Sleeper Picks: The PLAYERS

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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 can 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: Ryuji Imada
It's safe to say Imada has been a little streaky in 2008 -- three top-5s; three missed cuts; three decent starts; one withdrawal and a tie for 69th. He got off the missed-cuts train, which stood at three, just last week with a tie for 17th at the Wachovia Championship. Imada has a knack for performing well at supremely difficult courses such as Congressional, Torrey Pines and Quail Hollow last week. We'll see if he has what it takes to conquer TPC Sawgrass.

Lauren Deason
PGATOUR.COM Editorial Coordinator
Pick: Jonathan Byrd
As a three-time PGA TOUR winner, Byrd may not seem like much of a sleeper but consider his record in THE PLAYERS Championship: three missed cuts in five starts; tied for 32nd in 2005; tied for 16th last year. He missed the cut at the Wachovia Championship last week but he's accurate off the tee and a solid putter so could perform well at TPC Sawgrass.

Melanie Hauser
PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
Pick: Davis Love III
Best available under the rules. And, yes, he's getting close. He knows this course, knows what it takes to win here. Could be the perfect week to pull everything together.

Dave Lagarde
PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
Pick: Jose Maria Olazabal
Nothing to substantiate this selection other than its a huge event and Jose needs to jump start his PGA TOUR season. He can hit the long irons with the best of them.

John Maginnes
PGATOUR.COM Contributor
Pick: Davis Love III
Listen, say what you want but I am staying with Davis Love III as my sleeper until he does something like ... well, Davis Love. After all, he has won here a couple of times as recently as five years ago. He is in perfect shape but I will say this: If he doesn't play well this week then I am going to start feeling guilty that I have jinxed the Carolina boy ... and not pick him again until basketball season.

Win McMurry
Host, PGA TOUR Today
Pick: Jeff Quinney
In the 2006 Nationwide Tour Graduate's first start at THE PLAYERS, he finished tied for 6th--the best finish among first-time participants. He's made his last five cuts and is due for another top-10 finish. At the Northern Trust Open in February he finished runner-up to Phil Mickelson...who coincidentally is defending this week. And by this time last year the Oregon native had recorded five top-10s.

Scott Pianowski
The Fantasy Insider
Pick: Justin Leonard
His only deep run at The PLAYERS was his win in 1998, and Leonard hasn't even made the weekend since 2004. So why toss him into the mix? Because he's played 12 events this year and hasn't turned in a bad result yet. The quiet confidence of Leonard could go a long way this time around.

Helen Ross
PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents
Pick: Stephen Ames
He's cooled off after posting top-10s in his first two starts, but the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass tends to bring out the best in the Canadian. Ames won THE PLAYERS in 2005 and he was the runnerup three years earlier. He also has a pair of top-20 finishes there in his last six starts. Ames has made seven cuts in a row. This could be the week be contends again.

Dave Shedloski
PGATOUR.COM Senior Correspondent
Pick: Paul Casey
In hard and fast settings he's proven to have the mettle to manage his game. The Englishman had a chance at the Masters last month before a final-round fall, but he might finish it off at this major. A tie for 10th is his best finish at TPC Sawgrass, but that hardly matters. Neither does the fact he just missed the cut at the Wachovia Championship. He's a solid player.

John Swantek
PGA TOUR Productions Fantasy Insider
Pick: Justin Leonard
Were you aware that the Texan hasn't missed a cut this year? That's right, 12 for 12, finishing out of the top 30 only four times. The form that brought him the PLAYERS in '98 has been recaptured. Dangerous, flying under the radar this week.