Would you like Tiger with the Frys?
BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2011 Frys.com Open | Preview | 04 Oct 2011
The Frys.com has seldom received the sort of exposure or profile it will enjoy this week when the world number 51 Tiger Woods tees it up in the event for the first time in its five year history.
Yes you read right. Woods slipped outside the world top 50 last week and there will be much interest in just how he will perform in what appears to be his last hit-out before heading down under for exhibition events in Asia and Perth followed by the Australian Open in Sydney and the Presidents Cup.
Woods has not played since missing the cut at the PGA Championship so there is a lot of interest in just how he will perform without having played competitive golf in two months.
The tournament is being played at the Robert Trent Jones designed and redesigned CordeValle Golf Club between San Francisco and the Monterey Peninsula. It moved to this venue last year after being played for its first three years in Arizona, essentially due to Frys Electronics headquarters being based in San Jose about 30 minutes drive north on 101.
Last year’s winner, Rocco Mediate, produced some of the most bizarre yet spectacular golf throughout the week, holing from the fairway on three occasions and for good measure holing in one during the opening round.
Mediate defeated Alex Prugh and Bo Van Pelt by one shot with Rickie Fowler one shot further back.
Only Mediate and Prugh amongst that group are playing this week although neither is playing particularly well at present. Prugh, a former New Zealand Open Champion, had not played well leading into this event last year either so maybe this is a course that fits his eye and if so he might still do ok.
Mediate has not finished inside the top twenty in any event since his win last year, his form well below the level it was on arrival at this event twelve months ago. On that basis it is hard to be convinced he can repeat the heroics of last year.
Paul Goydos appeared to benefit from a break after the Barclays when he returned to finish 3rd last week in Las Vegas. He is a player good enough to finish 3rd at the Players earlier this year and when he plays well he can challenge anybody.
Brendan Steele made a bit of a run at them last week and in his rookie season on the PGA Tour has done very well. He won in Texas earlier this year and won the Nationwide Tour Championship last year before joining the PGA Tour.
With now just three events left to stake a money list claim several Australians are hoping to retain the right to play the PGA Tour next year. Several already have and this week’s field has a mixture of both.
Those currently inside the top 125 are Marc Leishman, Greg Chalmers, Nick O’Hern Rod Pampling and Matt Jones while Steve Elkington, Steven Bowditch, Aron Price, Jarrod Lyle, Nathan Green and
Cameron Percy are on the outside looking in but get a chance this week to improve their lot.
On the cusp of a start in this week’s event is Peter Lonard who has moved to 1st alternate as this is written and might yet forgo a start in the Nationwide Tour event in Chattanooga to play here if the opportunity comes in time.
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