Find Me A 100 Winner: Michael Sim

Find Me A 100 Winner / Paul Krishnamurty / 24 August 2010 / Leave a Comment

Michael Sim arrives at the Barclays in hot form

"When Ridgewood last hosted the Barclays in 2008, 30 players finished within five shots of the lead, including a plethora of outsiders."

A hot finish at the Wyndham Championship suggests Sim is peaking at the right time - and that makes the [130.0] on offer a top bet, according to Paul Krishnamurty

Even if, historically, the Fedex Cup has been dominated by the biggest names, the $10M first prize is firmly within reach of any of the 125 players qualified for this week's opening event, the Barclays Classic. Take last year's example of Heath Slocum, for instance, who began the series in 124th place before winning the Barclays at huge odds. Consequently, he was one of the handful of players who headed to the Tour Championship finale with a realistic chance of the first prize.

Though the Barclays switches to a different venue, it remains the likeliest of the play-off events to produce a shock winner. When Ridgewood last hosted it in 2008, 30 players finished within five shots of the lead, including a plethora of outsiders. The pick of this year's triple-figured priced candidates could be a player widely tipped to achieve great things, [130.0] chance Michael Sim.

The 25 year-old Aussie stood head and shoulders above his peers on the 2009 Nationwide Tour, winning three events, and therefore carried great expectations into this rookie season on the main tour. He started well enough, finishing second at Torrey Pines back in February, but a shoulder injury curtailed that early progress. It has only been in the past few weeks that Sim has really regained his touch. He finished third at Atunyote three weeks ago, and repeated that performance in Sunday's Wyndham Championship, closing with a superb 62. Few other players could claim to be peaking at this relatively late stage of the season.