This article is part of our Weekly PGA Preview series.
It used to be call "wind chill," but the meteorologists don't use that term much anymore; instead, they'll say, "feels like." For example, when the PGA Tour starts back up again, there's a decent change that the temperature in Hawaii will "feel like" it's 100 degrees warmer than say Minnesota, where I happen to be. Why do I bring this up? Because there's more to the PGA Tour starting up again than just the numbers. Sure, it's great to get the fantasy leagues up and running again, but I love this time of year because it gives me a glimpse of the upcoming season.
Yes, spring is a ways off, but watching the best golfers in the world hit balls in front of a gorgeous green backdrop makes me feel a bit warmer inside. Maybe I'm going soft or maybe it's the first week of the new season and there's not much to talk about just yet. Whatever the case, we can all agree on one thing ... it's good to have the PGA Tour back, and I mean the real PGA Tour. No offense to the new schedule and the fall season that's now a part of the following season, but there's still a different feeling to the "regular" season, and I'm glad we're back in it.
This week: Hyundai Tournament of Champions - Plantation Course at Kapalua Resort, Maui, Hawaii
Last Year: Zach Johnson shot a final-round 66 on his way to a one-stroke victory over Jordan Spieth.
It used to be call "wind chill," but the meteorologists don't use that term much anymore; instead, they'll say, "feels like." For example, when the PGA Tour starts back up again, there's a decent change that the temperature in Hawaii will "feel like" it's 100 degrees warmer than say Minnesota, where I happen to be. Why do I bring this up? Because there's more to the PGA Tour starting up again than just the numbers. Sure, it's great to get the fantasy leagues up and running again, but I love this time of year because it gives me a glimpse of the upcoming season.
Yes, spring is a ways off, but watching the best golfers in the world hit balls in front of a gorgeous green backdrop makes me feel a bit warmer inside. Maybe I'm going soft or maybe it's the first week of the new season and there's not much to talk about just yet. Whatever the case, we can all agree on one thing ... it's good to have the PGA Tour back, and I mean the real PGA Tour. No offense to the new schedule and the fall season that's now a part of the following season, but there's still a different feeling to the "regular" season, and I'm glad we're back in it.
This week: Hyundai Tournament of Champions - Plantation Course at Kapalua Resort, Maui, Hawaii
Last Year: Zach Johnson shot a final-round 66 on his way to a one-stroke victory over Jordan Spieth.
PLAYERS TO CONSIDER
Matt Kuchar
No two ways about it, Kuchar plays well here. Kuchar has posted four consecutive top-10s here, and although he's failed to seal the deal in all of them, the fact remains that he's probably the most reliable golfer in the field this week.
Billy Horschel
Horschel was on a tear during the FedEx Cup Playoffs last year, but that momentum did not carry over to the fall season. That's understandable, though, as it was likely tough to get up for the fall season after pocketing $10 million. But this is a new year, and if Horschel wants to prove how good he is, he needs to get off to a good start in 2015.
Jason Day
If he stays healthy this season, Day will finish inside the top 5 on the money list, so it's a bit of a risk to take him off the long break. But it is a small field, so Day would not have to play lights out to win this week.
Robert Streb
When we last saw Streb during the fall season he was tearing it up. While it's likely that he's lost most of that momentum the last two months, there's still a chance that he's on top of his game. It is his first time here, so there's no course history, but I'm sure he has plenty of practice in on this track over the last week.
Geoff Ogilvy
What a difference a couple months can make. Ogilvy was trudging along last season, much like in previous years, but out of the blue he picked up a win, which led to his inclusion into this winners-only event -- an event he's won twice. If he's truly on his way back, he should show it here this week.
PLAYERS TO AVOID
Zach Johnson
It's always a dangerous play to pick against Johnson, but when he won here last year, he was at the top of his game. There's no way to tell where his game is entering this week, and considering his track record here wasn't great prior to his win, it makes sense that last year was a bit of a fluke.
Jimmy Walker
Walker was on fire early last season, yet he could only muster a T21 here, which leads me to believe he doesn't have a great feel for this course. Walker hasn't played his best for 12 months now, so there's little reason to think he's going to make any noise this week.
Angel Cabrera
Cabrera has played well enough here in his two starts, finishing 10th and 15th, but he's always been a big-stage guy. Although this event is for winners only, Cabrera is more suited for the majors.
Hunter Mahan
Mahan is always a dangerous fade, but he really hasn't played well here in his three most recent starts. He's finished outside the top 25 in his last two starts, which is pretty bad considering the field generally consists of about 30 players.
Patrick Reed
Nothing against Reed here; he's proven to be a pretty good player, just not top 5 in the world ... yet. Although we aren't quite sure where he ranks among his peers, we are sure of one thing -- when he gets rolling, he's tough to beat. The fact he's on this list is a testament to that. It's best to wait on a guy like Reed until we see him starting to peak.
ONE AND DONE GOLFER
Last Event: Chris Stroud (T23) - $52,765; Season - $506,732
This week: Geoff Ogilvy - The right balance between a guy with a chance to win this week and someone you don't feel bad about burning this early in the season.
YAHOO PICKS
Group A: Bubba Watson, Seung-yul Noh
Group B: Billy Horschel, Matt Kuchar, Jason Day, Kevin Streelman
Group C: Geoff Ogilvy, Ryan Moore
SURVIVOR PICK
Last Event: Chris Stroud; Streak - 1
This week: NA
