Rex Hospital Open

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After a week long break we arrive at the TPC at Wakefield Plantation facility in Raleigh, North Carolina, which is a 7,257 yard course for a par of 71. Designed by Hale Irwin, the Wakefield Plantation golf course opened in 2000 and has hosted the Nationwide Tour since 2001.

As Wakefield is a TPC course I shall be basing my tips on the typical TPC layout, being tree lined with multiple water hazards and small raised greens protected by bunkers. For this reason players can not afford to be errant off the tee and straying off the fairway will result in difficulty in making the greens. In short the course demands accuracy and focus will be on those players who rank highly in Driving Accuracy, Greens in Regulation and Putting Average.

My Picks are as follows.

Jason Gore - What instantly stands out to me about Jason Gore are his standing in GIR and Putting Average (21^st and 6^th respectively), so much so that I am willing to ignore his rather average 104^th rank in Driving Accuracy. To be honest though, if we look closer at this stat we find that in his last two outings he has improved considerably here and has ranked in the top 40 both times, another plus in my eyes. Gore has three top 15s this year but more impressive is the fact that he opened with a 68 to sit T4th after round one in the Texas Open (a fellow TPC course - San Antonio) on the PGA when stepping up in grade last month, before imploding with a second round of 81 to miss the cut. He also has a little course form to mention with a 56^th place in 2009, nothing too much to write home about one would think initially, yet on closer inspection we find that he shot three rounds under par with a very impressive 66 thrown in there before collapsing in the final round. One final thing to mention is Gore's 7^th placed finish in the PGA Tour's Wyndham Championship in 2007 which is of course also played in north Carolina and which leads me to believe he likes it here. 1pt e/w @ 110/1 Sky Bet

Will MacKenzie - A respectable 69^th in DA, a stellar 18^th in GIR and an eye catching 7^th in Putting Average and 6^th in Par 4 Performance leave me questioning why exactly one of the best putters on the nationwide Tour is such a big price. Ok, he comes into this tournament on the back of two missed cuts but his outing before that yielded a 7^th placed finish (South Georgia Classic) and no worse than a 49^th finish (excluding his withdrawal at the Sobaba). MacKenzie can even boast a respectable 41^st at the Texas Open in the big boy's league last month, another TPC venue nonetheless. Add to this his affinity to North Carolina having been born and lived there and the fact that he has an extremely respectable record at the Wyndham over the years and I can't not back him at what seems like a huge price. 1pt e/w @ 90/1 Bet365

Aron Price - From one of the best putters on tour to a distinctly average one in quick succession - Price ranks a dismal 120^th in PA this year and in truth has never been an outstanding putter of the ball. However, what Price has been over the years (and that includes the last three where he was on the PGA Tour) is a fantastically accurate player, consistently ranking in the top 50 in both DA and GIR. So far this year he is 13^th in DA and 14^th in GIR and should suit this course to a tee, highlighted by his course form which reads 2007 - 9^th and 2008 - 21^st (after a horrific 1^st round). Bar a missed cut two weeks ago at the BMW, Price's results are getting progressively better, reading - MC/43/23/MC/19/26/MC/16 so lets hope a return to a favourite course of his will help him secure his first win. Throw into the mix his Wyndham form of two top 20s with a 17^th coming last year and the fact that his good friend Cameron Percy is hosting him just down the road from the course and I feel we have a winning combination. 1pt e/w @ 100/1 Sky Bet 

Rob Oppenheimer - A 4th and two 5ths with an added 14th can be attributed to Oppenheimer this year. Ok he has four missed cuts but he is one of the best putters on the Nationwide tour, ranking 1st and sits 48th in GIR and 32nd in Par 4 performance, a great combination for me. What also appeals to me is Oppenheimer's performance at Stonebrae where he finished 5th with all four rounds well under par. He has previous course experience (although not spectacular - MC and 60th) and looks too big a price with Stan so I cant help but have a dabble. 1pt e/w @ 150/1 Stan James

Total Staked - 8pts