Find Me A 100 Winner: Scott Piercy

Find Me A 100 Winner / Paul Krishnamurty / 03 March 2009 / Leave a Comment

Statistics show that Piercy has got what it takes to triumph at the Honda Classic, says Paul Krishnamurty.

Results from the two Honda Classic renewals since the event was moved to PGA National, Florida, suggest it's the ideal event for this column's purpose of finding a triple-figure priced winner. Two years ago brought a four-way play-off, with each player starting the week in our price range. Incidentally, the winner on that occasion was Mark Wilson, who delivered another big-priced blow in Mexico on Sunday, just a few weeks after I advised him at silly odds here. Hopefully somebody, unlike me, kept the faith.

Last year's renewal produced a more obvious winner in Ernie Els, though again the top-20 was filled with unlikely candidates.

This week's pick is Scott Piercy at [150.0], who has made an immediate impression since graduating from the Nationwide Tour. Four of his five PGA Tour starts this year have produced top-20s, including one near miss. At the FBR Open in Scottsdale, Piercy was five shots clear and trading below [2.5] at one stage before the pressure became too much and he ended up in sixth place. He was on the fringes of contention in Mexico last week, before once again fluffing his lines on Sunday.

Those final day flaws would deter me from a bet on some players. In Piercy's case though, I'm prepared to forgive them for now because he proved he knows how to get the job done with two titles at the lower level last season. Hopefully he will have learned from those experiences, especially Scottsdale, and will be better equipped when the next opportunity emerges.

Another reason to fancy a big run this week lies in the stats. Previous results here show the emphasis lies on greens in regulation, putting average and par-three performance. Across all three of those statistics, Piercy's 2009 form comes out as the best of anyone in this field.