2013-2014 PGA Tour Year End Awards

Looking back on the review I wrote up on Monday, I realize I didn't put nearly as much into the Tour Championship as the rest of the golf writers. It's not that I wasn't interested in the Tour Championship - I absolutely was, until Sunday, when it looked obvious that Horschel was walking away with it. The problem was two fold - one, the tournament fell the same week as the Evian Championship, which was captivating and saw the birth of a superstar, and two, it came at the end of what seemed like a never ending playoffs where the same players seemed to contend each week. Horschel, McIlroy, Kirk, Furyk...it seemed like I was watching the same tournament three weeks in a row. I understand that a lot was on the line, but there's only so much I could take before I got burnt out.

Either way, the season is now over, and the finalists for the various awards have been announced. I am not the kind of person that stays within the confines of predetermined nominees, so I am here to give you the TRUE winners of various awards. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you:

The First Annual PGA Tour LLLLet's Win Awards!

My PGA Tour Year End Awards

Player Of The Year: Rory McIlroy 

- This is a no brainer. If a player won four tournaments this season, I would have considered them, but not only did Rory win the most tournaments this season, but he also won two majors. He also happened to be the most consistent player this year, notching 12 top 10 finishes in 17 events. 

Rookie Of The Year: Brooks Koepka

- Secured his 2015 Tour card based on his finishes this season, which included a T4 finish at the US Open, while playing both in the US and in Europe. A few writers actually advocated for Koepka to be picked for the Ryder Cup. I don't know if I agree with that sentiment, but with the lack of any real break out performer among this year's rookie class, Koepka was the most note worthy, so they should just give it to him.

Comeback Player Of The Year: J.B. Holmes

- A lot of players have back and knee surgeries that they never recover from. Holmes had BRAIN surgery. That's surgery...of the BRAIN! And he comes back to win the Wells Fargo Championship and make it all the way to the BMW Championship in the FedEx Cup playoffs. Martin Kaymer may have won a major and the Players after struggling, but that was someone who was on the Ryder Cup team two years ago, and had no notable injuries to think of. Holmes' career could have been over, and yet he comes back to win again.

Biggest Disappointment: Phil Mickelson

- I know Tiger Woods had a lost season, but he was injured. Lefty won a major last year. This was supposed to be the year he completes the Grand Slam, and yet he only notches one top 10 the entire year. We went from wondering if Phil could win 60 tournaments to wondering if he'll ever win again. Do I think Phil is completely done being a top player on Tour? No. But, as Rory pointed out, he is on his last few holes, so he will need a big year next year. 

Tournament Of The Year (Non-Major): Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial

- Adam Scott, fresh off of taking over as world number one, takes on PGA Champion Jason Dufner with a host of other players within a few shots all looking to be a part of the playoff. Historic course with some great golfers. A lot of great tournaments happened this year, but this one really sticks in my mind. 

PGA Tour Specific Post Of The Year: This One

Wednesday Preview - Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic

The majors are over and the LPGA now prepares for their final domestic full field event of the season as the LPGA returns to Prattville, Alabama after a year hiatus. Any player looking to play in the limited field events for the rest of the season will need to perform well enough here to make their way up the money list and secure some exemptions.

Course: Capitol Hill Golf Club. It's a wide open course that is far easier than what the players saw at the Evian, so expect a bunch of birdies. Several players, including Lexi Thompson and Stacy Lewis, have already commented on the course conditions, saying that they didn't want to grind for pars, and that this "should be a lot of fun". Expect winning score to be somewhere around -20.

Strength Of Field: D-. A strong majority of players didn't want to fly from France to Arkansas to play in this event. Most of the Asian players returned home to prepare for the Asian swing in a few weeks, while your top European and American pros stayed in Europe. Stacy Lewis and Lexi Thompson are the only real notable names in the field.

Extra Tidbits: Five former University of Alabama players and two former University of Auburn players are in the field this week. Northern Ireland's Stephanie Meadow attended the University of Alabama, and received a sponsor's exemption into this week's event. She finished third at the US Women's Open, and is looking to win enough money to stay inside the top 40 and earn an automatic 2015 LPGA card...Meadow and former Auburn player Karlin Beck are the two sponsor exemptions this week. Hannah Collier and Carmen Bandea are the Monday qualifiers.

Fantasy Four:

Mi Jung Hur - I am, perhaps, looking much more into her back to back top 10 finishes, which includes a third place finish at the Evian Championship. After all, she has had a horrible 2014 leading up to these tournaments, and this recent form seems to come out of nowhere. Weird things happen in events where the field strength may not be great, however. If Hur truly has returned to form, this could be a perfect spot for her to pick up her first victory since 2009. 

Lexi Thompson - Past winner in Prattville, and while she hasn't been incredibly impressive since her victory at the Kraft-Nabisco, she likes it in Arkansas and is competing at a course that is perfect for her strengths. She is also coming off a top 10 in France, so it's not like she's playing poorly. 

Stacy Lewis - Officially struggling. Gets the benefit of the doubt because she is the most recent champion in Prattville and is the top ranked player in the world, but her form is a far cry from where it was earlier in the season. She needs a huge performance here, because Inbee Park will be looking to overtake her when the Tour heads to Asia.

Brittany Lincicome - Three straight top 10 finishes, two of which were in majors. You can take these finishes two different ways - either she gets herself in a position to win and does not convert, or she's playing far better now than she was earlier in the season and is racking up top 10's with consistency. I choose the latter, and as is the case with Thompson, this is the kind of course that can be rewarding for Lincicome. 

(SLEEPER) Ai Miyazato - Former world number one has fallen all the way to 74th in the Rolex Rankings and hasn't notched a single top 10 all season, so I have no basis for this other than my own belief that Miyazato will take advantage of the weak field and get something going before the Asian swing. Miyazato will either start turning it around soon, or we'll never hear from her again. Her game is too good for her to completely disappear, so I believe she will turn it around. 

The Next Great Korean Superstar Has Arrived

- You can argue whether or not the Evian Championship should be a major, but what can not be argued is that Hyo Joo Kim delivered a major performance. Coming out of the gate on Thursday and shooting a 61 showed Hyo Joo's talent and shot making ability, and her birdie on the final hole on Sunday showed her performance under pressure. The question now is whether or not Hyo Joo joins the LPGA. I don't see any reason why she would stay on the KLPGA, as she no longer has anything to prove on that tour, but she is only 19 years old, so anything is possible.

- After struggling at the early part of the season and watching the Americans dominate the Tour, Koreans have won four of the last five events, including the final two majors.

- When Brittany Lincicome bogied the 18th hole at the LPGA Championship, it showed how much nerves play a factor going down the stretch, and the players who have won majors can swallow those nerves more than players who haven't. The exact opposite was true on Sunday, when Hall Of Famer Karrie Webb fell victim to the nerves on the 72nd hole. At this point, I no longer feel confident in any player that has a lead on Sunday, especially if someone with the resume as Webb can't cash in on a golden opportunity. All that being said, Webb isn't done winning, and she showed this week that she will remain a major factor for some time.

- So Yeon Ryu finally won a few weeks ago after putting together a string of near misses, so I wonder if Na Yeon Choi's drought is close to an end. After being silent all season, she has put together several tournaments where she was a factor on Sunday. It's still amazing that she hasn't won in close to two years, but I think that streak is about to end.

- Ha Na Jang has gotten use to finishing behind Hyo Joo Kim. Jang is currently number 2 on the KLPGA Tour money list, though Hyo Joo has separated herself from Jang on that list. If it weren't for Hyo Joo, not only would Jang be the clear favorite for Player Of The Year on that Tour, but we would be talking about Jang's performance on the major stage in the face of competition from the top players from all over the world. Jang is a great player, and if she ever decides to come over to the US, she'll be a contender for a lot of tournaments, but unfortunately, she's not as explosive as Hyo Joo is.

-Lydia Ko will win a major in 2015. I've seen enough to know that she's set to take over this Tour, and very, very soon.

- The PGA Tour has tried to make the FedEx Cup as lucrative as the major championship. Most players don't see it that way, but Billy Horschel did, as he made sure he prepped himself for the long haul in order to win the FedEx Cup. It paid off, as Horschel won the final two playoff events and walked away with the ten million dollar grand prize. Unfortunately, Horschel is not on the US Ryder Cup team, which hurts to have someone playing that hot sitting at home.

- I honestly think Rory McIlroy should have skipped one of the playoff events if he wanted a chance to win the Cup. He has a tremendous summer, but he also played a lot during the summer, so for him to play four straight tournaments after that was just too much to overcome. That being said, Horschel may have won the FedEx Cup, and he may have out-dueled Rory in two tournaments, but Rory is still the best player in the world.

- Best wishes to Greg Norman, who was involved in a chainsaw accident and almost lost his hand this weekend.

News Grab-Bag: 9/12/2014

- Happy Belated 85 Birthday to the King, Arnold Palmer!

- There is a weird controversy surrounding Rory McIlroy this week. In an interview, McIlroy indicated that Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods were in "the last few holes of their career". A firestorm surrounded McIlroy, almost unfairly, as McIlroy didn't really say anything that derogatory. The point of McIlroy's statement was that Tiger and Phil were getting older and that they are going to have to cash in on the opportunities they have, or else they are going to run out of time. Seeing as Phil is in his mid-40's and Tiger has been struggling with injuries, I'm not sure how this is shocking to anyone. McIlroy did say that he expects Tiger to make it back to East Lake for the FedEx Cup finale again, and soon.

- PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem suggested this week that no big changes are likely to occur regarding the FedEx Cup playoff format. The format came under fire when Dustin Johnson, who did not play in the first three playoff events, still managed to qualify for the Tour Championship. Finchem concluded that they are looking into evaluating that particular scenario, but the system will remain relatively the same.

- Best wishes go out to Fabrizino Zanotti, who was struck in the head with a wayward drive at the European Tour's KLM Open and was knocked to the ground. Zanotti was rushed to a local hospital, where all test came back negative. Zanotti is currently recovering.

- Minjee Lee is playing for money! The Australian amateur turned pro prior to the start of her first round at the Evian Championship. Lee was the number one ranked amateur in the world and was the only amateur that competed in the International Crown.

- There were two notable early exits from the Evian Championship this week. The first was Michelle Wie, who withdrew after 12 holes and admitted that she rushed back to the course too early. Wie has been battling a finger injury that has kept her sidelined for the past month. Also going home early is So Yeon Ryu, who was disqualified after she bent her putter in frustration during Friday's round. Rules state that a player can not use a club that has been damaged, and Ryu made her comeback putt with the putter. She would have been unable to replace the club anyway, because she bent the club in anger instead of during the natural course of play. For Ryu, I'm sure this is just going to be one of those "laugh it off" experiences and she'll get back to it when the Asian swing starts. The more concerning story is Wie, whose season seems to mirror that of Jason Day, who won early, then battled thumb injuries the rest of the year.

- Speaking of Wie, she was recently on the cover of Golf Digest. She now has something in common with Paulina Gretsky. Let's hope that's the ONLY thing.

Predicting The Evian Championship (Poorly)

While the PGA Tour ends their season this week, the LPGA still has several high quality events on their schedule, including the final major of the season, the Evian Championship. It is the second major that takes place outside of the United States, with the ladies of the LPGA Tour descending on France to compete for one of the richest purses in the sport. This is the second year the event is a major, but prior to that is played as a pseudo-major, as all the top players would circle this event as a much win based on the purse.

In the first part of the year, the LPGA season was pretty predictable, with the top names in the world all picking up victories and battling for supremacy. Since Mo Martin's victory at the Women's British Open, however, the season as been anything but predictable, with Mirim Lee and Austin Ernst picking up their first LPGA victories, and So Yeon Ryu winning for the first time since 2012. Now, we head to France for what may be the most wide open major of the year, with several players all coming in feeling as if they have a chance to win.

I have done these predictions a variety of different ways. I have split them up into groups, I have eliminated players I don't think have a chance, I have set aside my criteria for success, and yet none of that seems to do any good as I eventually end up failing anyway. So, instead of doing any sort of gimmicks, I'm just going to give you my top 10 players that I think can win the Evian Championship.

10) Anna Nordqvist - European players have typically performed well at this event, and Norqvist has had the kind of season that is usually rewarded by winning a major. Norqvist has two victories and seven top 10's this season, and has performed well in the last two majors. She has set herself up as the second best player in Europe, behind another Scandinavian that is also on this list.

9) Sakura Yokomine - Veteran JLPGA member is skipping the JLPGA major this week to compete here, which may be a signal that she's looking for a change of scenery. She won four times on that tour last year, but hasn't won this season. Yokomine did record a top 10 as the Women's US Open, and was the star of the Japanese International Crown team that made it much further than many suspected. A player with that talent feeds off great competitive environments, and will be looking for a win, perhaps, to secure an LPGA card.

8) Lexi Thompson - Seven top 10's this season is a little misleading, as most of her success was early. Still, she's the kind of player you don't discount in a major, and if on this list particularly because of her major success at the Kraft Nabisco earlier this year. Also shouldn't be penalized much for wayward shots, which is crucial to her game.

7) Hyo Joo Kim - Leader of the KLPGA money list by a wide margin. Should be the next great Korean star to break through and have success on the LPGA Tour, and could do so the same way many of her counterparts have - by winning a major. Kim is deadly accurate and has nerves of steel, so she won't be rattled by the situation she's in.

6) So Yeon Ryu - Mixed bag with Ryu, as she won a few weeks ago to finally get the monkey off the back, but let a golden opportunity slip away on Sunday two weeks ago. Regardless, Ryu has now become a fixture on leaderboards and should contend all the way up to Sunday. Whether she cashes in and wins her second major remains to be seen.

5) Azahara Munoz - Eight top 10's this season symbolizes a huge turn around for Munoz, who struggled throughout 2013. Munoz could have easily won a few times this season, had she not been outplayed on Sunday by several different competitors. With this event in Europe, Munoz should have extra motivation.

4) Stacy Lewis - This is a major that I'm not sure really suits her, but you never count Stacy Lewis out of any event. Has only one top 10 in her last five events, which means, despite her brilliant season up until now, her number one ranking and her Player Of The Year Award are both in jeopardy if she does not perform well down the stretch.

3) Inbee Park - Has finished 3-1-2-4 in her last four events, with her victory being at the LPGA Championship. Former winner of this event. Only reaches number three because I have more confidence in the top two players, but an Inbee Park victory would not be surprising to me.

2) Suzann Pettersen - Defending champion is finally 100% healthy and rolling in with confidence. May be the most under the radar player in the top 5, seeing as she's the only one of that group that has lost rankings points this season. Positive environment and course familiarity should give Pettersen a real shot to repeat.

1) Lydia Ko - Has followed up good tournaments with bad ones, and vice versa all season. Her most recent event was the Canadian Open, where she finished T55, so a good tournament should be upcoming. Poised and confidence well beyond her years. Given how well she has played this year, she should be the next in line to win a major.

FedEx Cup Reset

It has been four weeks since I wrote my preview for the FedEx Cup where I pretty much got everything wrong that I could have possibly gotten wrong. What I keep forgetting, year after year, is that the rest of the schedule doesn't really matter when the FedEx Cup rolls around. In the end, it's what you do in these last four weeks that will determine the FedEx Cup champion, and just because you've had a good year, doesn't mean you're going to play well when the lights are brightest.

So, now we head to East Lake to put a ribbon on the 2013-2014 season, which was literally the longest season in PGA Tour history. The grind has already worn players down, including Phil Mickelson, who withdrew last week after the second round, siting "mental fatigue", which kept him out of the Tour Championship for the first time since the FedEx Cup was instituted. After three weeks of the Playoffs, I have officially learn nothing except that only the mentally tough survive the long hall. With that in mind, here are my top 5 picks The Tour Championship.

5) Hideki Matsuyama - Why not? I've ran with him all season, and while he has struggled as of late, his youth and his confidence should mean he isn't completely worn out by the brutal Playoff schedule.

4) Sergio Garcia - I just wonder if he's going to be able to close the deal on Sunday if he is within striking distance of the lead. We've seen it time and time again with Garcia where he makes a charge and comes close only to lose it on one hole coming down the stretch. His top 5 finish last week gives me reason to believe he can contend at East Lake, but I don't think he can win with the pressure on him.

3) Rickie Fowler - This is his last opportunity to grab a victory and cap off his impressive 2014 with a win. Fowler seems to contend in every event he's in these days but still only has one PGA Tour victory to his name, which is a shame considering his talent and his personality. He's going to go all out for this one, which means he'll be there at the end.

2) Billy Horschel - Finished top 5 in two straight events, including a victory last week. I worry if he'll slump after breaking through a second time, but Horschel was able to put the disappointment of coming up short two weeks ago behind him, so I think he'll be able to put last week behind him, as well. May be the best American not selected to the Ryder Cup team. If he win the FedEx Cup, I wonder if Tom Watson gets a mulligan.

1) Rory McIlroy - Has one bad round or one bad hole that has kept him from winning the last two Playoff events, but Rory knew going into these events that all he needed was to be top 5 entering East Lake in order to have a chance. He's in the top 5 with only 28 other players in the field. Rory should come out on top.

Ryder Cup Teams Set

It's been a long week for me, as I've been laid up in bed, sicker than a dog. That's why you haven't heard much from me this week. That, and there hasn't been a whole lot going on in the golf world. The LPGA is off, the PGA Tour enters the third of what seems to be an endless FedEx Cup Playoffs. The only real notable news is the fact that both Ryder Cup captains made their wild card selections.

The first to announce his picks was European Captain Paul McGinley, who wasted no time and was straight forward with his picks, which were Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, and Stephen Gallacher. With those picks, here is how the team now looks:

Rory McIlroy
Henrik Stenson
Victor Dubuisson
Jamie Donaldson
Sergio Garcia
Justin Rose
Martin Kaymer
Thomas Bjorn
Graeme McDowell
Lee Westwood
Ian Poulter
Stephen Gallacher

Later that evening, American captain Tom Watson spent a half hour beating around the bush before finally announcing that Keegan Bradley, Hunter Mahan, and Webb Simpson would be joining his team. With the announcement of the three Ryder Cup veterans, here is how Team USA looks:

Bubba Watson
Rickie Fowler
Jim Furyk
Jimmy Walker
Phil Mickelson
Matt Kuchar
Jordan Speith
Patrick Reed
Zach Johnson
Keegan Bradley
Hunter Mahan
Webb Simpson

The obvious advantage lies with Team Europe, who has home field advantage, who won the last three Ryder Cup matches, and who has the better team, at least on paper. Rory McIlroy should be a work horse, and he will play in all five matches. With the way he has been playing, he could easily win them all. Stenson won the FedEx Cup and European Order Of Merit last year, Sergio played well in the majors this season, and Martin Kaymer won the US Open going away. There is a lot of fire power there...but  am not as convinced that this will be a blow out as I originally expected. McGinley was almost forced into taking Poulter and Westwood because of their experience, but they are not going in with any kind of form. Jamie Donaldson has played well in Europe, but looked weak in big events this season, same as Gallacher. Dubuisson is brand new to these proceedings, and Bjorn is an inconsistent player.

That's not to say the US isn't without their problems. In fact, they are riddled with issues, as Phil Mickelson has only one top 10 this season, Furyk has had serious problems with Sundays, Zach Johnson can't find his putter, and Bubba Watson has been quiet since he won the Masters. Perhaps that is more of the issue. It is less about the firepower that Team Europe has, and more about the firepower that is missing from Team USA. None of these players jump out at you as someone who has had a terrific season, and will shake the cages and get his team fired up.

Here is what can be said about the Ryder Cup, though - expect the unexpected. These events rarely go as you expect them. Every player starts from scratch, and someone like Patrick Reed, who has struggled since his hot start, could be a vocal, fiery personality that gets his team pumped up. You never know. As it stands right now, however, it is safe to say Team Europe are the favorites. Still, I can not wait for these matches to start!