JoePa's PGA CHAMPIONSHIP Picks

[joepa66]

THE PGA CHAMPIONSHIP
Last major of the year......good time for someone to make a big splash!

ROBERT ALLENBY 80/1 TO WIN OUTRIGHT & 13/2 TO FINISH TOP 10 - Had him on my short list last week and dropped him at the last minute. He's been kind to my wallet in the past and with the new claw grip when putting---thanks to Vijay---he finished T2nd last week at Firestone. Great recent form for Allenby who also has a T4th at the Jude, T5th at Honda, T11th at Arnie's, and a T14th at The Players. He's pretty much the whole package without a major win ranking 10th in total driving, 12th in scoring average, 8th in fairway proximity, 3rd in proximity to the hole from sand, 9th in GIR from 100+ yards, 22nd in overall GIR, and 8th in ball striking. Just 2 Top10s in 15 starts at Hazeltine with his best a 10th in 2002.

STEVE STRICKER 13/2 TO FINISH TOP 5 - Odds for him to win are 33/1 and to finish inside the Top10 are just 3/1. You can see why when you find he's got 8 Top10s in 2009 that includes 2 wins. He's also posted Top25s in 8 of 13 majors he's played in, with 9 Top10 finishes in majors---5 since the 2006 US Open. He's ranked 2nd in the FedEx standings, T6th at The Masters and was 23rd in the this year's US Open. He's 23rd in GIR, T5th in putts per green in GIR, and leads the tour in scrambling. He's 2/11 in Top10s at the PGA!

HUNTER MAHAN 6/1 TO FINISH TOP 5 - Mahan has finished in the Top20 in 6 of the last 10 majors he's played in with 2 Top10s in 2009 (T6th US Open and T10th at The Masters). He's also missed just 1 cut in 18 tour starts this year, is 17th in GIR and 14th in scoring average. He's still looking for a major and is Tigeresque when he's hot with the flat stick---meaning deadly---as he ranked 4th in average distance of putts made, is 10th in putting from 25+ feet and 6th in putting from 5 to 15 feet. Since June 1st his worst finish is a T14th at The Memorial. He's 0 fer 3 in Top10s at the PGA with two cuts. Looking more at recent form of course!

LEE WESTWOOD 11/2 TO FINISH TOP 5 - He's a grinder with Top10s in each of his last 4 starts (his worst being 9th) and ended the WGC Bridgestone with a final round 65 at Firestone, a course with major course caliber which should be great prep for Hazeltine. He just missed capturing his first major at Turnberry needing only to 2-putt the final hole, lost in a playoff to Martin Kaymer at the Open de France and finished in the Top10 at the Barclays Scottish Open. He's ranked 6th on the Euro Tour where he has 3 Top10s, T3rd at The Open and the two finishes mentioned above a 2nd and T8th.

MIGUEL ANGEL JIMENEZ 10/1 TO FINISH TOP 10 - He just get it's done, period! In his last 6 tournaments, "The Mechanic" as he is known on the Euro Tour has 2 Top10s, 4 Top15s, 5 Top20s and 6 Top25s......his finishes have been T25th, T4th at the BMW International, T13th at the Barclays Scottish Open, T13th at The Open Championship, T17th at the Moravia Silesia, and T6th last week at the WGC Bridgestone. He's a 70% GIR shooter, has a 70.52 scoring average, is 63% in hitting fairways, and is very workmanlike.....aptly nicknamed but it's really a reference to his penchant for high performance cars. He drives a bright red Ferrari!

[joepa66]

LEE WESTWOOD 11/2 TO FINISH TOP 5......WINNER!