Find Me A 100 Winner: Troy Matteson

Find Me A 100 Winner / Paul Krishnamurty / 17 March 2009 / Leave a Comment

Paul Krishnamurty believes that an outsider who saves his best golf for the Sunshine State might be a hot tip for value this weekend.

Since the Copperhead Course at Westin Innisbrook Resort began hosting an annual PGA Tour fixture back in 2000, one clear trend has emerged amongst players in contention. Largely due to their extensive experience on these Bermuda greens, players with Florida connections have tended to prosper. Half of the 12 players to have registered top-5 finishes in the past two years were either from, or based in, the state.

It may be worth taking a chance, therefore, on an outsider who usually reserves his very best golf for Florida, Troy Matteson. The 29 year-old, currently available at [110.00] after a high of [150.00], is only an infrequent contender on the PGA Tour, but has finished seventh on three of his last six starts in the state; a record that includes second place in this event last year. He also finished ninth on this course back in 2006, during a golden spell which included his maiden PGA title at the Frys.com Open, and another Florida runners-up spot in the FUNAI Classic.

Besides that impressive course form, another reason to think Matteson has a chance this week is an impressive set of greens in regulation stats over the past six months. With the greens smaller than usual at Copperhead, this stat takes on extra importance. On the last nine occasions Matteson has made the cut, he's ranked in the top-10 in this category over the four rounds. So far this year, he hasn't produced enough on the greens to capitalise on that excellent long game work, but back in his favourite territory, we may see significant improvement this week.