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WorldCom Classic

Course: Harbour Town Golf Links, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Yardage: 6973
Par: 71  (three par-fives)
USGA Rating: 75.2
Greens: Tifeagle - 4,000 sq.ft  (Tour average: 6,000 sq.ft)

GCSAA Tournament Fact Sheet

Weather Forecast

Best Players Last 10 Years

Past Winners:
2001 - Jose Coceres
2000 - Stewart Cink
1999 - Glen Day
1998 - Davis Love
1997 - Nick Price
1996 - Loren Roberts
1995 - Bob Tway
1994 - Hale Irwin
1993 - David Edwards
1992 - Davis Love

Outright plays (1 unit unless stated):

Scott Verplank to win 33/1 e.w. @ Blue Square or Heathorns
Opposing the triumvirate of Els, Mickelson and Garcia who head the market as they should suffer from last week's exertions and in a combined 11 attempts at this title can muster only two top-5 finishes between them - Els 3rd in 2000 and Mickelson 3rd in 1998. Course form has always been very important on this course and even though the last two winners may have bucked this trend, the other players in the top-3 largely did not. Verplank's course form is only recent. It had been disappointing until 2000 when, armed with fitted with a pump to his belt to control his diabetes, he rediscovered his game and has finished 11th and 3rd since. Last year he was one of only three players to break par in every round. He played extremely well in the 1st round until double-bogeying the last hole and thereafter fell away. His form is good and he should be relatively fresh after last week's event.

Rocco Mediate to win 40/1 e.w. @ Sportingbet or UKBetting
Another late developer at this course. Disappointing here until 1993 and then didn't return until 1996 since when he has recorded five top-20 finishes in six starts. He has had a very light schedule in the past two months with the Masters being only his 3rd start since the WGC Matchplay in February. He'd recorded top-3 finishes at the Bay Hill Invitational and the Players Championship and was in contention for a third after the 2nd round last week. The fall from contention in the 3rd round should keep him fresh for this week's event.

Nick Price to win 40/1 e.w. @ Surrey or Blue Square
Okay, so it's been four years since he won an event on the PGA Tour, but I'll take a place finish behind either Verplank or Mediate! He completes a trio of players who have a good course history, are straight off the tee and hit a lot of greens in regulation. These are some of the smallest greens they will face this year, so accurate approach play is important and Price's and Mediate's primary failing with the short stick should be of limited importance this week. Like the others, his course form for the first half-dozen years was poor, which only stresses the importance of having a course history this week, but he then had five top-10 finishes in six years in the 1990s, including a win in 1997. That may seem a distant history, but Price has finished in the top-20 in all but one PGA Tour start this season and looks a likely contender this week.

Matchup plays:

Brett Quigley to beat Kenneth Staton -111 @ BetandWin
Neal Lancaster to beat Lucas Glover -111 @ BetandWin [3 units]

My laptop has packed in again Can't access my golf stuff anymore, so not sure if there'll be any more plays this week now   Will know more tomorrow.

Matchup plays:

Kevin Sutherland to beat Craig Perks -115 @ Cascade
Fully expect Perks' TPC hangover to continue. Two missed cuts since that surprising victory and probably three this week. He missed the cut last year in his only appearance in this event and languishes much lower than Sutherland in the Tour driving accuracy and greens in regulation stats, both of which will be important this week.

Frank Nobilo to beat Kent Jones -111 @ BetandWin
Course experience is important in this event and while Nobilo had played here every year since 1996, making three of his last four cuts, Jones will make his debut here this week. With Nobilo having a 5-2 head-to-head record over Jones in common events this year, he gets the nod.

Mid-point update:

Quigley/Staton LOST by 6
Lancaster/Glover WON by 10
Sutherland/Perks WON by 3
Nobilo/Jones WON by 2

Verplank 8th
Mediate mc
Price 40th

Decent tournament so far with all four matchups completed and a victory in the all-important 3-unit play. A chance of some return with Verplank though Price has quite a distance to catch the top-5 and Mediate has never looked like making the weekend.

Final update:

Matchups: 3-1; +3.89 units

All decided at the cut

Outrights: 1-2; -1.46 units

Verplank 5th
Price 19th

Only two selections were active at the weekend and but for some annoying bounce-backs on Saturday - following birdies with bogeys not the other way around - this could have been a much more profitable event. Verplank did share 5th place with two others, but it meant little more than his stake being covered.