PGA Barometer: Johnson loves Sugarloaf

by John McNamara, RotoWire

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Updated: May 14, 2008, 5:32 PM EST Comment

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The PGA Tour heads to Duluth, Georgia, this week to play the AT&T Classic.

Established in 1967, this Atlanta-based tournament was traditionally the tune up for the Masters, but for two years now it's been held the week following The Players Championship.

TPC at Sugarloaf is pretty straightforward golf course with a lot of bunkers that come into play off the tee and around the greens. The greens will get firm, requiring golfers to get the right yardage to find the right areas of the green to prevent balls from rolling off and finding trouble. The winner will be in the 15-under par range, which will require a player's flat stick to get hot to take advantage of the four par fives.

Zach Johnson won last year's event for the second time, besting Georgia All-American Ryuji Imada in a playoff. Neither of these players comes into the event playing really well, but we all know a player's preference for a course can lead to another strong finish. Johnson might want to move to Georgia since his three Tour victories have come in the state.

Stewart Cink's been on fire lately, carding four consecutive top 25s with three top 10s. Cink has a house on this course, but has consecutive 24th-place finishes and a 64th in the last three years. He'll be the top pick to win this week, but the last three finishes at this event are somewhat alarming for a perennial favorite at this event. That said, it's a must to have him in your lineup, if he's available.

I've listed some golfers in this extremely weak field who are playing nicely and some who seem to be struggling lately.

Upgrades

Retief Goosen: Goosen always seems to play well at this event, and it's by no accident he's in the field this week. He won the event in 2002 and finished third in 2003, 22nd in 2005 and fourth in 2006. He wasn't in the field last year and has made five straight cuts this year. He hasn't necessarily lit up the leaderboard during his five-cut stretch, but his solid play leads me to believe he has found his game.

Briny Baird: Baird's quietly been outstanding the last six weeks. During that run of made cuts, he has five top-20 finishes with two in the top five. He has consecutive top-10 finishes in this event as well. He's still considered a sleeper pick, though.

Kevin Stadler: Stadler's struggled for most of 2008, but has played well the last two weeks. He's consecutive top-25 finishes in very tough fields at the Wachovia and The Players Championship. He should be able to ride his recent hot streak and put together another solid outing this week.

Steve Flesch: Flesch righted the ship and recorded four straight top-30 finishes before missing the cut last week at The Players Championship. This could be a nice week to get him in the lineup.

Kenny Perry: Even though Perry didn't play well on the back nine at The Players Championship, he's made 11 straight cuts. He hasn't finished higher than 15th during that stretch, but he's making cuts and is a solid pick this week to continue that streak.

David Toms: I include him this week, because he's made four straight cuts and his back seems to be responding to treatment. Always a risk to have him in your lineup, but his recent play is a nice array of sunshine for owners.

Downgrades

Jason Day: I'm not quite sure which Day we'll see this week, but when he makes the cut, we get a glimpse of his talent. The two cuts he's made in the last seven weeks have been top 10s, but the other five missed cuts leave us confused. This could be a good week for him, or it could be another missed weekend.

Kenneth Ferrie: Ferrie's struggled the last seven weeks with only three cuts made. His best finish during this stretch is a tie for 39th. Take a flyer on someone else if the opportunity presents itself.

Alex Cejka: Cejka was hot earlier in the year, but has missed four straight cuts.

Joe Ogilvy: Ogilvy has two ties for 73rd and a missed cut over the last three weeks. Little Joe shines in the weaker-field events, but I'd be surprised to see a strong showing for four rounds this week.

Rich Beem: Beem's missed three of four cuts with a tie for 70th as his only made cut in four weeks. He can't seem to get into a good groove thus far in 2008.

Article first appeared 5/13/08

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