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PGA 2012 The PLAYERS Championship Preview/Picks & Gambling Lines

PGA Betting – The 2012 Players Championship Predictions

The PGA TOUR moves to Florida for the biggest event since the Masters this week when the world’s best minus Bubba Watson chase their share of the $9.5 million in the PLAYERS Championship.

2012 The PLAYERS Championship
Location: Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, United States
Course: TPC at Sawgrass
Date: May 10-13, 2012
Sanctioned by: US PGA Tour
Total Purse: US $ 9,500,000
Winner’s Share: US $ 1,710,000 (18% of total purse)
Defending Champion: K.J. Choi ($1,710,000)

After a very intriguing Wells Fargo Championship last week, competition is heating up for this year’s “fifth major”.

TPC Sawgrass will be the stage once again – its famed 17th hole will provide plenty of drama as will the closing hole. I came close last week with my pick – Webb Simpson let us down on Sunday but still finished second in the Wells Fargo. Let’s take a look at the field this week and who should emerge victorious on Sunday.

The Favorites:

Rory McIlroy 9/1

Hard to count out this guy. With a playoff loss last week he regained the #1 spot in the World Golf Rankings and now has four top 3 finishes in five starts this year! Amazing. Sawgrass has been Rory’s kryptonite however – he has yet to make the cut in two starts here. But he currently ranks 20th in greens hit, first in the all-around and 17th in scrambling – all necessary qualities at Quail Hollow.

Lee Westwood 14/1

Ahhh, Lee Westwood. I would absolutely love to see this guy win. He is doing everything but win this year – posted 4 top fives in 6 events on the PGA TOUR this year. He was sensational in the final round last week at Quail Hollow and he did finish T4 in his last appearance at the PLAYERS two years ago. You’ve heard it before but Westy is due!

Luke Donald 14/1

Finished third in his last tournament in New Orleans two weeks ago and is currently the PGA TOUR leader in scrambling. He lost his #1 World ranking last week to Rory and should be motivated on a track that he has been very good on – 4th last year and 2nd in 2005. You can never count Donald and his short game out!

The Contenders:

Phil Mickelson 22/1

Has made the cut at TPC Sawgrass 10 straight times and won this event in 2007. But recent results make me shy away from Lefty this week – no Top 15s since his win in 2007. Mickelson was OK last week at Quail Hollow (T26) and may not quite have the form to get it gone this week.

Hunter Mahan 33/1

Mahan is still the only multiple winner on TOUR this year and he did finish T6 last year in this event. He is fifth in GIR on TOUR and is 46th in scrambling so far but he is coming off an uncharacteristically poor showing last week and Quail Hollow.

Steve Stricker 40/1

Stricker seems like a bargain at 40/1. He finished sixth two weeks ago for his fourth top 10 in seven starts this season and he has six top 25s in 15 starts at this event, including a T12 last year. He is currently seventh on TOUR in greens in regulation and 13th in scrambling and may be the dark horse going into the PLAYERS.

Webb Simpson 40/1

Simpson may be the hottest player coming into this week’s event – With a T13 and solo fourth the last two weeks but his ability to show up on Sundays is a bit of a concern. Simpson is a talent for sure but may lack the mental make-up at this point to break through (I said that about Ricky Fowler too!).

Jason Dufner 40/1

Dufner comes into this week a married man for the first time – congrats Jason! He won in New Orleans two weeks ago and has seven top 25s in 11 starts this year and finished an impressive T6 on this course last year. He ranks 30th on TOUR in greens hit, fifth in the all-around and 15th in scrambling – perfect for this course.

Jim Furyk 45/1

We can’t count Mr. Furyk out of any event he starts – period!

Justin Rose 45/1

Rose currently ranks third on TOUR in greens in regulation, fourth in the all-around and 16th in scrambling and he does have three straight top 15s on TOUR this season. But he hasn’t fared well on this course at all – a T22 in 2009 being his only top 40 finish!

Jason Day 45/1

Day is a lot of “experts” sexy pick this week after a T9 last week. He currently ranks 16th on TOUR in Scrambling and 18th in Strokes Gained Putting and he did finish T6 in this event last year. The injuries that have slowed him this year appear to be a thing of the past – watch out for Day this week!

The Sleepers:

Rickie Fowler 50/1

Impressive win for Fowler last week after finally putting it all together. That makes one win and a T10 in the two weeks prior to the PLAYERS. He has yet to make the cut in two tries at TPC Sawgrass but if confidence means anything, Fowler should be OK this week! [soliloquy id=”82219″]

Zach Johnson 50/1

Johnson is an intriguing sleeper this week – not many times you will see him at 50/1. He finished T2 just two weeks ago and although he had some issues last week his game is rounding into form. He is currently T9 in scrambling and he has been able to keep himself out of trouble for the most part in his last few starts. He has missed just one cut in seven appearances here and has posted four top 25s, including a T12 last year – I have a feeling about Johnson this week!

Sergio Garcia 50/1

Garcia is the most successful active golfer at TPC Sawgrass – a win in 2008, a solo second in 2007, a T4 in 2002 and last year’s T12. Garcia finished T12 at the Masters and comes in surprisingly under the radar!

Ernie Els 55/1

Els has finished inside the top-5 in three of his last five starts on the PGA TOUR and is one of the best ball-strikers in the game. With his putter coming around, Els is a real threat this week. He ranks 16th on TOUR in greens hit and 30th in scrambling and has four top 10s in 18 appearances at THE PLAYERS including an 8th here in 2006 and 6th in 2008.

Brian Davis 100/1

Has four top 15s in his last five starts and is an intriguing 100/1 shot. He led the field in putting last week on his way to a T9 at Quail Hollow and finished T5 here in 2009.

The Pick:

My pick this week may be a tad more sentimental that most weeks. I am rooting big time for Lee Westwood 14/1 and think that is anyone is due it is him. He has fared well on this track in the past and is always in the hunt on Sundays at big events.

My sleeper is Zach Johnson 50/1. It is not often you get Mr. Johnson at this price and with a Masters win in his past; he may shrug off the pressure and emerge victorious this week.

2012 The Players Championship Betting Lines & Future Odds

CLICK TO BET

 

Rory Mcilroy 9/1  
Luke Donald 14/1  
Lee Westwood 14/1  
Phil Mickelson 20/1  
Tiger Woods 20/1  
Hunter Mahan 33/1  
Jason Dufner 33/1  
Steve Stricker 33/1  
Webb Simpson 40/1  
Adam Scott 40/1  
Jason Day 40/1  
Louis Oosthuizen 40/1  
Justin Rose 40/1  
Jim Furyk 40/1  
Rickie Fowler 40/1  
Sergio Garcia 40/1  
Nick Watney 40/1  
Zach Johnson 50/1  
Ernie Els 50/1  
Matt Kuchar 50/1  
Keegan Bradley 50/1  
Martin Kaymer 50/1  
Ben Crane 66/1  
Graeme McDowell 66/1  
Francesco Molinari 66/1  
Ben Curtis 80/1  
David Toms 80/1  
K.J. Choi 80/1  
Peter Hanson 80/1  
J.B. Holmes 80/1  
Ian Poulter 80/1  
Geoff Ogilvy 66/1  
Sean O’Hair 100/1  
Fredrik Jacobson 100/1  
Padraig Harrington 100/1  
Bill Haas 80/1  
Aaron Baddeley 100/1  
John Senden 100/1  
Ryan Moore 80/1  
Bo Van Pelt 100/1  
Brian Davis 100/1  
Jonathan Byrd 100/1  
Cameron Tringale 100/1  
Ryan Palmer 100/1  
Brandt Snedeker 100/1  
Henrik Stenson 100/1  
Bud Cauley 100/1  
Chris Stroud 100/1  
Carl Pettersson 100/1  
Jeff Overton 125/1  
Scott Piercy 125/1  
D-A Points 125/1  
Kevin Streelman 125/1  
Charles Howell III 150/1  
George Mcneill 150/1  
Sang-Moon Bae 150/1  
Robert Garrigus 150/1  
Greg Chalmers 150/1  
Martin Laird 150/1  
Spencer Levin 150/1  
Stewart Cink 150/1  
Bryce Molder 150/1  
Camilo Villegas 150/1  
Kyle Stanley 150/1  
Vijay Singh 150/1  
Y-E Yang 150/1  
Brendon De Jonge 175/1  
John Huh 150/1  
Retief Goosen 150/1  
Johnson Wagner 150/1  
Robert Allenby 150/1  
Robert Karlsson 150/1  
Rory Sabbatini 150/1  
Charlie Wi 150/1  
Jimmy Walker 200/1  
Lucas Glover 175/1  
Gary Woodland 200/1  
Pat Perez 200/1  
Alvaro Quiros 175/1  
Brian Gay 150/1  
Davis Love III 200/1  
Matt Every 150/1  
Harris English 200/1  
Ken Duke 200/1  
Paul Casey 150/1  
Heath Slocum 200/1  
Fred Couples 200/1  
Mark Wilson 200/1  
Trevor Immelman 200/1  
Chad Campbell 150/1  
Angel Cabrera 200/1  
Brendan Steele 250/1  
Simon Dyson 250/1  
Graham Delaet 250/1  
Hunter Haas 250/1  
Kris Blanks 250/1  
David Mathis 250/1  
Kevin Stadler 250/1  
Andres Romero 250/1  
James Driscoll 200/1  
John Mallinger 250/1  
Michael – H Thompson 250/1  
Marc Leishman 250/1  
Brandt Jobe 250/1  
Tommy Gainey 300/1  
Kevin Chappell 300/1  
Ricky Barnes 250/1  
David Hearn 300/1  
Rod Pampling 250/1  
Colt Knost 300/1  
Jerry Kelly 250/1  
Justin Leonard 300/1  
Tim Clark 250/1  
Bob Estes 250/1  
Billy Mayfair 250/1  
Josh Teater 300/1  
Scott Verplank 300/1  
Tom Gillis 300/1  
Nick O’Hern 300/1  
Blake Adams 300/1  
Briny Baird 300/1  
J.J. Henry 400/1  
Jhonattan Vegas 400/1  
John Merrick 400/1  
Sung Kang 400/1  
Tim Herron 400/1  
Troy Matteson 400/1  
Harrison Frazar 300/1  
Chris Kirk 400/1  
Arjun Atwal 500/1  
D.J. Trahan 400/1  
Jeff Maggert 500/1  
Chez Reavie 500/1  
Chris Couch 400/1  
Chris Dimarco 500/1  
Joe Ogilvie 500/1  
Matt Bettencourt 600/1  
Ryuji Imada 500/1  
Scott Stallings 500/1  
Tom Pernice Jr. 500/1  
J.J Killeen 600/1  
Michael Bradley 500/1 

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