Fantasy Preview: The Masters

According to Wikipedia, The Masters Tournament, also known as The Masters (sometimes referred to as The U.S. Masters outside of the United States) is one of the four major championships in professional golf. Scheduled for the first full week of April, it is the first of the majors to be played each year. Unlike the other major championships, the Masters is held each year at the same location, Augusta National Golf Club, a private golf club in the city of Augusta, Georgia, USA.

There’s your intro, now on to the picks…

As always, the questionable picks dispensed below are based on Yahoo/PGATour.com league rules.

A-LIST

Phil Mickelson: His dominating performance in Houston left no doubt as to who this week’s favorite is. Lefty is peaking at the right time, shooting a weekend 63-65. He’s as good a bet as anyone to don the green jacket (again) on Sunday.

Nick Watney: He’s been the Tour’s most consistent—and, arguably, best—player all year, leading in scoring average (68.92) and birdies (4.80). What I really like is the short game, as Watney ranks second on the Tour in putting average (1.687 per GIR). He’s gone top 20 in each of his three starts at Augusta, including his first-ever Masters top 10 last April (seventh, including a 65 on Sunday).

B-LIST

Paul Casey: He’s been top 10 three times at Augusta, and he’s hitting a lot of greens (71.30% GIR in four starts). If he starts rolling his putts a bit better, he’ll be right there again this weekend.

Hunter Mahan: Mahan has gone top 10 at Augusta each of the past two years, including a T8 last year. He’s also been solid of late; after going T8 in Houston, he’s been top 10 in three of his past four starts. He’s gotten his putter back on track (1.741 putts per GIR, 30^th on Tour), and if he keeps it up he’s going to be right there on Sunday.

Bubba Watson: He’s the kind of big, high hitter who should thrive at Augusta. The implosion factor is always high with Watson, especially in the majors. But if he could just string together a day or two of steady play…

Justin Rose: Rose has pummeled greens all year (72.82% GIR, third on the Tour) and he’s simply been outstanding of late (T5 at Transitions, T3 at Arnold Palmer before taking a week off). He’ll have extra motivation after missing the Masters a year ago, and he’s always hung around at Augusta. He led after Friday in 2004 before falling apart with a third-round 81. And he finished fifth in 2007. Considering his strong recent play, this could be the year he puts it together.

C-LIST

Anthony Kim: He’s putting it together at the right time. Kim looked solid in Houston, finishing T13 in a week that included a second-round 64, and he has the track record at Augusta (third last year, including a 65 on Sunday, and T20 in ‘09). If you’re looking for a darkhorse, here he is.

Aaron Baddeley: The Aussie is playing arguably the best golf of his career over the past month and a half, including a win at the Northern Trust and a T4 in Houston last week. He broke 70 twice in his last trip to Augusta, finishing T17 in 2009.

Thirsty for fantasy golf brilliance? Or is imbecilic chatter your thing? Hit me up on Twitter.

Fantasy Preview: Northern Trust Open

It’s going to be a long week at the Northern Trust Open as an already difficult Riviera CC course will be even tougher with rain, cool temperatures and overall nastiness in the forecast. Read on to see who has the best chance to channel their inner Tom Watson and take home the title.

As always, the questionable picks dispensed below are based on Yahoo/PGATour.com league rules. 

A-LIST

Phil Mickelson: He’s a two-time winner and all-time money leader at the NTO (as the kids call it). Lefty’s a no-brainer at Riviera.

Luke Donald: It’ll be his first Tour event of the year, and Donald hasn’t shot an above-par round here in his last three appearances, going T3 in 2008, T6 in ’09, and runner-up last year.

B-LIST

Steve Stricker: Stricker returns to the States to defend his Northern Trust title, where he was also runner-up in 2009 and T11 in ‘08. He went top 10 in each of his PGA Tour starts this year, and it’s a pretty good bet that he’ll make it three for three.

Alex Prugh: It's Tuesday, so it must be time for me to recommend Prugh to the fantasy golf world (I swear I'm not his marketing agent ... though Alex, if you're looking for one...). Prugh played well here in a top-10 finish a year ago, especially in the second and third rounds when the weather was at its worst (shooting a 69 and 66). He’s been top 25 in his last two starts, and is just playing solid golf.

Bubba Watson: He’s hammering the ball off the tee as usual, and he’s hitting 78.8 percent of his greens, third-best on the Tour, to boot. He missed the cut at Riviera a year ago, but was top 20 in 2008 and ’09. Consistency has never been his thing, but Watson is playing well right now. And considering the forecast, why not tab a wildcard or two.

Y.E. Yang: He had a top 15 at Riviera last year and went T8 in Phoenix two weeks ago. You could do worse than Yang as some B-list depth. (And if you live in Southern California, please let Y.E. know if you have a couch he can crash on).  

C-LIST

J.B. Holmes: The result was a T13, but there’s no reason to get too giddy about Holmes’ uneven weekend at Pebble Beach. But he’s been top seven at the Northern Trust each of the past three years, and he has a chance to simply power the ball through the rain.

Mike Weir: Sure, a bit of a long shot, but he showed some signs of life Thursday at the AT&T with a 68, and he’s returning to a tournament he’s won twice. Plus, according to Cosmo Kramer, “this baby loves the slop. Loves it, eats it up, eats the slop, born to slop. His father was a mudder. His mother was a mudder.” 

Thirsty for fantasy golf brilliance? Or is imbecilic chatter your thing? Hit me up on Twitter.

(Photo: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

Fantasy Picks for Waste Management Phoenix Open

By Gary Gramling, SI.com

Torrey Pines got some of the Tour's biggest names back in the swing , and now it's off to TPC Scottsdale for what should be a low-scoring weekend at the unfortunately named Waste Management Phoenix Open.

As always, the questionable picks dispensed below are based on Yahoo/PGATour.com league rules.

A-LIST

Phil Mickelson: It's time for lefty to carry your team. He's not only coming off a great showing at Torrey Pines, but he's a two-time champion at Scottsdale and tops the all-time money list at the event.

Nick Watney: He tore up Torrey Pines with a 63 on Sunday, and he's hung around at Scottsdale each of the past two years. If his putter keeps going like it did on Sunday, he'll be right there.

B-LIST

Bubba Watson: Might as well hop onboard the Bubba bandwagon while he's hot. He was magnificent in winning at Torrey Pines, and the fairways in Scottsdale will give him a little more wiggle. He's as long off the tee as ever, which should make for a whole lot of GIRs.

D.J. Trahan: Another long hitter (301.6 yards) who should have another nice week in Scottsdale. He's had back-to-back top 20's in the desert, where his lack of accuracy off the tee hasn't come back to bite him.

Angel Cabrera: El Pato's putter wasn't too shabby at Torrey Pines (1.705 putts per green). As usual, he was long but all over the place off the tee. A poor opening round cost him at Scottsdale in 2009, but he's not a bad guy to stash on your bench for the weekend.

Kevin Na: A risk considering his poor showing at Torrey Pines, but Na has a nice history in Scottsdale, finishing in the top 5 in 2005, '08 and '09. (I know, I said something similar about Ryuji Imada at Torrey Pines last week, but this week I mean it.)

C-LIST

Jhonattan Vegas: After following up his win at the Bob Hope with a third-place showing at Torrey Pines, the Venezuelan rookie has officially reached can't-ignore status. He's had 10 straight rounds in the 60's. There's really just no weakness in his game right now.

J.B. Holmes: The great thing about Holmes (pictured) is that you have no idea what you're going to get. Of course, that's also the terrible thing about Holmes. The long-driving Kentuckian has two career victories, both at this event (2006 and '08). The year after each of those wins, he missed the cut. If you can't get to Vegas this weekend, Holmes is the buy for you.

Thirsty for fantasy golf brilliance? Or is imbecilic chatter your thing? Hit me up on Twitter: @GGramling_SI.

Photo: Stan Badz/Getty Images)

Fantasy picks for the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach

A-Players
Zach Johnson: With conditions expected to be firm and fast, short-knockers like Johnson should be in the mix. The 2007 Masters champion won at Colonial last month, and he ranks ninth in driving accuracy, is deadly with a wedge and is one of the best putters on Tour.

Phil Mickelson: This seems like as good of a time as any for Phil to get his first U.S. Open trophy. "The Thrill" has five second-place finishes at the U.S. Open, and he has won the AT&T three times.

B-Players
Jim Furyk: The 2003 U.S. Open champion already has two victories this season, and he's coming off a T10 at the Memorial. Furyk also tied for second at the 2006 and 2007 Opens.

Rory McIlroy: The 21-year-old tied for 10th in his first U.S. Open last year. Since then he's won at Quail Hollow and become one of the top-10 players in the world.

Lee Westwood: After surviving a grueling week in Memphis, the world No. 3 comes into the U.S. Open fresh off a win and brimming with confidence after finishing in the top five in the last three majors.

Adam Scott: Remember this guy? A top-three player just two years ago, Scott is back after winning the Texas Open and rediscovering his putting stroke, thanks to Dave Stockton.

C-Players
Mike Weir: The 2003 Masters champion may not jump out as a U.S. Open contender, but he should. Weir has finished in the top 20 in eight of his 11 starts at the U.S. Open.Plus, Weir has seven top 10s at the AT&T.

Francesco Molinari: The Italian has four top 10s in his last eight starts, including a ninth-place finish at the Players.

Fantasy picks for the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial

A-Players
Phil Mickelson: Technically Mickelson is defending his Colonial title from 2008. He missed last year's event after learning his wife, Amy, was diagnosed with breast cancer. The Mickelsons watched from home as the Colonial held a "Pink Out" during the third round. No doubt Mickelson would love to return the favor with another win at Colonial.

Stephen Ames: The outspoken Canadian has five top-25 finishes this season, plus three career top-5 finishes at Colonial.

B-Players
Jim Furyk: He's already captured two titles this season, and Furyk is due at Colonial -- he has six career top-10 finishes.

Nick Watney: Twenty-somethings have never swept the Texas Swing, but thanks to Anthony Kim, Adam Scott and Jason Day, it could happen this week. With eight top-25 finishes in 11 starts, Watney is my twenty-something choice.

Brian Gay: Look out, when this guy gets on a roll he's tough to beat. Gay won two tournaments last year by a combined 15 shots, and he's coming off a T2 at the Nelson thanks to a final-round 63.

K.J. Choi: He's a solid player to have on the bench right now. Choi hasn't missed a cut this year in 11 events, and he has recorded six top-25 finishes.

C-Players
Tim Clark: The 2010 Players Championship winner has tied for second in his last two starts at Colonial.

Ben Crane: Maybe we should all start playing a little slower. In his last two starts, Crane finished T4 at the Players and T7 at the Nelson.

Fantasy Picks for the WGC-CA Championship at Doral

The next stop of the Florida Swing is Doral's Blue Monster. Phil Mickelson is the defending champion here, and the field includes Camilo Villegas, who has had three solid tournaments in a row.

The Pro Tip: This course is tough, so avoid a sleeper pick who has struggled this season. Also, keep in mind that the 2010 season is well under way, and the cream of the crop is starting to separate--and eat up their maximum 10 starts. Now is the time to make a decision. Should you ride the wave of a player like Villegas now or save his starts for down the road? For someone as white-hot as Villegas, you probably want to keep playing him, but remember that every time you do is a start you won't have during your stretch run. 

A-Group

Phil Mickelson
The defending champ needs this win. So far this season during the West Coast swing he underperformed. His only top-10 this season was Pebble Beach, but he is still Phil Mickelson and his bad rounds are still better than most of the field. If he wants to take advantage of Tiger's absence, he has to turn it around soon. Like this week.

A-Group Bench Player

Zach Johnson
Four top-25s in four starts this season, a Master's champion gearing up for April is never a bad selection. But his fourth in birdie average, fifth in total driving, fifth in GIR, and 12th in scoring average makes Zach a solid backup if Phil underwhelms again

B-Group

Camilo Villegas
Playing well and coming off three solid tournaments, including a win last week's Honda Classic. Check these stats out: first in scoring average, first in birdie average, first in all-around ranking, top of the money list this season, and second in driving and putting. This could be the breakthrough we've been waiting for. Plus, he was T-5 here last year.

Nick Watney
He has two top 25s and two top 10s in six starts on the season. And don't forget the run he gave Mickelson here last year.  

B-Group Bench Players

Stewart Cink
He does well on tough courses. (Remember Turnberry?) Sure, the PGA Tour's Twitterer in Chief hasn't been great so far this season, but you can't go wrong with a major winner as an emergency bench option. He has two top 10s this season in four starts, including a T-5 at the Accenture Match Play.

Sean O'Hair
Started off strong this season at the SBS Championship with a T-4 finish, but his game has gone into the woods like his hooked approach on 18 at the SBS.While his play this season doesn't warrant a start this week, he is a good choice for a bench spot, because he can turn his season around at any point. O'Hair is eighth in eagles, but his stats are average at best after that, which is inconsistent with his skill set and maybe a sign that he is ready to get off the schneid.

C-Group 

Paul Casey
Part of the English Triumvirate (along with Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter) that is making its mark on the PGA Tour this season, he has three top 10s in his last three starts and is playing some of his best golf. He is first in eagles and sixth in GIR. And he poked a 410-yard drive this season.  

Bench Player

Ryan Palmer
He won the Sony Open and finished T-14 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Palmer is seventh in birdie average and, while he isn't the longest driver on Tour, he does have a solid all-around game and is a good C-list option for your bench player.

*All picks for Yahoo Fantasy Golf format. Confused? Check out the Golf.com Guide to Fantasy Golf.

Fantasy Picks for AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am

FANTASY GOLF UPDATE:

A little glitch in the Yahoo Fantasy Golf scoring system has allowed some vigilant team managers to muster a few extra points from some of their player. Since the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am is being played on three different courses, points are awarded by score to par, not overall strokes.

Pebble Beach and Spyglass are both par 72 mainstays in the AT&T, but the newcomer--Monterey Peninsula Shore Course--sports a par 70 that is harder to go low on due to the lower par.

For example, Vijay Singh shot a 65 on Monterey while K.J. Choi shot a 65 on Pebble. Vijay picked up 14 points with a -5 while K.J. netted 18 with a -7.  

Going in to the weekend, start players playing Spyglass and Pebble Saturday since Monterey is normally a par 71, but is playing at 70 this week.

----

The PGA Tour stops at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am this week. The big changes: Poppy Hills is out; Monterey Country Club is in, joining standbys Pebble and Spyglass. The defending champ is long-hitting Dustin Johnson, who had a hole-in-one last week that propelled him to a third-place finish at the Northern Trust Open after a tough final round.

The Pro Tip: It's a shallow field for a tournament featuring this year's U.S. Open course; only seven of the top 30 in the World Golf Rankings entered. Maybe the pros figure the course will be unrecognizable by the time the USGA is done with it. Whatever. We still expect this to be a tournament where we start seeing the stars shine. Except for Kevin Costner.

A-Group 

Luke Donald
Not many A-List players to choose from this week, but Donald is a solid option. He shares the course record at Spyglass (62) and when he's healthy he's an elite player. He has finished in the top 25 in 86 of his 176 career starts.

A-Group Bench Player

Phil Mickelson
Lefty hasn't started the season strong, but a U.S.Open course with a weak field may be just what he needs. BTW, Mickelson is the guy who shares the Spyglass course record with Donald.

B-Group

Dustin Johnson
Combines our two fantasy rules: Horses for Courses (he won here last year) and Play the Hot Hand (T-3 at last week's Northern Trust Open). Long hitter, accurate and a solid putter, Johnson has a scoring average of 69 through 14 rounds this season.

Alex Prugh
Rickie who? Prugh is the rookie who is on fire right now. After barely making the cut at the Sony, Prugh has three straight top 10s. Twelve of his 16 rounds this season have been 70 or below.

B-Group Bench Players

Jim Furyk
The fifth-ranked player in the world finished T-20 at the Northern Trust Open, his only start of this season. He's also one of three U.S. Open winners in the field along with Corey Pavin and Retief Goosen.

Sergio Garcia
Hey, maybe he can win on a major championship course if a major isn't being played there. J/K, Serge, J/K. Worth a flier in his first stateside start.

C-Group 

Mike Weir
Finished runner up to Dustin Johnson last year and has placed in the top-5 in five of his last seven starts at the AT&T. Also did pretty well at the last celeb-heavy tournament, finishing sixth at the Bob Hope.

Bench Player

Brandt Snedeker
In three starts he has a runner-up, a T-10, and a top 20 finish. He is first in scrambling and 13th in scoring with a 69.73 average.  

*All picks for Yahoo Fantasy Golf format. Confused? Check out the Golf.com Guide to Fantasy Golf.

Fantasy Golf Picks for Farmer's Insurance Open

The word of the week at Torrey Pines is "change." We have a new sponsor, Farmers Insurance, replacing General Motors, and we have a new marquee attraction, Phil Mickelson, replacing ex-General Motors pitchman Tiger Woods. The World No. 1  made Torrey his second home, winning this tournament six times and the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in 2008, but when the cat's away...

The Pro Tip:
Buy American. The last two international players to win here: Jose Maria Olazabal in 2002 and Gary Player in 1963.

A-Group
Phil Mickelson
His season debut, and he will be comfortable in his SoCal backyard. He has won three times at Torrey Pines--not since 2001, however--and won his last tournament of 2009 in Shanghai and last PGA Tour event at the Tour Championship.

A-Group Bench Player:

Ernie Els
A major champion on a major championship course who averages more than 300 yards per drive in his down years. He has been inconsistent at best the last couple of years, but if he is on like the old, healthy Ernie then having him on the bench to throw in for the final two rounds is very appealing.

B-Group
Nick Watney
Last year's winner is one of six Americans under 30 to have won twice on the PGA Tour. Had a decent tournament at the SBS Championship and looks ready to have a big season.   

Hunter Mahan
Last year Mahan finished fourth in ball striking and sixth in scoring average, and many believe he has the game to be a star and win on major championship courses like Torrey Pines. 

B-Group Bench Players:
Lucas Glover

Finished two shots back of last year's champion Nick Watney, and tends to do well on U.S. Open munis (see Bethpage, 2009). 

Robert Allenby

Finished second at the Sony Open, and he is second in scoring average thus far in 2010 behind Ryan Palmer. In other words, when you're hot, you're hot.

C-Group
Rocco Mediate
Yup, a sentimental pick, but the last time Mediate played this course, he beat everyone in the field who used both legs. No one in this year's field is expected to be playing on one leg, so his chances look pretty good.

Bench Player:

Ricky Barnes
The kid who shocked the golf world by setting the 54-hole U.S. Open scoring record before fading at the end is back for 2010. He was second on Tour last year for approaches from 175-200 yards, and with Torrey Pines length there might be a lot of those shots out there. 

*All picks for Yahoo Fantasy Golf format. Confused? Check out the Golf.com Guide to Fantasy Golf.

Fantasy Golf Picks for The Barclays

The FedEx Cup playoffs are finally here, and the fun starts with views of the NYC skyline as Liberty National Golf Club hosts the world's best players at The Barclays.

Picks are going to be tough this week, since it's the first time many of the players have seen Liberty National. But there are a few players who know the course quite well.

A-Players
Phil Mickelson: There will be a little extra incentive for Mickelson to play well this week. He's sponsored by Barclays, and Mickelson is a member at Liberty National.

Camilo Villegas: He could have possibly won the FedEx Cup last year had he not missed the cut at The Barclays. It's been a few months since he's recorded a top 10, but Villegas has been playing good, consistent golf.

B-Players
Lucas Glover: Driving will be crucial this week, and Glover has said he's been driving it great all year. His record shows it. After winning the U.S. Open, Glover has finished in the top 25 five times.

Zach Johnson: With two wins and seven top 10s, Johnson has a great chance to win the FedEx Cup.

Hunter Mahan: He's yet to win this year, but Mahan has four top 10s in his last six events.

Nick Watney: After a strong start to the year, Watney has struggled a bit in the second half of the season. He's probably not consistent enough to win the Cup, but he's a good pick for one or two weeks.

C-Players
Ian Poulter: The flashy Brit has come up big in the big events this year. Poulter finished in the top 20 in all three WGC events, the Players, the Masters, U.S. Open and PGA.

Retief Goosen: The steady Goose has missed only one cut this year, and he has recorded seven top-25 finishes.

Fantasy Golf Picks for the Quail Hollow Championship

With the Tour in Charlotte this week for the Quail Hollow Championship and then the Players Championship next week, the A-list players are out of their post-Masters hibernation. With an abundance of big names, it's time to start making some tough decisions about which players to start this week.

A-Players
Phil Mickelson: One could argue Phil is playing better than Tiger right now, plus Phil also has an excellent track record in this event: three top 10s in five starts.

Tiger Woods: I almost sat the World No. 1 this week, but it's hard to pick against Tiger. Even though he didn't play well at the Masters, he still finished T6.

B-Players
Nick Watney: After a great start to the season, Watney missed his first cut of the year last week in New Orleans. I'm not ready to give up on him yet. He's never missed the cut at Quail Hollow, and I think with some extra time off last week he'll be ready to contend.

Rory Sabbatini: Some poor putting on the back nine cost Sabbatini a win last week. However it was his second straight top 10 and third consecutive top-20 finish.

Adam Scott: Not a sexy pick, since Scott has missed three straight cuts, but he's too good of a player to stay down for long. In four trips to Charlotte, Scott hasn't finished out of the top 25.

Sean O'Hair: Quail Hollow hasn't been kind to O'Hair, but he's been very consistent this year. In nine events he has finished out of the top 25 only once -- a missed cut at the Transitions.

C-Players
Robert Karlsson: The big-hitting Swede isn't a household name, but he's 11th in the World Golf Rankings and one of the best choices from the C-players.

Retief Goosen: Charles Howell III is a better choice this week, but I've used him a lot this season, so the Goose gets the second spot this week. Besides, Howell is coming off another tough loss, while Goosen is playing for the first time since the Masters.