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By Dave Shedloski
PGATOUR.com Senior Correspondent

Deep breath. Now back to "normal golf."

"This week is going to feel like a walk in the park." So says J.J. Henry, the defending champion of the Travelers Championship. Sure, the TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Conn., can give up some low scores, but it's never been a walk in the park or a tip-toe through the tulips or whatever cliché you want to conjure.

The TOUR Insider thinks Carl Pettersson could earn his third PGA TOUR title this week. (Greenwood/WireImage)

TOUR INSIDER'S POWER RANKINGS

Travelers Championship

Rank Player '06 Finish 1 Carl Pettersson T31 2 Arron Oberholser DNP 3 Kenny Perry T66 4 David Toms DNP 5 J.J. Henry WON

Henry was merely thinking of the relative simplicity of the challenge in suburban Hartford after a week of tightrope, taut, tension-filled golf at the 107th U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania, a course so tough that Rory Sabbatini said it wasn't just challenge, but "abusive," and where the greens, he said, were so fast and fiery that, "anything over six inches you're lagging up there."

The par-70 TPC River Highlands is a mere 6,820 yards, but still is no pushover. Henry performed superbly last year in shooting 14-under 266, three better than Hunter Mahan and Ryan Moore.

Mahan and Henry, a local product, weathered four days at Oakmont. So did David Toms, Vijay Singh, Ben Curtis, Chad Campbell, Jerry Kelly, Chris DiMarco, Zach Johnson, Justin Rose, Nick O'Hern, Fred Funk, Carl Pettersson and Olin Browne. They either comprise the pool of favorites who will be enjoying the aforementioned walk in the park, or they will be so beaten down that they will be crawling to the finish line in Cromwell.

With Travelers bumping the purse from $4.4 million to $6 million, everyone should feel somewhat refreshed and focused. A new $5 million practice facility has been built at TPC River Highlands to further accentuate experience.

Everyone is certain to breathe easier.

Worth Knowing:

Phil Mickelson, who missed the cut at the U.S. Open to end his streak at 30 in majors, said he would do his best to play this week at Hartford, which he has won twice. He saw a doctor on his 37th birthday Saturday and was considering having another cortisone shot on his sore left wrist. Lefty will make a determination early this week about whether he can play. Two fewer rounds at Oakmont probably helped.

J.J. Henry seeks to become only the second man, after Mickelson, to win back-to-back titles at the Travelers Championship. Woody Austin did an admirable job last year in finishing tied for fifth, only the second defending champion to place in the top 10 the following year. Stewart Cink was second in 1997 after his '96 triumph.

The University of Hartford products Jerry Kelly and Tim Petrovic return to their stomping grounds, where they hope to have more success than in past visits. Petrovic tied for 59th last year. Kelly, having rebounded nicely in '07 with five top-10 finishes so far, missed the cut.

The veteran contingent obviously loves TPC River Highlands, not only because of recent victories, but also for the boost in scoring morale. There have been 15 rounds of 63 or better in the last four years. Players over 40 carded seven of those, including 61 by Brad Faxon, 62s by Corey Pavin and Joey Sindelar and 63 by Kenny Perry.

Perry, with two weeks off, might be a dangerous bloke this week. He got a swing tip at the Memorial and shot 67-63 on the weekend to finish tied for third. He also is armed with a new belly putter and has lost 20 pounds in the last six months, and it all seems to be coming together for him.

Sindelar is making his 24th start at the Hartford area stop, which ties Faxon for most in the field. Sindelar has more top-10 finishes, but Faxon has the 2005 title to his credit.

Former U.S. Amateur runner-up Luke List, who got into the U.S. Open when David Howell withdrew, turned professional on Monday. He'll make his second pro start at the TPC River Highlands thanks to an unrestricted sponsor exemption.

The four three winners of this storied event, begun in 1952, ended lengthy victory droughts, starting with Peter Jacobsen's triumph in 2003. Jake floundered for eight-plus years, since the 1995 Buick Invitational of California before his Dorian Gray trick. What's more, Jacobsen won his second title at Hartford 19 years after his first. Henry, of course, hadn't won on the PGA TOUR prior to his '06 triumph.