PGA Tour Stats Review: Entering the Travelers

PGA TOUR STATS: Travelers Championship

Each week we'll list the statistical breakdown of the upcoming PGA Tour event. Below are the results of recent tournaments, including last week's U.S. Open, and last year's Travelers Championship.

The results grid was reduced for easier reading, starting with the Masters. However, the AVERAGE statistics at the bottom of the grid reflect data from completed 2012 tournaments.

For results from earlier events, go here.

For last year's full-season results, go here.

2012 PGA Tour Events

EVENT	WINNER	DRIVE	DRIVE	DRIVE	DRIVE	GIR	GIR	STK GN	PUTTS	EAGLES	BIRDIE	BOGEY	DBL BOG
		%of56	RNK	DIS	DIS RNK	%of72	RNK	/PUTT	RNK
TOC	Stricker -23	66.7	11	268.3	15	81.9	13	1.25	3	1	26	3	1
Sony	Wagner -13	41.1	56	276.4	68	70.8	10	1.58	3	2	17	8	0
Humana	M. Wilson -24	74.1	18	279.3	69	80.6	73	1.04	4	2	24	4	0
Farmers	Snedeker -16 P1	58.9	13	284.8	47	70.8	33	1.03	12	0	24	8	0
Phoenix	K. Stanley -15	60.7	24	287.5	70	79.2	3	1.14	11	2	18	7	0
Pebble Bch	Mickelson -17	61.8	62	272.8	58	75.0	3	3.33	1	1	19	4	0
Nor. Trust	Haas -7 P1	55.4	50	279.8	30	50.0	58	2.25	3	1	15	10	0
Mayakoba	Huh -13 P1	73.2	8	279.3	44	81.9	1	N/A	28	1	18	5	1
Honda	McIlroy -12	60.7	37	297.6	8	66.7	10	1.57	5	0	17	5	0
WGC-Cad.	Rose -16	57.1	78	290.0	28	65.3	17	0.11	33	0	23	7	0
Transitions	Donald -13 P1	73.1	9	261.1	75	66.7	43	2.59	1	1	17	6	0
Arnold Palmer	Woods -13	64.3	29	294.6	11	79.2	1	1.45	4	0	20	5	1
Houston	Mahan -16	67.9	33	279.9	50	86.1	1	1.61	5	0	18	2	0
The Masters	Watson -10 P1	66.0	48	290.4	4	73.6	4	1.67	37	0	19	0	0
Heritage	Pettersson -14	66.1	39	279.1	31	69.4	1	1.24	10	0	22	6	1
Texas	Curtis -9	73.2	2	289.1	74	68.1	1	2.06	3	0	17	4	2
Zurich	Dufner -19 P1	64.3	31	291.0	35	72.2	25	1.53	6	1	21	4	0
Wells Fargo	Fowler -14 P1	62.5	2	305.9	13	79.2	5	0.68	30	1	22	8	1
The Players	Kuchar -13	62.5	37	280.6	47	73.6	3	2.09	2	0	22	9	0
Byron Nelson	Dufner -11	75.0	2	316.6	9	80.6	1	-0.41	56	0	19	8	0
Crowne Plaza	Z. Johnson -12	58.9	26	289.3	52	62.5	37	2.09	3	1	19	7	1
Memorial	Woods -9	76.8	14	287.3	16	73.6	1	0.04	42	0	19	6	2
St. Jude	D. Johnson -9	57.1	18	301.0	20	69.4	4	0.77	43	1	14	7	0
U.S. Open	W. Simpson	55.4	NA	NA	NA	58.3	NA	NA	NA	0	13	12	1
AVERAGE		63.9	28.1	286.2	38.0	72.3	15.1	1.40	15.0	0.6	19.3	6.2	0.5

Last Week's U.S. Open

The USGA limits players' statistics to fairways hit (driving accuracy), greens-In-regulation (GIR), eagles, birdies, pars, bogeys and double bogeys. Thus, there is not the usual winner's stats beyond the limited USGA stats, above.

Simpson's third and fourth rounds of 2-under 68s, the best two closing rounds, earned the U.S. Open trophy. Some might say he backed into the win, but his two 68s have to be recognized as earning the trophy.

For fantasy play, one has to modify selections of golfer experience from overall experience to experience in majors. Older players, 40 and up, are starting to show their age in the course set-ups of majors.

They aren't going completely away, but they are showing the wear and tear. Compare Jim Furyk, age 42, vs. Graeme McDowell, age 33, side-by-side this week. Others such as Retief Goosen, 43, Phil Mickelson, 42, David Toms, 45, Ernie Els, 42, have to compare with a raft of players in their 20s and early 30s who are making themselves noticed.

And remember the amateurs, coming up on the horizon, who did well last week.

Changes are coming.

This Week's Traveler's Championship

EVENT	WINNER	DRIVE	DRIVE	DRIVE	DRIVE	GIR	GIR		PUTTS	PUTTS		EAGLE/	BOGEY/
		%of56	RNK	DIS	DIS RNK	%of72	RNK	Per GIR	RNK	RND	RNK	BIRDIE	DBL
2011 Travelers	Jacobson -20	85.7	9	274.6	46	72.2	34	1.67	11	26.5	3	0/21	1/0
	Rollins -19	89.3	3	291.1	19	81.9	3	1.61	3	28.3	23	0/25	6/0
	Moore -19	80.4	18	283.3	36	72.9	34	1.60	2	26.8	5	1/22	5/0
	M.Thompson -18	67.9	62	274.3	49	77.8	13	1.68	14	27.8	9	0/23	3/1
	Driscoll -16	80.4	18	296.8	35	79.2	6	1.68	16	28.8	35	1/22	8/0
	A. Romero -15	67.9	62	291.8	16	69.4	46	1.62	5	26.5	3	0/23	8/0
	Streelman -15	85.7	9	274.1	50	76.4	17	1.64	6	28	16	1/22	9/0
	Molder -15	76.8	30	270.9	58	75	25	1.69	17	28	16	1/22	9/0
AVERAGE		79.3	26.4	282.1	38.6	75.6	22.3	1.65	9.3	27.6	13.8

Following the U.S. Open would seem to be a challenge - hardly, for this event has support galore from a dedicated troupe of volunteers and gung-ho fans.

In 2011, the PGA Tour used the new putting metric, Strokes Gained-Putting (SG-P), the first time at this event. Overly simplifying, using ShotLink putting data collected over several years, all phases of putting have been consolidated into one statistical number. Putts-per-GIR and total putts, the previous stand alone measures of putting have been assimilated. Those two stats are continued in tournament play along with SG-P.

Fredrik Jacobson, the 2011 winner, got his first PGA Tour win and also became the first to have his putting measured by SG-P. Another first was the 10-under 60 in the second round by 19-year-old amateur Patrick Cantlay, an amateur record in a PGA Tour event.

Customarily, players who competed in the U.S. Open the week before have added muscle and depth for the Travelers field. Some of this year's Open participants in the Travelers field are Angel Cabrera, Patrick Cantlay, Tim Clark, Lucas Glover, Padraig Harrington, Fredrik Jacobson, Robert Karlsson, previous winners Hunter Mahan and Bubba Watson and South African majors winners Louis Oosthuisen and Charl Schwartzel (Schwartzel withdrew with lingering rib problems).

Last Five Winners and Runners-Up:

2011 - Fredrik Jacobson (20-under 260), Ryan Moore, John Rollins (261)
2010 - Bubba Watson (14-under 266), Corey Pavin, Scott Verplank (266)
2009 - Kenny Perry (22-under 258), Paul Goydos, David Toms (261)
2008 - Stewart Cink(18-under 262), Tommy Armour III, Hunter Mahan (263)
2007 - Hunter Mahan (15-under, 265), Jay Williamson (265)