Several hoping for magic at Walt Disney
BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2008 Childrens Miracle Network Classic | Preview | 04 Nov 2008
The final tournament of the 2008 PGA Tour season begins Thursday at the Walt Disney World Resort’s Magnolia and Palm courses where it has been played since 1971 when Jack Nicklaus won the first of his three consecutive victories in this event.
The tournament is again lacking the absolute superstars of the game but still provides a good quality field with several players as the likely pre tournament favourite.
Robert Allenby has gone close to winning on several occasions this season but he has still not managed to secure his first PGA Tour victory since 2001. He has not played this event well and that is of some concern but given the manner in which he is playing that might not stop him this week.
Defending champion, Stephen Ames missed the cut in his last start in Las Vegas but played very well earlier and his one shot victory over Tim Clark in this event last year indicates that this is a venue he enjoys.
Surely at some stage before too long Tim Clark is going to win a PGA Tour event and if it was this week it would be no real surprise. He finished runner up last year and several reasonable finishes of late suggest he could go one better this year.
Before his surprising missed cut last week at the Ginn sur Mer, Charles Howell appeared to be returning to the sort of form that made him such an exciting young player earlier in his career. He has played this event well and he could add to his surprisingly short list of PGA Tour victories this week.
It is always difficult for a relatively inexperienced player to back up a win with another the following week but as a previous winner of this event then last week’s winner in Palm Coast, Ryan Palmer, could do just that. Palmer won this event in 2004 in his first season on the PGA Tour and he seems to be back in that form again now.
There are many Australasians in the field and some need something special this week if they are to avoid Tour School. Robert Allenby we have already spoken of but the improving Peter Lonard and the man who has played well in this event in the two occasions he has teed it up, Steve Elkington, are good chances.
Nathan Green’s game has been a bit of a rollercoaster of late, Tim Wilkinson is playing well, but for Jason Day, Mark Hensby, Nick Flanagan, Brett Rumford and David Lutterus, they need something special if they are to avoid returning to Tour School to retain their cards.
