Course: The Golf Club of Houston, a 7,500 yard course. You will hear a lot this week about the similarities of Houston compared to Augusta National, but it is drastically overstated. The only thing similar are the greens, which are pretty quick. Winning score may flirt with twenty under par.
Strength Of Field: B-. The field took a hit when Jimmy Walter and Henrik Stenson withdrew, but there is still a really nice field gearing up for The Masters. A lot of these players, however, may be using Houston as a warm up, so don't be surprised to see a leaderboard with some lower ranked players.
Extra Tidbits: Since Houston is the last event prior to The Masters, a lot of foreign players that are teeing it up next week are playing this week. Mikko Ilonen, Anirban Lahiri, Joost Luiten, and Danny Willett, all European Tour professionals, will be playing on the PGA Tour this week...Austin Cook, Kelvin Day, Andrew Landry, and Smylie Kaufman are the Monday qualifiers. Cook tied for 13th last year at the FedEx St. Jude Classic after he Monday qualified for that event. Day is playing his rookie season on the Web.com Tour. Landry won on the Web.com Tour in 2009 a month after turning professional. Kaufman played in the 2014 U.S. Open, but missed the cut...Last year, Matt Kuchar looked poised to win the tournament until Matt Jones hit a 40 foot putt on the 18th and chipped in on the first playoff hole to secure a spot in The Masters...While players can no longer qualify for The Masters based on the World Golf Rankings, the winner of this event who is not otherwise qualified will receive a last minute invitation to Augusta.
Fantasy Four:
Jordan Speith - He is making a case for being the favorite for The Masters. Would have won last week if Jimmy Walker wasn't playing on an island by himself. Speith has become one of the best scramblers on Tour, and his putting is incredibly sound. Still looking for his first victory in his native Texas.
Lee Westwood - Good record in this event and has finished in the top 25 in every event he has played in 2015. His best opportunity to win a major is as Augusta National, where he has several top 10's, so he will be looking to built some momentum entering The Masters.
Danny Willett - A true sleeper in the sense that he can finish anywhere. Missed the cut at the Valspar, but almost notched a top 10 at the Honda Classic. He has lead the Race To Dubai standings pretty much the entire season, and is exempt into The Masters next week. I don't know what truly to expect from Willett, but given his talent and his ball striking, he should be able to contend.
Victor Dubuisson - A real roller coaster. He's had a very poor PGA Tour season, but his form can change at the drop of a hat. He needs good vibes entering Augusta National, where he missed the cut last week. He's too good to continue to struggle, and he still has a good short game, which is a premium this week.
Last Week's Team:
Jimmy Walker: WINNER
Zach Johnson: T20
Daniel Berger: CUT
Ryan Palmer: T6
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