This article is part of our Weekly PGA Preview series.
The day-after-a-major-hangover. Casual golf fans aren't aware of this feeling as the only time they pay attention is during a major, but the hardcore fans understand that feeling. The three days leading up to a major are filled with energy and excitement, there are pools put together in your office or by friends, and golf talk takes up a huge chunk of SportsCenter and that's not even the best part -- then the tournament starts! Once the event starts you can actually feel the excitement; it's in the voice of the commentators, it's in the faces of the competitors and the crowd, it's everywhere! Saturday night rolls around and everywhere there is speculation, who will win on Sunday? Will this guy hang on? Can that guy stand-up to the pressure? Can anyone make a move on the leader? Sunday is unlike any other day of the four. The morning feels different; you can feel something big is coming. You check the clock, when does coverage start? When coverage starts, you check to see when the leaders tee off -- you are watching guys that are 10-strokes back...they have no chance, but you want to get a feel for how the course is playing. With any luck, the leaders play well and you are treated to something exceptional; either way you are a winner because at the end of the day, there is a new major champion. And then there's Monday.
The Monday after a major is tough. Suddenly, the group
The day-after-a-major-hangover. Casual golf fans aren't aware of this feeling as the only time they pay attention is during a major, but the hardcore fans understand that feeling. The three days leading up to a major are filled with energy and excitement, there are pools put together in your office or by friends, and golf talk takes up a huge chunk of SportsCenter and that's not even the best part -- then the tournament starts! Once the event starts you can actually feel the excitement; it's in the voice of the commentators, it's in the faces of the competitors and the crowd, it's everywhere! Saturday night rolls around and everywhere there is speculation, who will win on Sunday? Will this guy hang on? Can that guy stand-up to the pressure? Can anyone make a move on the leader? Sunday is unlike any other day of the four. The morning feels different; you can feel something big is coming. You check the clock, when does coverage start? When coverage starts, you check to see when the leaders tee off -- you are watching guys that are 10-strokes back...they have no chance, but you want to get a feel for how the course is playing. With any luck, the leaders play well and you are treated to something exceptional; either way you are a winner because at the end of the day, there is a new major champion. And then there's Monday.
The Monday after a major is tough. Suddenly, the group of people that care about golf is seemingly back down to the guys in your golf league. The name of the event evokes none of the feelings you had just seven days ago. The field isn't necessarily weak, but it's not a major field. ESPN devotes 30 seconds to your sport each night and office pools? Ha! It's certainly a tough spot for any event on the PGA Tour, but as the week goes on, you realize that this is what you signed up for. It's a long season and without these events in-between the big ones, we'd be left with gaping holes in the schedule. Besides, in the fantasy world, a purse is a purse and prize money counts the same (unless it doesn't count the same). If that doesn't make you feel better, then all I can say is -- the PGA Championship is next week!
This week: The RBC Canadian Open - Glen Abbey G.C. - Oakville, Ontario
Last Year: Jason Day shot a final-round 68 on his way to a two-stroke victory over David Hearn.
Players to Consider
Jason Day
Day is the best player in the field, he has the track record at this event and on this course, and he's shown decent form lately. It's hard to imagine, but Day was just another guy waiting to break through twelve months ago. It wasn't until his win at this event that his year really started to take-off. Perhaps there is another run left in him yet this year.
Jim Furyk
Furyk has been a tough nut to crack this season. He played well right out of the gate after his return to the PGA Tour, but failed to play well in spots where he was expected to thrive, which brings us to this week, where Furyk happens to have a solid track record. Though he let a lot of people down at Firestone, I think he bounces back this week and plays well in a spot where he's expected to. Furyk has three consecutive top-15s at Glen Abbey, including a solo-4th last year.
Brandt Snedeker
Snedeker hasn't shown his best form since the beginning of the season, but a return to Glen Abbey could bring it out this week. Snedeker won this event at Glen Abbey in 2013 and finished in the top-5 in his previous start here. He also has top-25s against some very strong fields in his two most recent starts, at the Open Championship and WGC Bridgestone Invitational.
David Hearn
Hearn suffered through a tough stretch early in the season, but he seems to have righted the ship in the past couple months. Hearn has top-20s in his two most recent starts and he finished runner-up at this event last year. He's also the best Canadian player on the planet right now, so there's some added motivation. Canadian golfers don't have a great track record at this event, but Hearn is a notable exception.
Chad Campbell
To be honest, I never thought Campbell would make this list again, but he's in the midst of resurgence and is again a reasonable target on the PGA Tour. Granted, he wouldn't crack my top-5 list against a strong field, but the RBC doesn't boast a strong field, so here he is. Besides, it's the end of the year and most one-and-done players have dwindling options at this point. Campbell has finished inside the top-20 in his two most recent attempts at this venue.
Players to Avoid
Hunter Mahan
I don't recall at this point if I promised to leave Mahan off this list until he started playing well, to be honest, it sounds like something I would do, but I felt compelled to once again put him on here, not only because his game is worse than mine right now, but he also has an awful track record at Glen Abbey. Perhaps Mahan can find his game at some point, but it won't happen this week.
Ernie Els
With a top-5 at the Quicken Loans Invitational three weeks ago, it appeared as though Els may have put his struggles behind him. After, entering that week, Els had missed four consecutive cuts, but the momentum of that finish was lost last week at the Open Championship where he again missed the cut. Els still has some fight left in him, but the Canadian Open doesn't seem like a spot where he's going to get back on track.
Graeme McDowell
Many people were burned by McDowell in their Open Championship pools last and while he certainly disappointed, his inclusion on this list is due more to his track record at this event than his recent play. McDowell's two most recent starts at Glen Abbey have resulted in a MC and a T74. Paired with his recent form and McDowell's prospects do not look good this week.
Greg Chalmers
Chalmers hit pay dirt a couple weeks ago at the Barracuda Championship where he picked up his first PGA Tour win, but it doesn't appear as though Chalmers will be using this win as a spring board to a lucrative career. Chalmers has been at this a while and he is what he is -- a good golfer, who's never going to be a top-tier guy or even someone who's a weekly threat on the PGA Tour.
Geoff Ogilvy
Ogilvy's drop in performance is more in-line with a guy nearing the age of 50, but he's still relatively a young man, which makes explaining his drop-off in production even more difficult. He has played well at this event, but never on this course. Ogilvy has also yet to crack the top-30 at any PGA Tour event this year. Ogilvy's issues with his game will again need another off-season to fix. Hopefully he'll have better luck this off season than last.
ONE AND DONE GOLFER
Last week: Louis Oosthuizen (MC) - $0; Season - $7,706,175
This week: David Hearn - With fewer and fewer options each, I must look to the second and third-tier players. I'm comfortable with Hearn this week, but I actually paused for a bit because Jon Rahm is in the picture now. With that said, Hearn has experience on this track and Rahm doesn't.
YAHOO PICKS
Points: 3810
Rank: 21,361
This Week:
Group A: Jason Day, Dustin Johnson
Group B: Jim Furyk, David Hearn, Charley Hoffman, Brandt Snedeker
Group C: Matt Kuchar, John Rahm
SURVIVOR PICK
Last week: Adam Scott (T43); Streak - 6
This week: David Hearn - I side-stepped disaster last week when I decided not to double-up with Oosthuizen, but I feel comfortable using Hearn in both spots this week. Hearn has made the cut in his past three starts at Glen Abbey.
