Furyk Takes Lead, Eyes Tour Championship Lottery

The trademark stare of Jim Furyk has one eye closed and the other eye fixated on the ball heading to his intended target. Sunday could reveal two potential targets for Furyk, with the first and foremost being his third win of the season, which could give him the points needed to walk away with the $10 million FedEx Cup prize, and a potential shoe-in for PGA Tour Player of the Year honors.

But it won’t be easy. Furyk needs a little help to win the cup money. And here’s how it pans out for him. For starters, obviously he has to win tomorrow. Then he needs Matt Kuchar to finish in a four-way tie for fourth or worse, which might end up happening. The Georgia Tech grad has struggled this week at the friendly confines of East Lake, and goes into the final round tomorrow 12 shots off the lead, currently tied for 23rd place. After that, he needs Dustin Johnson to finish tied for 4th or worse, of which looks more than likely to happen. DJ is having a dismal showing this week in the Tour Championship finale, unable to break par in each of his first three rounds. He’s +7 for the event, tied for 27th.

But here’s where things start to get a little uncertain, where the ebb and flow of the final round really becomes the pressure cooker. Charley Hoffman’s round of 1-under 69 on Saturday moved him to 3-under for the event, 5 shots back of the lead. He goes into tomorrow’s round in solo 7th place. Furyk needs Hoffman to finish tied for 3rd place or worse. If Hoffman puts together a nice round Sunday, then obviously that makes things that much more iffy for Furyk.

Then Furyk also has to concern himself with Steve Stricker. Strick had his troubles in the opening round, but has battled back with 2-under par rounds on Friday and Saturday to get back to even par for the event. He’s currently 8 shots back of Furyk, but still tied for 12th overall. If Strick can somehow manage a round of 5 or 6 under par on Sunday, Furyk’s shot at $10 million dwindles considerably. If Stricker finishes in a 3-way tie for second or worse, Furyk clears the Stricker hurdle.

At that point there’s only one guy left standing to deal with – the guy who would love to take advantage of Monty’s Ryder Cup snubbage with a cool $10 million to spend over the next couple of weeks while on vacation – Paul Casey. Furyk needs Casey to finish in a tie for 2nd or worse, but Casey’s not entirely out of this himself. He’s 4 shots back of the lead heading into tomorrow’s final round, and it’s not out of the question that Casey comes away with the money, even if he doesn’t put a great Sunday round together and win. Get this – if Furyk wins the tour championship at East Lake, and Paul Casey finishes solo-second, and Charley Hoffman finishes solo third – Paul Casey wins the $10 million. How’s that for a tricked up finish?

Wow, I tell ya… this is confusing. But that’s for another discussion. If you’re really interested in reading all about the different scenarios and how it could all play out tomorrow, click HERE.

Just take my word for it  – while we might not know what exactly needs to happen tomorrow for someone in particular to win the FedEx Cup, trust that a handful of those guys who are still eyeing the prize do. Hoffman, Casey, Stricker, and Furyk will somehow each play a part in who wins. And it’s worth noting that Luke Donald isn’t out of the picture either, not by a long shot… nor is Retief Goosen.

My own observations: Finchem and company might think that their tweaking has created quite the scenario for an exciting finish of the PGA Tour season, and maybe it has. But it sure as hell hasn’t been easy to cover or explain. I might add that for me personally – give me 36 holes of matchplay… two players, the two best players from the field of 70 onward. Matchplay format at the BMW, and again at East Lake. They could do this. They could work this out. We don’t see enough matchplay on tour, and I couldn’t think of a better time for it to play out. Keep all of the confusing formulas and scenarios out of it, just work it to where you have two guys competing for the money. Tomorrow I will be so wrapped up in trying to figure out how in the hell the story is gonna end, that I’m not going to be able to fully enjoy watching the plot unfold.

Someone’s gonna say, “watching Ben Crane play Martin Laird for $10 million just ain’t gonna reel in the ratings.” Well, oh well…. Where’s Tiger this week? He’s not here. How about Mickelson? He’s here, but doesn’t have a chance in hell. He’s not gonna get much coverage on Sunday. The two top players in the world and they’re non-factors. What’s the difference? Give us something we can at least appreciate as fans of the game, not fans of one or two players. Well, that’s my take anyway.

SATURDAY ACTION AT EAST LAKE, PGATOUR.COM RECAP

Day of Judgement: Pavin Announces Picks for Ryder Cup Team

Not sure that I’ve ever witnessed such a building prelude to an upcoming Ryder Cup event. Questions about whether or not Tiger Woods would be on the team basically surfaced no sooner than he missed that first cut of the season back in May at Quail Hollow, and reached a fevered pitch last month when a Golf Channel reporter (Jim Gray) essentially threatened 2010 Ryder Cup Captain Corey Pavin in a BEHIND-THE-SCENES DUSTUP on the matter. Gray accused Pavin of lying, reporting that Pavin confided to him that Woods would be on the team. Pavin addressed the media afterwards, stating that he said no such thing, and that it would be a huge disservice to the rest of the guys who were in the process of trying to play their way onto the team. Jim Gray approached Corey Pavin afterward and a shouting match ensued, with Gray pointing a finger in Pavin’s face and telling him, “You’re going down!”

Aside from the Tiger Woods dilemma that Pavin had to address seemingly every day of his life, his primary task was selecting four players who he felt had earned the right to represent his team in the upcoming event. Today that process finally ended, as Corey Pavin announced his four captain’s picks for next month’s Ryder Cup in Wales.

2009 British Open Champion Stewart Cink learned that he would be making his fifth appearance on a US Ryder Cup team next month. Cink has a 4-7-4 career record in the Ryder Cup, and brings a ton of experience with him next month to Celtic Manor.

Zach Johnson will be teeing it up in his second Ryder Cup appearance. Zach was on the team back in 2006, played in four matches, with a 1-2-1 record. Johnson won the Colonial back in May, and finished one shot back of a playoff at the PGA Championship earlier last month. Johnson has found some spring in his step inside the ropes as of late, and it was enough to win Pavin’s approval.

His sixth Ryder Cup appearance marks the first time that he’s ever found himself having to compete for a captain’s selection – naturally we’re talking about Tiger Woods. But he’s in. Pavin announced on Tuesday that he was impressed with Tiger’s desire to play on the team, as well as his commitment to get his game in shape over the past few months. Tiger wasn’t a part of the successful 2008 US Ryder Cup team captained by Paul Azinger, as he was out due to injury. Woods’ career record in the event is 10-13-2.

Corey’s final pick, he admits, wasn’t easy. He called it a “gut feeling.” That final selection was given to an upcoming star on the PGA Tour, a player who is embarking on what will most likely be several more future Ryder Cup appearances – tour rookie Rickie Fowler. Although this is Fowler’s first experience representing his country as a professional, it’s not his first rodeo as a competitive golfer. Last year Fowler went 4-0 in the Walker Cup at Merion, and has a 7-1 career record in two appearances in the Walker Cup overall.

So here’s the official 2010 US Ryder Cup team, followed by career Ryder Cup performances:

Tiger Woods, 10-13-2
Bubba Watson, Ryder Cup Rookie
Steve Stricker, 0-2-1
Jeff Overton, Ryder Cup Rookie
Phil Mickelson, 10-14-6
Hunter Mahan, 2-0-3
Matt Kuchar, Ryder Cup Rookie
Zach Johnson, 1-2-1
Dustin Johnson, Ryder Cup Rookie
Jim Furyk, 8-13-3
Rickie Fowler, Ryder Cup Rookie
Stewart Cink, 4-7-4

Scouting the Deutsche Bank Championship

The second round of the PGA Tour Playoffs gets underway on Friday, as the top 100 players in the FedEx Cup points standings prepare to do battle at TPC Boston in the Deutsche Bank Championship. In what should promise to be a great holiday weekend of golf, with a Monday finish no less, lots of interesting story lines abound heading into the action this week.

Notable Contenders

It’s difficult to not include Tiger Woods in the conversation this week. Coming off of a solid ball striking performance last week at the Barclays Tournament, where Woods led the field in driving accuracy for the event, he could finally be a factor heading into Monday. But for Tiger to breakthrough this week and get his first win of the season, he has to once again become the “boss of the moss” and at least get on speaking terms again with his putter. I’ll go out on a limb and say that if Woods can get off to a solid start on Friday, he gets that first post-Elin win this week at TPC Boston.

A Rose is not a Rose by any other name, especially if his name is Justin and was snubbed by Colin Montgomerie for the Ryder Cup team despite having two wins this season. I think Justin Rose has an opportunity this week to prove just how badly Montgomerie goofed in leaving him off the team, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Englishman hold the grudge well enough to factor into the picture on Monday. He’s got a great pairing for the first two rounds – playing with Ernie Els and Dustin Johnson. The winner this week could very well come from this pairing. If Rose were to win, he would be the first player this year on the PGA Tour to win three events, and Colin Montgomerie becomes the most hated man in all of Europe.

Phil Mickelson doesn’t seem into it this fall. Maybe his arthritic condition is worse than he’s let on, or maybe he’s still distracted with the health of both his wife and mother. But Lefty’s game is nowhere to be found, and he’s not emitting a lot of positive vibes in his interviews recently. I think Phil manages the cut this week, but his dream of becoming number one in the world officially ends.

Steve Stricker has a history in September…. a good one. He’s the only player on tour who has played in each round of every event in the fall playoff series since its’ inception three years ago. If there’s a player in the field who could win this week and then win again next week at the BMW, Strick’s the guy. I like his chances this week at TPC Boston.

Jim Furyk was not upset about the change in the pro-am policy that led to his DQ last week. “I think people are wondering whether I’m going to be upset that they changed it. That couldn’t be farther than the case. I think there were enough players who were not in favor of the rule. I think the commissioner himself said he didn’t like the rule in hindsight. Therefore, I think the best option, the best scenario, was to go ahead and change it as quick as possible.” (courtesy of THIS article at PGATOUR.COM) Looking ahead to this week, Furyk comes into TPC Boston on a mission. And it helps that it’s a course that suits his eye, as Jim has finished inside the top-10 the last two times he’s played here. This very well could be “Sleeping Beauty’s” tournament to lose this week.

Rory McIlroy might be last on my list of notables, but he’s my overall pick this week to win. He’ll have to play better than he played last week at the Barclays, but I don’t see two consecutive letdowns coming. Of all the players in the field, I think this kid is the one player who could go on an absolute tear in golf, and I think he gets it done this week at TPC Boston.

Underdog Picks

With a field this strong, it’s really hard to list a lot of players as potential underdogs. But I’m gonna throw a couple of names out there who might make some noise this week. Jeff Overton – the guy is a streaky player. He’s got 6 top-10’s this season and has finished runner-up on three different occasions. If he can manage his emotions, he’s certainly got the game to contend this week. Sean O’Hair is the other underdog pick. Sean’s struggled with his consistency this season, but his game is finally starting to come around. He finished 5th at the WGC Bridgestone three weeks ago, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him become a factor as Monday approaches.

Tournament News

The biggest news item this week will be Hurricane Earl as it is predicted to move closely to the Boston area sometime Friday afternoon. The tour has moved the tee times up in the morning to get as many holes in as they can, but very few are confident that the weather will hold out for completion of play for the first round. And depending on what weather comes with the storm, it could make the course play totally different than what they players have experienced in their practice rounds earlier this week. By the looks of things, it could be another lift, clean, and place situation again this week.

Kenny Perry withdrew from this week’s event, officially ending his FedEx Cup run this season. Perry was 93rd in the FedEx Cup point standings heading into the week and needed a solid showing to advance to next week’s tournament at Cog Hill, but the 50-yr-old has decided that he needs some time to rest and recharge his batteries.

Click HERE for the Friday pairings and starting times for this week’s Deutsche Bank Championship.

The Past Week in Pro Golf: My Take

Paula Creamer Wins Women’s US Open

Just a few months ago, Paula Creamer wasn’t certain that she would ever play golf again. A nagging thumb injury would require surgery, and as a result she would end up missing a good portion of the first half of the tour season. In retrospect, maybe the time away from the game did her some good.

Last week we saw a different Paula Creamer than what we’ve become accustomed to seeing in major tournament settings of the past. She appeared to have a genuine eagerness to simply be out on a golf course competing again. Instead of seeing someone who would struggle with her emotions and the high level of expectations that were placed upon her, a confident, relaxed player had somehow emerged from the past four months away from the spotlight. She’s always had the talent and the desire to win, but last week she had the perfect mindset as well, as she played the most outstanding golf of her career. Well done, Ms. Creamer. May it be the first of many more to come.

Steve Stricker’s Remarkable Comeback Continues

After holing the last putt on the 72nd hole in the John Deere Classic last Sunday, Steve Stricker admitted that he’d gotten away from his strategy that had given him a 6-shot cushion heading into the final round on Sunday. “It’s a position you want to be in, you know, with a big lead, but you know, you have everything to lose, and this is exactly the same way I felt at Northern Trust. It was difficult. It’s a hard round to play. I wasn’t the same player as I was for three days, for sure, today. And you’re just afraid to make a mistake, and that’s hard to play golf that way.”

But just as he did back in the Northern Trust tournament at Riviera earlier in the year, Stricker somehow kept it together well enough to come away with the win, earning him his second victory of the season. The PGA Championship is a little over a month away, the final major of the year. It will be played at Whistling Straits, a links-style course in Stricker’s home state of Wisconsin, where he hopes to add a major championship title to his ever-growing resume of accomplishments. There could be no better time or place for Stricker to define his remarkable comeback story.

A Round Like No Other: Goydos Becomes 4th Player in PGA Tour History to Shoot 59

Al Geiberger did it back in 1977. Chip Beck did it 14 years later, in 1991. Eight years would pass before it would be done again, courtesy of David Duval at the Bob Hope back in 1999. Last week during the opening round of the John Deere Classic, the 4th player in the history of the PGA Tour posted that ever-elusive round in the coveted 50’s – Paul Goydos. Goydos couldn’t keep pace with Steve Stricker last week, but he did make a Sunday charge to keep Stricker honest. Goydos finished two shots back of Stricker, and in addition to having his name permanently etched in the annals of scoring history, he also earned a trip to St. Andrews for the Open Championship this week. It was certainly a memorable week for Paul Goydos.