4-5; -1.15pts 

Round 1 plays (1pt):

Brian Gay to beat Ryuji Imada -115 @ Carib  WON by 7
Backing Gay to start well today. He's in great form - finishes of 18th, 5th and 19th in the first three weeks of the season - and has been in the top-3 after the opening round of this event in each of the last two years. Such is his ability to start tournaments well that he leads Imada 13-4-3 h2h in the 1st round since the start of last season.

Brian Gay to beat George McNeill -115 @ Five Dimes  TIED
McNeill looks a more formidable opponent, but he is due to tee-off at 7.25am local time when the temperature is forecast to be only 4°C ... there is usually a notable advantage for the afternoon starters on these desert courses.

Charles Howell to beat Zach Johnson +120 @ William Hill [tie loses] [also available @ SkyBet]  TIED (loss)
Johnson may be in great form with a win and a 6th place finish in his two starts this year, but in the last three years here he has missed the cut in 2006, withdrawn after the 1st round in 2007 and skipped the event in 2008. With Howell also showing good early form (4th in the Sony Open in his only start) and having a record of seven top-40 finishes from seven attempts on this course, the edge should be with 'Three Sticks'.

Charles Howell to beat Chad Campbell +100 @ Five Dimes [also availble @ Bet365]  LOST by 1
Campbell has, if anything, an even worse record at Scottsdale than Johnson. In the last four years, he has missed the cut three times and finished 70th on the other occasion.

Stewart Cink to beat Chad Campbell +110 @ William Hill [tie loses] [also available @ SkyBet]  LOST by 3
By contrast, Cink has six top-15 finishes in the last ten years on this course and with Campbell only shooting a lower 1st round score than Cink twice in the whole of 2008 (15 common events), Cink should be the favourite in this 1st round matchup.

Round 2 plays (1pt):

Scott Piercy to beat Rod Pampling +105 @ Five Dimes  WON by 2

Bubba Watson to beat John Senden -105 @ Five Dimes  TIED

Stephen Ames to beat Aaron Baddeley +105 @ Carib [also available @ Five Dimes]  TIED

Parker McLachlin to beat Rocco Mediate +105 @ Five Dimes  LOST by 1

Round 3 plays (1pt):

Webb Simpson to beat Scott Piercy -120 @ Bet365  LOST by 11

Troy Matteson to beat Woody Austin -102 @ Five Dimes  TIED

Round 4 plays (1pt):

Kevin Na to beat Ben Curtis -120 @ Five Dimes  WON by 4

Sean O'Hair to beat Troy Matteson -110 @ The Greek [also available @ Pinnacle]  WON by 2