Dean & Deluca Invitational Preview: Zach Ready to Attack

In every sport there are people who move the needle, who draw attention no matter their form, their presence is the draw. Golf is no exception, but even within the needle-movers, there are different levels. For years, Tiger was the guy who brought viewers in and the likes of Mickelson and Els were in a group well behind. In that aspect, things haven't changed much.

Take last week at the AT&T Byron Nelson; Matt Kuchar made a charge on Sunday, and while Matt is a great player, he moves the needle just a tad bit more than, say, runner-up Brooks Koepka. The eventual winner, Sergio Garcia, moves the needle more than Kuchar, but Garcia, though extremely interesting, doesn't move the needle like Jordan Spieth.

For many, myself included, the fact that Garcia won this week wasn't nearly as interesting as what happened to Spieth in the final round Sunday. No, I'm asking a question, what happened to Spieth on Sunday? Does anyone know? Spieth entered the final round just two strokes behind leader Brooks Koepka, and while it was no foregone conclusion that Spieth would eventually rise to the top, it seemed like a sure bet that he would, at minimum, stay in contention. That didn't happen, however, as Spieth inexplicably struggled all afternoon and by the end of the round, we were all left wondering what had happened.

So much so, that to at least this guy, the story of Spieth was of more interest than that of Garcia, the guy who won! That is the true measure of a needle-mover, though -- even on their worst days, they are more interesting than anyone else.

This week: Dean & Deluca Invitational - Colonial Country Club, Fort Worth, Texas

Last Year: Chris Kirk shot a final-round 66 on his way to a one-stroke victory over three players, including Jordan Spieth and Brandt Snedeker.

PLAYERS TO CONSIDER

Zach Johnson

During a normal season, there would be no reason to pull the trigger on Johnson prior to the John Deere, but the Olympics are opposite the John Deere this year, and if Johnson is among the top four from the U.S., then he'll be in Rio that week. If he wins this week, that'll put him one step closer to that goal. So, if you don't use him now, you may not have a chance to do so at the John Deere.

Jason Dufner

It's been a season of ups and downs for Dufner, but after last week's top-25 at the Byron Nelson, there's reason to believe that he might be on the way back up. Dufner also has two runner-ups here in the last three years, so the course shouldn't be an issue.

Jordan Spieth

As evidence by his final-round meltdown last week, Spieth is certainly not at the top of his game, but there's reason to believe that he's close. Spieth has a solid track record at this event as well, so if he's to work out a couple kinks, he could get back in the winner's circle this week.

Charley Hoffman

I can't imagine there are many who haven't used Hoffman yet, but if you are one, this might be the best spot left. Hoffman was a bit of a letdown last week as he landed just outside the top 10, but he closed with a solid round and could bring some of that momentum into this week.

Matt Kuchar

Kuchar's game is solid as evidence by his third-place finish last week at the Nelson, and his track record here is just good enough to make me think he can win this week. Kuchar finished runner-up here in 2013 and has only missed one cut in eight starts here.

PLAYERS TO AVOID

Marc Leishman

Leishman has never missed the cut here -- he's a perfect 5-for-5 -- but he's also never cracked the top 20, either. Could that with a disappointing showing at the Nelson last week, where he did have a solid track record and it's a recipe for a pass this week.

Jason Bohn

Upon first glance, Bohn is having a great season, but a closer look reveals that all of his success this season came during the fall portion of the season in 2015. He finished runner-up here last year, but his form appears to be too far gone to match that result. Bohn has missed the cut in his last three starts.

Matt Jones

Coming off a season in which he earned nearly $2 million, expectations were high for Jones, but he struggled out of the gate and has yet to recover. Jones has missed the cut in nine of his previous 11 starts and his track record here is awful as well. Any recovery will have to wait at least one more week.

Ricky Barnes

Barnes is actually in the middle of a pretty nice season, but he'll struggle to keep that momentum going this week as his track record at Colonial is abysmal. Barnes posted a top-10 here in his first start at this event in 2010, but it's been downhill since.

Webb Simpson

If his career were to end this week, Simpson could be comfortable with the notion that he had a good career. Not quite the career we expected after capturing a major early in his career, but certainly productive if nothing else. That said, 2016 has been anything but productive. Simpson sits outside the top 125 and if history holds, that number won't improve at Colonial as he 0-2 against the cutline there.

ONE AND DONE GOLFER

Last week: Charley Hoffman (T12) - $138,700; Season - $6,598,989

This week: Zach Johnson - As much as I'd like to have Johnson available for the John Deere, there's a chance he won't even play that event. Another thing to consider is that the winner's share this week is about $300k higher than at the John Deere. If you want to wait on Zach, then Dufner or Kuchar seem like the best options.

YAHOO PICKS

Points: 2,743
Rank: 25,518

This Week:

Group A: Jordan Spieth, Adam Scott

Group B: Zach Johnson, Charley Hoffman, Jason Dufner, Brandt Snedeker

Group C: Matt Kuchar, Steve Stricker

SURVIVOR PICK

Last week: Marc Leishman (MC); Streak - 0

This week: Zach Johnson - Johnson missing the cut this week would be like Rose missing the cut at the Zurich, wait, there's a better comparison I'm sure. You get the point, there's no reason to think he'll miss the cut this week. If he does, you won't be alone; he'll be a popular pick this week.