Golf Events / Steven Rawlings / 04 March 2009 /

There's only golf tournament to get your punting teeth into this week, so who has Steve gone for at the Honda Classic?

There's just the one event to concentrate on this week, the Honda Classic at the PGA National (Champion Course), Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

The tournament's been in existence since 1972 but has struggled to find a permanent residency and this is only the third staging at the PGA National. Hopefully the event has now found its home because it's a great venue and a proper test. Named after Jack Nicklaus, who helped with renovation work in 1990, the 15th, 16th and 17th is a tough stretch of holes known as the 'Bear Trap'.

Driving accuracy will be an important factor this week with tight fairways, often surrounded by water. And an ability to handle very windy conditions will also be a plus if the evidence of the last two years is anything to go by.

The defending champion is Ernie Els but I can't fancy him at all this time around. It was an improved effort last week at the Match Play but his putting has been so bad lately I simply don't have any faith in him.

Given my conclusion of Els' chance, it's somewhat hypocritical that my first pick this week is Robert Allenby, as he's also been putting atrociously, and for some time too.

Allenby's also been far from reliant in the mix lately, but I'm giving him another chance. Apart from his putting, all aspects of his game are in great order and his record in this event is very good, particularly over the past two years at the PGA National, where he's finished tied fourth and tied fifth.

Second up is Justin Leonard, winner back in 2003. He's had a slow start to the season but put up an improved effort when he reached the last eight at the Match Play last week.

His efforts here over the last two years haven't been fantastic; he missed the cut in '07 and was 30th last year. But I'm not completely put off by that, I backed Zach Johnson in Hawaii in January, even though his course form wasn't great, because he had the game to suit the venue and it paid off. Hopefully I can get the same result with Leonard, who's an accurate driver, is high up on the par-4 performance stat (a key stat the last two years) and is a great wind player.

Yet again I've given Ben Crane another last chance. I'd assumed his withdrawal at the Northern Trust was due to a return of persistent back troubles but, just for a change, it was actually due to a neck injury. After his seventh at the Buick a few weeks ago and because of his 12th place finish here on debut last year, I've been sucked in again.

Two final picks, very much from leftfield: Nationwide Tour graduate Aron Price, who played well last week when finishing sixth at the Mayakoba Classic and who should be inspired by his mentor Geoff Ogilvy's success at the Match Play; finally, Marc Turnesa, who after a string of missed cuts finally found a bit of form at the Northern Trust two weeks ago. He won last season, in his first year on Tour, and is a Palm Springs resident, so should certainly know the track.

I'll post an update on events on Saturday.

Selections:

Robert Allenby @ [25.0]
Justin Leonard @ [48.0]
Ben Crane @ [100.0]
Aron Price @ [220.0]
Marc Turnesa @ an average of [280.0]

'.$sign_up['title'].'

'; } } ?>

:

:

:

?

: