WGC – Cadillac Championship
TPC Blue Monster at Doral; Miami, FL
Purse: $8,750,000
Notwithstanding a certain opposite-field PGA Tour event being held in Puerto Rico, all eyes (certainly the vast majority of) will be on the seventh playing this week of the WGC-Cadillac Championship. The storylines at Doral are many; from the now infamous withdrawal of World No. 1 Rory McIlroy from last week’s Honda Classic, to which Tiger Woods will show up this week: The Woods that won earlier this year at Torrey Pines, or the one that got bounced in the 1st round of the WGC-Match Play. Additionally, the famed Blue Monster, now owned by real estate magnate Donald Trump, will be succumbing itself to a makeover almost as soon as the last ball goes into the hole on the dubious 467 yard par 4 finishing 18th. Many a review has stipulated that with winning scores perennially in the 16 to 19-under range that it’s time for a “toughening-up” if you will of the Monster. All that being said, it is still a wonderful test of golf and much like any tournament, how low the scores go, typically depends on course set-up and Mother Nature. This is Week 10 (Fantasy Challenge-Golf Channel) and Week 8 (Fantasy Race to Dubai-European Tour). As with each WGC event on the calendar, big purse up for grabs this week so plenty is at stake. No 36-hole cut, so the elite field of 65 is all in store for a payday so long as they make it to the finish line ($1.5M to the winner).
Tournament Notes:
• Defending Champion: Justin Rose; Runner-up: Bubba Watson
• 49 of the Top 50 in the Official World Golf Rankings are in the field. Only Brandt Snedeker (#4) is not playing (still out with a rib-injury).
• In addition to Rose, all past champions are in the field: Tiger Woods, Geoff Ogilvy, Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els and Nick Watney. Interesting note: There has yet to be a repeat champion.
• Course measures 7,334 yards on the card. Par 72 (36-36). Weather should not be a factor except in the firmness of the fairways & greens. Doral, FL [Forecast]: Temps in the low to mid-70s; 0% chance of rain; Winds 7-14 mph.
Names to Watch (Odds):
• Tiger Woods (9/1) – Woods has three Top-10’s in this event, including the 2007 championship. Not much recent history though to go by. Did not play in 2010 & 2011, and did not finish in 2012 (withdrawing during the final round with an Achilles injury). But, he’s Tiger Woods and he goes on the list.
• Charl Schwartzel (14/1) – Schwartzel got bounced in the 1st round of the Match Play, but in his last six stroke-play starts he hasn’t finished outside the Top-10 ( T3, 2, 1, T3, T5, T9.) Solo 2nd here in 2010 and T6 last year.
• Luke Donald (18/1) – Not much 2013 form to go off here for the World's No. 3. One Top-20 at the Northern Trust, one second round bounce from the Match Play. Back-to-back T6’s here at Doral though, so there’s that.
• Matt Kuchar (18/1) – T3 in 2010, solo fifth in 2011, followed by a T8 last year. Kuchar’s looking to add to his WGC-Match Play win earlier this year. Only Woods and Phil Mickelson have won more than one WGC event in the same calendar year.
• Keegan Bradley (22/1) – T8 in his only visit in 2012. Coming off a T4 at last week’s wind-swept Honda Classic and Bradley already has one WGC trophy to his credit (2012 Bridgestone).
• Jason Day (40/1) – Only his third go-around at Cadillac (T45 in 2011; T20 in 2012), but Day has three Top-10’s in four events in 2013 including his solo third at the Match Play. He has the length as well as the short game to be around the top come Sunday.