My WGC-Bridgestone Preview

The different big tournament this week is the WGC-Bridgestone, occasionally called the WGC-Tiger Woods Annuity because Tiger has received it 7 instances.

Of route, the playing field for this event is the mythical Firestone Country Club, which has hosted PGA Tour events for over 50 years. It's a 7400 backyard, par 70 monster it is visible some absolutely incredible golf over the years -- no longer it all from Tiger! The following photograph, as well as a slide show displaying photographs of all 18 holes, is here on the direction page. The slide show is referred to as the "Course Walk," if you're searching out the link.

There's also an "expert picks" page at the tournament site, and I was amazed to see that NO ONE picked Phil Mickelson as even a possibility! Hasn't Phil taught us not to write him off anywhere he's playing?

Personally, while the specialists appear to have settled on a collection of about 8 to 10 gamers which are maximum in all likelihood to win -- and albeit, they're not unreasonable alternatives -- I have a few unmentioned names who will make up my alternatives for the week (in no precise order):

1. Phil Mickelson: As I said, I am unwilling to rule Phil out as a possibility anywhere since Muirfield. I'm not so sure he'll win this week -- he's clearly aimed at the PGA next week -- and he says he's a bit rusty, but I expect him to play well.
2. Jason Day: I can't understand why Jason is getting no love. His finishes before each of this year's majors have seemed mediocre, then he just seems to turn it on. Although he didn't play particularly well at Muirfield (besides Phil, who did?), I suspect he's going to play well this week.
3. Jim Furyk: Furyk always seems to play well here, and I bet last year's loss to Keegan Bradley will have him motivated for one of his best performances of the year.
4. Angel Cabrera: There's a major next week. Need a better reason for him to "show up"?
5. Harris English: Harry had the expected lapse after his first win at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, but his finishes have been trending upward since. If his GIR is up a bit this week, he's got a real good chance at a WGC.

There are my 5 picks. We'll see who does better, me or the experts!

Finally, the TV times. GC will have the first two rounds, CBS the last two, and all are listed as starting at 2pm ET. In addition, GC will broadcast early coverage of the last two rounds from noon till 1:30pm ET.