AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Preview: Phil is Lurking

For the second consecutive year, Hideki Matsuyama forced not only a playoff at the Phoenix Open, but he also forced golf fans all over the world to figure out how that picture-in-picture thing works on our televisions.

It's becoming an annual tradition that the Phoenix Open bleeds into the start of the Super Bowl, but I, for one, am not complaining. If getting a playoff means that I have to simultaneously watch two channels at once, I'll take the playoff every time ... just as long as someone the stature of Matsuyama is involved. If it's Craig Hocknell and Michael Schoolcraft (yes, those are real people), then I might opt toward following on PGATour.com.

Speaking of Matsuyama, he continued both his hot play since the end of last year and his incredible run at the Phoenix Open. Not only did he go back-to-back, but his win extended his streak of top-5s at this event to four. Mind you, that's four top-5s in four starts. Safe to say, this course suits his eye. More promising for Matsuyama was his putting throughout the week. He ranked T26 in putts per green, which when combined with ranking first in tee to green, makes for a nice week.

Matsuyama won this event last year, only to see his putter fail him throughout the remainder of the season. With his putter now back on his side, the sky is the limit for Matsuyama this season. If his putting continues to improve, he may very well figure out how to win the Phoenix Open in regulation next year.

This week: AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am - Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach, Calif.

Last Year: Vaughn Taylor shot a final-round 65 on his way to a one-stroke victory over Phil Mickelson.

PLAYERS TO CONSIDER

Phil Mickelson

Mickelson is in full "lurk mode." He's not playing well enough to win, but he's playing well enough to contend. That could easily change this week as his track record at Pebble is solid. In 20 starts, Mickelson has four wins and another five top-10s. That's nine top-10s in 20 starts at this event. There is a lot of firepower in the field this week, but no one can claim a better track record.

Dustin Johnson

For those who burnt DJ at this event last year, I can only say, that was an anomaly. DJ inexplicably finished T41 last year at this event, which on the surface isn't horrible, but considering his track record entering last year, it was a disaster. DJ has won this event twice and has finished inside the top 10 here in six of his nine starts. There is little doubt DJ will play well this week, but unlike last year, he's now a guy you'd prefer to save for bigger events.

Brandt Snedeker

Snedeker is usually pretty reliable, but he's been anything but at this event. Snedeker has won this event twice, but he's also missed the cut here three times in nine starts. It is feasible, though, that some of Snedeker's troubles can be attributed to defending his titles. His two starts while defending have resulted in a missed cut and a T35. He's not defending this year, which makes him a viable option.

Justin Rose

Rose has only one start at this event, which gives me pause, but he played well in that start on his way to a T6 last year. It's important to establish some history at this event, because being a Pro-Am, it is a different beast altogether. Rose established he could handle the format last year, and his game appears to be near top form with two top-5s in two starts this year. While most owners will be on Mickelson and DJ this week, Rose could be an option if you want to make up ground on the pack.

Matt Jones

Unlike the previous few weeks, there really isn't a great sleeper option this week, but Jones comes the closest. Jones has made the cut in eight of nine starts at this event, his last two resulting in a T11 and a T7. He's coming off a 66 in the final round of the Phoenix Open as well, so at least there's a glimmer of hope that this sleeper can play well this week.

PLAYERS TO AVOID

Jimmy Walker

I'm going out on a limb here, not only because Walker generally plays his best golf early in the year, but because he has a stellar track record at this event. However, Walker has been uncharacteristically bad this season and enters this week having missed consecutive cuts. In five official events this season, he's missed three cuts and finished T77 in another event. He's simply not himself and too much of a risk to take in a one-and-done format this week.

Pat Perez

Perez also has a solid track record at this event, but it's never a good idea to use someone who withdrew the previous week. Perez withdrew from the Phoenix Open with shoulder tightness, and while it might be something that he's already over, there's a chance it flares up again as it's been less than a week since he withdrew. I'd wait to make sure he's 100 percent healthy and think about using him down the road.

Vaughn Taylor

It's never easy to defend a title, let alone defending a title when you aren't used to it. We may never know exactly how Taylor won this event last season, but that really doesn't matter now. What matters is, his game lately has been off (on the weekend anyway), and his overall track record here is all over the place. Don't expect a repeat of last year's performance this week.

Charlie Beljan

Beljan's only made cut at this event in 2015 resulted in a solo third, which might be enticing to some owners, but I would caution against using him this week in a sleeper role. Beljan has missed the cut at this event in four of five starts and is coming off a T66 last week in Scottsdale.

Vijay Singh

Nobody in the field has more starts here than Singh, and while he's had his fair share of success with seven top-10s, all but one came more than a decade ago. Singh has missed the cut here in two of his last three starts and has cracked the top 25 just once in the last eight years.

ONE AND DONE GOLFER

Last week: Hideki Matsuyama (1) - $1,206,000; Season - $1,791,374

This week: Phil Mickelson - Last season the obvious pick was more often than not, the best pick. It hadn't been that way this season until last week. I expect that trend to continue this week. While DJ is certainly an option, Mickelson provides as much upside this week as him, and not as much value down the road, which makes him the best pick this week.

YAHOO PICKS

Points: 709
Rank: 20,187

This Week:

Group A: Dustin Johnson, Jason Day

Group B: Phil Mickelson, Justin Rose, Brandt Snedeker, Jordan Spieth

Group C: Matt Jones, J.B. Holmes

SURVIVOR PICK

Last week: Kevin Na - (T16); Streak - 3

This week: Phil Mickelson - Mickelson has missed only three cuts in 20 starts here and his form is solid, so there's little doubt he'll be in the mix on the weekend. As mentioned, Mickelson doesn't have quite the value at the majors that he used to, so best to use him in what appears to be a "can't-miss" spot.