The Fantasy Insider: Wachovia Championship

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We've got plenty of A-Listers on the program, and big names have fared very well at the Wachovia Championship, so get settled on the couch and let's do some star-gazing. I'll be surprised if the eventual champion isn't one of the top 30 players in the world.

PGATOUR.com Pick 'em
You need one player in each of the six groups, a wild card selection, and a hot putter never hurts.

Group 1 Pick: Phil Mickelson
Other Options: Vijay Singh, Geoff Ogilvy, Boo Weekley, Stewart Cink

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Phil Mickelson is searching for his second PGA TOUR win of the season.

Inside the Numbers

Phil Mickelson at the Wachovia Championship

Year Rd. 1 Rd. 2 Rd. 3 Rd. 4 Finish 2007 70 71 68 70 T3 2006 71 72 73 74 T35 2005 71 73 66 66 T7 2004 70 70 72 67 T5

The rough has been trimmed, the fairways are a bit damp (lengthening the course), the greens are challenging. Sound like a Lefty Layout to you? Mickelson's got three top-10 runs in four starts here, and I feel confident we'll see another one this week.

I can't blame anyone for picking Singh; he's been rock-solid after a so-so January, and he's also done very well at Quail Hollow (7, 38, 1, 10, 2). As always with Singh, it will come down to how many putts he's able to drop.

Ogilvy can never be discounted -- he's going to hit a lot of greens, and he's one of the best around when he needs to scramble. The tougher the course, the more it helps him, and he's been decent at Wachovia (24, 10, 22, 10). Cink ran fifth here last season and he's been Mr. Steady in 2008 (five finishes seventh or better). Weekley also has a strong in-season resume to support a pick, though his lone start here wasn't anything special (43rd).

Group 2 Pick: Adam Scott
Other Options: Steve Stricker, Ryuji Imada, J.B. Holmes, Andres Romero

There are some players you're just afraid to pick against, and Scott certainly is on that list. Can the win at the EDS Byron Nelson serve as a springboard to a monster year? He's done well at Quail Hollow (24, 3, 16), and that's your floor for this week. I'll be surprised if we don't see a lot of Scott on Sunday.

Stricker has surprisingly missed the cut in two of his last three starts, but he knows the way around this track -- he finished second to Tiger last year. His excellent iron play and putting gives him a shot anywhere. I'm a big fan of Imada's resourcefulness but I worry about the size of the course; he's just 155th in driving distance. Holmes has two ordinary results at the Wachovia Championship (34, WD), while Romero is making his debut here.

Group 3 Pick: Trevor Immelman
Other Options: Jim Furyk, Rory Sabbatini, Luke Donald, D.J. Trahan

We know Immelman is a wonderful off the tee (11th in total driving), and he's going to hit a slew of greens. If the putter cooperates, he's in the hunt Sunday. He's run 14th and second here the last two seasons.

It's also a good spot for Furyk, who's got the 2006 Wachovia win (and a second in 2005) to fall back on. He'll give you an honest run. Donald's history here is worse than you'd expect (cut, WD, 15, cut), while Trahan has two solid checks in three appearances (cut, 14, 9).

Loyal readers know I'm always looking for a reason to pick Sabbatini, but after three disappointing efforts in a row (two missed cuts, plus the T-70 at the WGC), I need him to play his way back onto the fantasy roster.

Group 4 Pick: Stuart Appleby
Other Options: Aaron Baddeley, Brandt Snedeker, Steve Lowery, Jonathan Wagner

The racing form doesn't help us that much here, as none of these players have thrived at Quail Hollow. With that, I'll fall back on Appleby, who's got the most consistent driver in the group. He did finish 15th at Wachovia a few years back, but he's done nothing at the event since.

Baddeley's four Quail Hollow starts (43, cut, 68, cut) don't excite, but you can always select him and hope it's one of his magical putting weeks. Snedeker and Wagner both missed the cut in their only stop here, while Lowery has one solid check over five Wachovia starts.

Group 5 Pick: Anthony Kim
Other Options: Steve Marino, Robert Allenby, Jeff Quinney

Kim's starting to have that look in his eye again -- he's been excellent the last two weeks, and he ran fifth at the Wachovia last year. Pick against him at your own risk -- there is no ceiling on this kid.

You also have to consider Allenby and Marino in this spot, two consistent drivers who are cashing a check just about every week. Marino's game has taken a slight dip over his last two starts, however, so I give a slight edge to the sweet-striding Aussie. Allenby doesn't have a top 30 showing at the Wachovia yet, but he's too consistent, and too smart, not to figure it out.

Quinney's lone stop here was a missed cut, for what it's worth. Brian Gay dropped out of the tournament Monday, so keep him off your roster this week.

Group 6 Pick: Kevin Sutherland
Other Options: John Senden, Ryan Moore, Peter Lonard, Nicholas Thompson

Sutherland is one of those under-the-radar guys who you don't notice all the time, but he's capable of making a run. He's very quietly cracked the top 10 in his last to starts this year, and he's got a sneaky-good resume at Quail Hollow (24, 14, 33, 10, 51). I'm on board.

You want to send it in on Senden? I won't try to talk you out of it. I love his complete game (go ahead, try to find a statistical flaw with this guy), and he's played well at Wachovia the last two years (10, 22).

It will be interesting to see how Moore responds to last week's near miss at the Byron Nelson. He didn't break par in any of his four rounds at Quail Hollow last year. Lonard has two missed cuts over this track, while Thompson is making his tourney debut.

Rest of the Field: Can Sergio Garcia hit enough fairways to contend? Can we trust his putter? It's not that Garcia can't succeed here -- he finished second back in 2005 -- but I need to see a little more before I get comfortable endorsing his rebound . . . It hasn't been a great putting year for Justin Rose, either, and he's didn't crack the Wachovia top 40 in two earlier starts. It's always perilous to pass over big names, but I'm not using Rose in any formats this week . . . Angel Cabrera is making his Quail Hollow debut and it hasn't been his best year, so yet another big name goes in the "show us" file for the week . . . Lucas Glover is close to a breakout performance, he just needs a little more consistency on the weekend. He's cashed two big Wachovia checks in four turns . . . Stephen Ames has been consistent but ordinary in three Wachovia turns (34, 22, 61), and that's parallel to what he's shown in recent weeks this season. Shake the 8-ball and we see something in the 20-40 range this week . . . Charles Howell III looked to be back in form at the Verizon Heritage, so give him a chance here. He's cashed four moderate checks in five Wachovia turns.