Sleeper picks: TOUR Championship

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Editor's note: PGATOUR.com has tried to make our experts work a little harder when they make their picks each week. The favorite can be anyone in the field, although Tiger Woods could only be used seven times during the year. Sleepers can't have won in 2008 or had a top 10 in their last five starts. A sleeper can't be ranked in the top 30 in the field, either.

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T.J. Auclair
PGATOUR.COM Interactive Producer
Pick: Robert Allenby
The Aussie has had a fine season -- seven top-10 finishes in 24 starts -- but has no wins to show for his efforts. In fact, Allenby hasn't won a tournament since 2001. He's long overdue. Allenby has been incredibly consistent throughout 2008 with 23 cuts made in 24 starts. His only missed cut came in the first full-field event of the year at the Sony Open in Hawaii. A win at THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola would be the cherry on top of a fine season.

Lauren Deason
PGATOUR.COM Editorial Coordinator
Pick: Robert Allenby
It was tough to find a sleeper in this elite field -- as you know, we can only pick non-2008 winners, players who haven't had a top-10 in the past five events and someone who's not in the top-30 in the Official World Golf Ranking -- but Robert Allenby fits the bill. He's played so well this year with seven top-10s, 14 top-25s and only one missed cut, that it would be the perfect way to cap off his season if he were to earn the trophy. Plus, he tied for 11th at East Lake last year so he's no stranger to the venue and could get his fifth PGA TOUR victory and first since 2001 this week.

Melanie Hauser
PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
Pick: Bill Mayfair
There are not a lot of choices this week -- rules, you know -- but we're going with the quiet one. He's having a good season and he's been there, done that.

Dave Lagarde
PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
Pick: Hunter Mahan
If he can come down from his Ryder Cup high and keep on rolling in putts, he should be a contender.

John Maginnes
PGATOUR.COM Contributor
Pick: Dudley Hart
I don't know how you pick a darkhorse this week. If you are playing in THE TOUR Championship you aren't exactly sneaking up on anyone. Furthermore, you have probably had a top-10 finish in the last few weeks. So, I am going with Dudley Hart even though he doesn't exactly fill all the requirements. Then again, who does? Dudley was a darkhorse to start the year and has had one of the best of his career. He should be applauded for the effort.

Win McMurry
Host, PGA TOUR Today
Pick: Billy Mayfair
It's the TOUR Championship, so not many players in the 30-man field qualify as a sleeper. But one that does is Mayfair. In six appearances at East Lake, he won the event in 1995 and tied for second in his first start at the tournament. He is a solid player. And while there isn't a cut this week, he's made 20 of 26 this year.

Scott Pianowski
The Fantasy Insider
Pick: Billy Mayfair
He's one of the longest shots on the board, but let's have some fun and dial up the cagey vet. Mayfair has cashed in 16 of his last 17 starts, and he's still a reliable fairways-and-greens guy (11th in driving accuracy, 11th in GIR).

Helen Ross
PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents
Pick: Billy Mayfair
He's got a steady game and is completing another consistent season. Mayfair almost didn't qualify as a sleeper since he finished second at the RBC Canadian Open six starts ago. If he brings that form to East Lake, Mayfair could contend.

Dave Shedloski
PGATOUR.COM Senior Correspondent
Pick: Bubba Watson
Watson seems to have taken a step backward since last year and his recent results aren't particularly stellar with the exception of his tie for 12th at The Barclays, but we have a good feeling about the big hitter who is from the same hometown as Ryder Cup hero Boo Weekley. Milton, Fla. Biggest reason: that change to bermuda grass on the greens at East Lake is a boon to a guy whose best performances are on such a surface that is common in Florida.

John Swantek
PGA TOUR Productions Fantasy Insider
Picks: Bubba Watson
No one was more satisfied and excited to earn a berth in the TOUR Championship. To a guy like Watson, joining this elite field for the first time, that's a huge deal. He will want to perform at a high level to convince the golf world, his peers, and himself, that he belongs. I think the former Georgia Bulldog will be in it to win it.