Opportunity knocks in Puerto Rico
BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2009 Puerto Rico Open | Preview | 11 Mar 2009
For those on the PGA Tour ineligible to play in this week’s World Golf Championship event in Miami, the Puerto Rico Open presented by Banco Popular offers the opportunity to take advantage of a field where the leading world ranked player is Brandt Snedeker at number 85.
The tournament is being played at the Tom Kite designed Trump International Golf Club in Rio Grande and was won last year by Greg Kraft, who beat Jerry Kelly and Bo Van Pelt in a tightly fought affair to claim his first USPGA Tour event.
John Merrick is yet to win on the PGA Tour but this week offers a great opportunity. He finished 13th in this event in 2008 and played well enough at the recent Bob Hope tournament to finish runner up. His last few starts have not been quite as good but she stands a chance of a breakthrough week.
Jeff Klauk is another looking for his first PGA Tour victory and following his good week last week at the Honda Classic when 4th. He is in his rookie season on the PGA Tour and following his great season on the 2008 Nationwide Tour he seems to be handling the higher level very well. Against this slightly weaker field he could do well.
Charles Howell finished 4th in Hawaii earlier this year and has continued to make cuts although without a good finish since. He is a player who in his earlier years would have been playing at Doral this week but this is a tournament that could seem him rediscover the sort of form that saw him as one of the most promising young players in the game.
Rich Beem has played well of late including a 6th in Mexico and 13th at Riviera. On that form alone he stands a good chance of winning for the first time since the PGA Championship in 2002.
Australasian chances are headed by Jason Day, Matt Jones, Jarrod Lyle, Marc Leishman, Aron Price, Steve Allan, Greg Chalmers and New Zealander Tim Wilkinson. Wilkinson and Allan both finished inside the top ten in this event last year.
