Continuing the west coast swing this week as the TOUR stops at Torrey Pines for the Farmers Insurance Open. Two courses will be featured this week, Torrey Pines North & South. The South course measures the longest on the PGA TOUR at 7,698 yards so the bombers could fair well this week on there. Last year Bubba Watson led the field in driving distance as well as GIR and proximity to the hole for the week. Look out for Bubba again this week as he’s riding high off of his latest purchase of the General Lee from the Dukes of Hazard!

The Picks

A Group - Lefty looked a little rusty coming out of the gate last week, and I was patting myself on the back for not picking him. However, he came on strong finishing his last three rounds at -12. This is also pretty much in Phil’s backyard and he’s chalked up three wins and seven other top 10s over the years here. I’d say those are some good results. Backing him up I like Nick Watney who’s also had great success at Torrey, with a win in 2009 as well as a T6 last year.

B Group – Gotta go with Bubba to start in the B group. The returning champ will have an advantage on the long South course, and could eat up the North course as well that measures just over 7,000 yards. He’s getting a lot of attention this week with his General Lee purchase, so backing it up with a win would make for some great Tweets. I’m leaving Dustin Johnson off the roster again this week. Proved well for me last week after he WD in round 1 due to back pain (NOT the knee). But until I see some results I’m being cautious. Instead I’ll start D.A. Points who had a great west coast swing last year (including a T5 at the Farmers last year), and posted a T12 and a T6 respectively in Hawaii so far this year.

C Group – I’m going out on a limb and taking rookie Bud Cauley to start. The 21 year old rookie has some serious game and so far has a scoring average of 68.75 in the early season. He seems to start hot, and slip a bit on the weekends so I’m hoping the hot start trend continues this week. Ben Crane, also a past Farmers champion (2010) is coming off of two top 10s in his only two events of the year, and will be on the bench to start. He defended his Farmers title last year with a respectable T14 so he obviously plays Torrey well.

Starting Foursome: Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson, D.A. Points, Bud Cauley
On the Bench: Nick Watney, Harrison Frazer, Rickie Fowler, Ben Crane

The boys head back to the mainland this week for the Humana Challenge in Partnership with the Clinton Foundation, which has the distinction of having the absolute longest name of a tournament known to man. Seriously, I’d like to see what those logo balls look like. The Humana (formerly known as the Bob Hope Classic) is a multi-course event, featuring three courses throughout the four days. Over the years Phil Mickelson has owned this event, with two wins, and is the all-time leading money winner of this event. It’s his first tournament of the year, so he’ll be an interesting one to watch.

The Picks

A Group – With all that being said above, I’m actually staying away from Lefty this week. I  think he’s too much of a question mark at this point. Instead I’ll opt for another guy making his debut this week, Matt Kuchar. Kuchar is hungry after going winless in 2011, and he comes to La Quinta with top 10s in his last two starts there, including a T2 in 2010. Backing him up I like Charles Howell III, who’s hot after a great showing last week at the Sony (T2). 

B Group – Another big name I’ll be staying away from this week is Dustin Johnson. DJ is coming off of arthroscopic knee surgery in the off-season and the state of his game at this point is anybody’s guess. It’s hard to stay away from Bill Haas in this group and I’m not even thinking about it. Haas won this event in 2010 and lost in a playoff last year. Bo Van Pelt is also making his 2012 debut this week, and he’s coming off of a huge end to his season in 2011 with five top 10s in his last seven starts, capping it all off with a win in Malaysia. Harrison Frazer is a solid guy off the bench after posting T5 and T2 in his last two starts respectively. He’s on the bench to start because of not a great history at this event.

C Group – Brian Gay is coming off a T6 at the Sony and has a solid history at the Humana/Hope, with a T5 last year. Look for him to hit plenty of fairways (as his usual) this week, and if his putter is hot he’ll be dangerous.

Starting Foursome: Matt Kuchar, Bill Haas, Bo Van Pelt, Brian Gay
On the Bench: Charles Howell III, Harrison Frazer, Brendan de Jong, Martin Laird

The TOUR stays put this week in Hawaii for The Sony Open where they will be teeing it up at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu. It’s the first full field event of 2012 and features 18 of the players from last week’s Hyundai Tournament of Champions (2011 winners), along with a whole slew of rookies. Rookies haven’t fared well at the Sony in the past with only one top 10 since 2009 by a rookie. So be careful if you’re going out on a limb with a first timer on your roster this week. Last year Mark Wilson picked up the first of his two wins last year here at the Sony (he picked up the second just 2 weeks later at the Waste Management Phoenix Open). Wilson is in the field again this week after a respectable T18 last week in Maui.

The Picks

A Group – It’s hard to stay away from Steve Stricker after his win at the Hyundai last week, shooting a total -23 and winning by a three stroke margin. Stricker will be on my roster, however riding the bench to start with KJ Choi getting the nod. Last year I started Stricker too much early on in the season and got in to a pickle late in the season. So be careful and watch your 10 start max! Choi won here in 2008 and is coming off of a closing round 65 last week and a T5 finish.

B Group – Not a ton of choices in the B group this week, which features a lot of rookies that I will be staying away from. Returning champion Mark Wilson, will get the start here. Last year he posted four rounds in the 60’s en route to his two stroke victory over Tim Clark. So he obviously plays Waialae well. Chris Kirk has started his sophomore season well with a T7 last week at the Hyundai and will fill up my other starting spot.

C Group – Jonathan Byrd proved again last week that he loves playing in Hawaii. Byrd’s title defense at the Hyundai almost resulted in a repeat win, with a T3 finish. He’ll carry that momentum this week at the Sony, where he’ll be looking to improve on a not so great record at Waialae. He’s managing the winding conditions well, which will be in effect again this week, as they always are in Hawaii. Jerry Kelly will be in reserve who’s had great success at the Sony who’s had two top 10s since 2008.

Starting Foursome: KJ Choi, Chris Kirk, Mark Wilson, Jonathan Byrd
On the Bench: Steve Stricker, Jimmy Walker, Brendan de Jong, Jerry Kelly

I also wanted to note that we ended up filling up the first Fantasy League for New England Golf Monthly, but also created a second league for overflow and anyone still interested. There are segment prizes and a grand prize of a golf vacation for 4 people. If you’d still like to play, email me at jeff@goodwalkgolf.com and let me know, I’ll send you the invite with all the details.

It’s a limited field this week, with only tournament winners from 2011 being invited. That means no Tiger (as if he would have played anyways!) and no Phil (same as Tiger). There are however plenty of newly minted stars from last year in the field this week. Players like Keegan Bradley, Jhonny Vegas, Brendan Steele, and Scott Stallings were all rookie winners on Tour last year and are in the field this week. This tournament also features a no cut format as well.

The Picks

A Group – There’s only a handful of players to choose from in this group, although two of the biggest stars from 2011 headline the group. I’ll be starting Keegan Bradley who obviously won Rookie of the Year, but also had quite a good “silly season” as well winning the PGA Grand Slam in Bermuda, and won the Franklin Templeton Shootout with his buddy Brendan Steele. Webb Simpson gave Luke Donald a serious run for his money as POY last year, and will take the bench to start.

B Group – The long hitters can and will tear up Kapalua. The B group features two of the games longest hitters in Gary Woodland and Bubba Watson. Bubba just shot a 58 on his home course and we’ll see how that translates to his first tournament since firing that. Gary and Bubba both get the start this week with FedEx Cup Champ Bill Haas and David Toms in reserve.

C Group – Returning champ Jonathan Byrd has never finished worse than T15 in four trips to this tournament. Byrd gets the nod with Aaron Baddeley on the bench. Badds played extremely well globally during the off season with three top 10s in four appearances.

Starting Foursome: Keegan Bradley, Bubba Watson, Gary Woodland, Jonathan Byrd
On the Bench: Webb Simpson, Bill Haas, David Toms, Aaron Baddeley

I also wanted to note that I’ve set up a private league in Yahoo! for New England Golf Monthly magazine and will be the commish. There are segment prizes and a grand prize of a golf vacation for 4 people. If you’d like to play, email me at jeff@goodwalkgolf.com and let me know, I’ll send you the invite with all the details.

• Two victories
• 7 top 10’s
• 3 runner-ups
• Finished 2nd in the FedEx Cup race
• 2011 PGA Tour Money title (all but a formality now)

You can’t argue that Luke Donald has had himself a fantastic year either. It seemed every tournament he entered it was a top 10 lock. He came away with only one victory on the season, but has been atop the OWGR for the past five months now and doesn’t show signs of letting up on his grip there. Donald extended his consistent play worldwide and looks to potentially lead the Order of Merit on the European Tour. Not discounting anything that Donald has done, but I give the edge to Simpson for the Player of the Year honors. What do you think?

View This Poll

There were a lot of memorable golf shots on TOUR this year. Some memorable for the wrong reasons. Rory McIlroy hitting his second shot from somebody’s bushes along the 10th hole at Augusta National en route to his final round meltdown. Or Dustin Johnson hitting his second shot out of bounds at the par 5 14th hole during the British Open. But I think the most memorable GOOD shot has to be Haas’, hands down. It belongs in the same category as Mickelson’s shot on the 13th of the 2010 Masters.

Palopoli vs. Emerson

Jeff Palopoli

Current Points: 5394
Points Last Week: 170
Percentage: 97th

Luke Donald keeps plugging along and continues to play consistent, solid golf. If not for an opening round 75 last week at the BMW, he may have won the tournament. But just another ho-hum 4th place. That’s four top 10s in his last five starts (three of those are actually top 5s). Donald finished in 2nd last year at East Lake, and I look for him to be taking home the Cup when all is said and done.

Webb Simpson currently leads in the FedEx Cup points standings, and followed up his win at the DBC with yet another solid showing at the BMW (solo 5th). He’s making his first appearance at East Lake this year. Simpson led the field in GIR last week at Cog Hill and continues to lead the TOUR in the all-around category. Not to mention coming off of four straight top 10s (which includes 2 victories). I like Simpson to start in the B group along with David Toms. Toms was on a bit of a slide until last week where he looked to have found some of his old form and finished T10th.

For the C group Adam Scott gets the start. N0t a fantastic showing last week, but rebounded nicely with a final round 68. Jason Day is a solid back up who finished T17 in his first appearance at East Lake last year.

Starting Foursome: Luke Donald, Webb Simpson, David Toms, Adam Scott
On the bench: Matt Kuchar, Justin Rose, John Senden, Jason Day

Patrick Emerson

Current points: 5283
Points last week: 146
Current percentile: 94th

The final week is here and it is time for the Tour Championship.  After three weeks of picking nearly the same roster there are a few changes this week.

The A list has three guys I’d like to pick.  Luke Donald gets the start after finishing 3rd and 4th in the last two tournaments.  Between Matt Kuchar and Dustin Johnson, I am going with Kuchar on the bench this week.

Steve Stricker would be a popular pick but after withdrawing at Cog Hill for neck pain, I’d be a little cautious about starting him.  I’ll start Webb Simpson and David Toms.  Toms isn’t in the mix for the Fed Ex Cup, but has a great record at East Lake.  John Senden and Hunter Mahan get the bench.

I’m going to pass on Adam Scott this week and start Brandt Snedeker.  He has two T3s in the playoffs.  Jason Day get the bench.

Starting foursome: Luke Donald, Webb Simpson, David Toms, Brandt Snedeker
Bench players: Matt Kuchar, John Senden, Hunter Mahan, Jason Day

Palopoli vs. Emerson

Jeff Palopoli

Current Points: 5224
Points Last Week: 180
Percentage: 96th

There are some tough choices to be made within the A group this week. Many guys like Luke Donald, Dustin Johnson, Matt Kuchar, and Phil Mickelson all could do very well this week. Ultimately I like Luke Donald to start yet again for me this week. Another fantastic finish at the DBC two weeks ago (T3) and now has three top 10s in his last four starts. It’s also a bit of a coming home party for him as he makes his home near the Chicago area. Dustin Johnson is the returning champion to Cog Hill and despite a rough finish at the DBC (T42) I like him coming off the bench. He led the field in driving distance AND accuracy at the TPC Boston two weeks ago, and I’m hoping that trend continues.

Webb Simpson obviously has done nothing to make me NOT want to start him. The 26 year old has chalked up two victories in his last three consecutive starts. He’s been one of the most consistent players on TOUR all year, and very well could be our FedEx Cup champion in a couple weeks. Camilo Villegas gets the start for the other B group slot. His game is really starting to come around with a T9 at the Wyndham and a T6 at The Barclays. He led the field in birdies at the DBC two weeks ago as well, is a former champion at the BMW (2008) and has finished T8 and T11 the last  two years respectively at this event.

For the C group I like Brandt Snedeker to start. Since the Playoffs began he’s been on absolute fire and has finished T3 in both Playoff events thus far. Backing him up will be Adam Scott who has four top 10s in his last six starts, including one victory.

Starting Foursome: Luke Donald, Webb Simpson, Camilo Villegas, Brandt Snedeker
On the bench: Dustin Johnson, Bo Van Pelt, David Toms, Adam Scott

Patrick Emerson

Current points: 5137
Points last week: 155
Current percentile: 93rd

There are two weeks left in the fantasy golf season. By now you may have run out of starts for one or two of your favorites. I imagine Kuchar, Donald, Stricker and Watney are low on starts for a lot of you.

There are three players I’d like to start on the A list.  Luke Donald can’t seem to finish outside of the top 10 and Cog Hill is basically a home game for him. Matt Kuchar hasn’t won, but has been consistently in contention. Dustin Johnson has a win and is the defending champion at Cog Hill.  You can’t go wrong with any of these guys.  I’m going to start Donald and bench DJ.  Kuchar is great, but I think after an off week DJ will be back near the top of the leaderboard.

Steve Stricker would be an automatic start, but I ran out of starts for him last week.  Webb Simpson is the hottest player on tour with two wins in the last three events. I doubt he can win a third, but he should contend. Charl Schwartzel will also get the start. Charl has been steady in the playoffs with a T12 and T21. On the bench I’ll play Bubba Watson and Hunter Mahan, both who impressed with T16 and T8 in the last tournament.

For the third week in a row the C list picks will be the same, Jason Day and Adam Scott. They’ve been in the mix in every playoff event so far. I’ll start Day over Scott this week.

Starting foursome: Luke Donald, Webb Simpson, Charl Schwartzel, Jason Day
Bench players: Dustin Johnson, Bubba Watson, Hunter Mahan, Adam Scott

Kentwool's Tour Profile

One of the most important things a golfer can do, especially one that likes to walk the course, is protect their feet. We’ve started to see the barrage of new “casual” golf shoes coming on the market that promote a greater level of comfort. Shoes like TRUE Linkswear’s “TRUE Tour’s” and Ecco’s Street Premier’s are a couple of these examples. I own a pair of the Street’s and can honestly say they are the most comfortable pair of golf shoes I’ve ever owned. Often overlooked is the importance of a good pair of socks while you chase after the little white ball.

Kentwool Golf Socks were created by CEO Mark Kent, who is an avid golfer and set out to create the “World’s Best Golf Sock”. He may have just done exactly that. I recently got my hands on a few pairs of Kentwool’s and became an instant believer. As soon as I slid on a pair of their “Tour Profile’s” it felt like I was giving my foot a nice, warm, soft hug. I took them for an 18 hole test run on an 85 degree day and was impressed by how comfortable they were, and the fact that my feet were completely bone dry after my round. Chalk that up to Kentwool’s moisture-wicking fabric. Unbelievably, the socks were also completely odor free after quite a workout on the course.

One of my true barometer’s when judging a golf sock is if the sock doesn’t bunch up and/or slide under my heel. This wasn’t an issue with the Tour Profile model, as they are a very low ankle sock. I typically wear a “no show” sock, so I’d be interested to try a pair of Kentwool’s “Low Profile” version to see if there is no slippage with those. I’ve found it difficult to find a good pair that doesn’t slide, as the FootJoy ones I’ve had in the past are terrible and slip under my heel almost immediately.

There is a bit of instant sticker shock when looking at the cost for one pair of Kentwool’s. The Low and Tour Profile models come in at $20/pair, while their full length Tour Standard are $25. Coming from someone who is an avid runner, and has dropped a similar amount for running/athletic socks, I can tell you that the price is worth it for your feet. Plus these socks will last much longer than cheaper ones, which may help make up the price differential.

You can buy Kentwool Golf Socks on their website here: http://www.kentwool.com/shop/. If you get a pair, I’d be interested to hear what you think of them!

The ace was Snedeker’s second eagle of the day as he also eagled the par 5 18th hole (his 9th) and went on to fire a 64. He currently sits at -9 and is one stroke back of Bubba Watson’s lead heading in to the Sunday 3rd round.