This article is part of our Weekly PGA Preview series.
What is it about a lead in golf that makes even the best players in the world treat it like a hot potato? Is there another sport where the participants are afraid to be in the lead? A tennis player would surely rather be up two sets to one rather than the opposite, and all teams would prefer having the lead late in a game as opposed to trailing, so why is holding the lead in golf so troublesome?
Charley Hoffman was the 54-hole leader at the Canadian Open, a spot he was accustomed to on the PGA Tour as this was his second time this season and fourth time in his career that he held a 54-hole lead, yet he had never closed out a 54-hole lead. Hoffman has four wins on the PGA Tour, but in each he came from behind in the final round. The funny thing is, Hoffman didn't appear to crack under the pressure, he was just outplayed by Jhonattan Vegas.
Vegas played like a man with nothing to lose, and perhaps that's the advantage of playing from behind. If you're never in the lead, you can't really lose anything, right? If Matt Kuchar never takes the lead at the Open Championship, is he nearly as devastated as he was? Jordan Spieth seemed to get a bump after falling out of the lead, but the strange thing there was, Spieth played exceptionally well once he regained the lead.
Perhaps that's what separates the great ones
What is it about a lead in golf that makes even the best players in the world treat it like a hot potato? Is there another sport where the participants are afraid to be in the lead? A tennis player would surely rather be up two sets to one rather than the opposite, and all teams would prefer having the lead late in a game as opposed to trailing, so why is holding the lead in golf so troublesome?
Charley Hoffman was the 54-hole leader at the Canadian Open, a spot he was accustomed to on the PGA Tour as this was his second time this season and fourth time in his career that he held a 54-hole lead, yet he had never closed out a 54-hole lead. Hoffman has four wins on the PGA Tour, but in each he came from behind in the final round. The funny thing is, Hoffman didn't appear to crack under the pressure, he was just outplayed by Jhonattan Vegas.
Vegas played like a man with nothing to lose, and perhaps that's the advantage of playing from behind. If you're never in the lead, you can't really lose anything, right? If Matt Kuchar never takes the lead at the Open Championship, is he nearly as devastated as he was? Jordan Spieth seemed to get a bump after falling out of the lead, but the strange thing there was, Spieth played exceptionally well once he regained the lead.
Perhaps that's what separates the great ones from the good ones -- the ability to play like there's nothing to lose, even when there's everything to lose.
This week: WGC Bridgestone Invitational - Firestone Country Club, Akron, Ohio
Last Year: Dustin Johnson shot a final-round 66 on his way to a one-stroke victory over Scott Piercy.
PLAYERS TO CONSIDER
Dustin Johnson
Prior to his win at Firestone last year, DJ hadn't had much success on this course, but it's funny how one good week can completely change the look of a track record. That said, if he hadn't played well last week, I wouldn't have him this high. But he did play well, he just couldn't keep up with all the birdies from the leaders. A more difficult track should suit him well this week.
Jon Rahm
Rahm seems to have disappeared from the scene the last couple months, but it was only a few weeks ago that he won the Scottish Open. Perhaps it's his lack of success on the PGA Tour lately that has caused us to forget just how good he was during the first half of the season. Expect Rahm to get back into the mix this week.
Jordan Spieth
It's hard to argue that he's not the best player on the planet, and his track record at this event is pretty solid. Spieth has played this event just three times, but he's finished in the top 10 in two of those starts. His best finish came last year when he posted a T3.
Justin Rose
Many of us had high hopes for Rose at the Open Championship and that didn't end well, but that doesn't mean he's burnt for the season. He simply failed to find his game over a four-day stretch. That shouldn't be the situation this week as Rose has played well at this event the last five years. Rose has three top-5s in his last five starts here.
Rickie Fowler
Fowler has one of the better track records in the field this week, with four top-10s in just seven starts. In fact, among those with multiple starts at this event, Fowler has the highest percentage of top-10s. Fowler will be a popular pick next week at the PGA Championship, but it wouldn't surprise me to see him win this week as well.
PLAYERS TO AVOID
Charley Hoffman
Hoffman would appear to be a good pick this week after playing so well last week, but there are a couple things working against him this week. First, this isn't an event where Hoffman typically succeeds, he's usually better at regular tour stops. Second, his track record here is lacking, with no top-20s in four starts at this event.
Hideki Matsuyama
With only 64 players in the field this week, there are bound to be some big names on this list, and Matsuyama certainly qualifies as a big name. The reason he's on this list is he's batting about .250 here. Matsuyama's best finish came in 2014 when he finished T12, but that was his only top-20 in four starts.
Phil Mickelson
Mickelson has had his moments here over the years, with five top-10s in 18 starts, but he hasn't cracked the top 10 since 2008. His game is also a bit off, as he missed the cut at the Open Championship two weeks ago.
Hideto Tanihara
Tanihara had a couple nice outings early in the season at some big events, but he hasn't managed to carry that momentum through to the second half of the season. This is Tanihara's first run at Firestone, which rarely ends well.
Harold Varner III
It was a bit of a surprise to see Varner's name in this field, after all, he hasn't really accomplished much on the bigger stages of the PGA Tour, but nonetheless, he earned his spot. That said, this is a huge step up in class, and I don't think he's ready to contend against a field like this.
ONE AND DONE GOLFER
Last week: Luke List (T29) - $39,900; Season - $6,852,778
This week: Adam Scott - The way I see it, I have two big guns left in Scott and Spieth, and I give Spieth a better chance to win next week, so I'll go with Scott this week. It doesn't hurt that Scott has won this event either. His form has not been great this year, which is why I am not thrilled about him this week, but at the end of the season, you take what you can get.
YAHOO PICKS
Points: 3,830
Rank: 21,276
This Week:
Group A: Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler
Group B: Matt Kuchar, Justin Rose, Jordan Spieth, Kevin Chappell
Group C: Jon Rahm, Henrik Stenson
SURVIVOR PICK
Last week: Scott Stallings - (T61); Streak - 6
This week: no cut
