Houston Open Preview: Is Phil Back?

It was just seven days ago that we wondered aloud if anyone would ever ride a 54-hole lead to victory again on the PGA Tour. OK, "ever" is a slight exaggeration, but the inability of the 54-hole leader to hold onto a lead was getting a bit ridiculous -- until Jimmy Walker rode into town. Not only did Walker hold onto his lead, a lead over some top-notch players I might add, but Walker was never even in serious danger on Sunday. That's saying something considering Jordan Spieth was on his heels for most of the day.

With the 54-hole fiasco behind us, we can now shine our attention on other things such as: just how good is Jimmy Walker? It seemed like Walker coasted during the second half of the 2014 season as he failed to win again after February, but a closer look reveals a different story. Although he didn't win after picking up his third victory early in the 2014 season, he did fare well at some of the PGA Tour's biggest events. Top-10s at the Masters, the U.S. Open, The Players and the PGA Championship. Those four showings alone would make for a good season, but add to that his three victories early and the season as a whole was quite incredible.

So where does he go from here? Is he a better player now than he was 12 months ago? There's simply no way to tell at this point, but one thing we do know is this -- he's competed at all the big events and knows what to expect. Will that be the difference between a season full of top-10s at the majors and season with a win or two at the majors? Walker put the 54-hole leader issue to rest with four solid rounds last week. With four solid rounds in two weeks, he could very well put another issue to rest.

This week: Houston Open - Golf Club of Houston, Humble, Texas

Last Year: Matt Jones shot a final-round 66 on his way to a one-stroke victory over Matt Kuchar.

PLAYERS TO CONSIDER

Phil Mickelson

Mickelson appears to be getting close. He played well most of last week, but as has been the case with Mickelson this year, he fell apart late. If he's truly rounding into form, we should see a good performance this week as his track record at this event is solid.

Lee Westwood

Westwood has yet to climb the mountain top here, but he's always in the mix. Since this event moved to the current venue, Westwood has fared no worse than T30.

J.B. Holmes

Holmes has cooled a bit since his hot start to the season, but this might be a spot where he gets back on track as he's played well here. Holmes finished runner-up at this event in 2009, and he's recorded top-15s in two of his last three starts here.

Louis Oosthuizen

Oosthuizen is having a pretty solid season already with three top-15s in just four starts, and he usually plays well at this event. He did miss the cut here last year, but prior to that he carded three finishes in the top 16 in consecutive years.

Hunter Mahan

Mahan isn't exactly the model of consistency at this event, but when he's on, he's pretty darn good. Mahan has three top-10s here since 2009, including a win in 2012.

PLAYERS TO AVOID

Freddie Jacobson

The stars were aligned for Jacobson to play well last week, and he failed to do so. Now he returns to the Houston Open, an event where he hasn't had much success. You can see where I'm going here.

Paul Casey

A case could be made for using Casey this week. After all, he won this event a few years back and is having a solid season, but he's also missed the cut here three consecutive years. That's a big mental hurdle to overcome, one which I'd rather not deal with this week.

Keegan Bradley

Bradley has had his moments this season, but he seems to be lacking that extra gear, the one that vaults him into contention on Sunday. His track record here is mixed, which leads me to believe he won't find that extra gear this week either.

Charley Hoffman

Hoffman's placement on this list doesn't mean he'll play poorly this week, but, rather, he's just not a great choice this week. Hoffman was a solid play last week and played pretty well, yet his T11 was a bit of a disappointment because of his track record at the Texas Open. His track record in Houston isn't nearly as good.

Justin Leonard

There was a time when Leonard was a lock to play well anywhere in the state of Texas, but that was about a decade ago. He'll certainly give it his all this week, but his "all," isn't quite good enough anymore.

ONE AND DONE GOLFER

Last week: Charley Hoffman (T11) - $136,400; Season - $1,320,661

This week: Louis Oosthuizen - This looks like a sneaky-good play this week as Oosthuizen is in good form and his track record here is solid. The MC last year might serve you well as that likely will take him off your opponent's lists this week.

YAHOO PICKS

Points: 1,774
Rank: 26,289

This Week:

Group A: J.B. Holmes, Sergio Garcia

Group B: Jordan Spieth, Hunter Mahan, Phil Mickelson, Lee Westwood

Group C: Louis Oosthuizen, Charl Schwartzel

SURVIVOR PICK

Last week: Charley Hoffman (T11); Streak - 3

This week: Phil Mickelson - He's been inconsistent this year, but I think he's a safe bet to make the cut at this event where he's been solid for a long time.