and Bridgestone, can he keep the streak of good play together?

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