Quick 18: Who's the hottest player in golf? Not Ernie Els

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Davis Love III needs to win the Shell Houston Open in order to make the field in Augusta.

Editor's note: PGATOUR.COM's Melanie Hauser will be shaking out the mental lint and pulling together the "Quick 18" on Mondays this year.

1. Eight-for-eight. That's Ernie's record when leading after 54 holes. Tiger-esque? You bet. And a huge reason why he's one of the favorites in two weeks at Augusta. Maybe at this week's Shell Houston Open, too. He's finished in the top 17 both times he has played there.

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2. Hottest player in golf? Ernie's rocking it, but it hard to argue against Fred Couples, who's earned back-to-back-to-back victories on the Champions Tour. Not easy to win three in a row no matter where you're playing. And, oh, by the way, Freddie tied for third in Houston last year.

3. Don't think Couples finishing 2-1-1-1 in his first four Champions Tour events has escaped Couples' final-round playing partner, one Corey Pavin. Wales is a long way off, but, yes, the U.S. Ryder Cup captain has his eye on Freddie and Tom Watson.

4. Masters field is now 99 and counting. If the winner at the Shell Houston Open isn't already qualified, he could punch his ticket like Johnson Wagner did in 2008. That would make the field an even 100.

5. Els can take a bit of credit for countryman Louis Oosthuizen's first European Tour win Sunday. Oosthuizen came up through Els' Foundation in Fancourt which helps promising South African players.

6. Wondering what it will be like around Augusta National during next week's practice rounds? Els pretty much summed it up by saying. "We'll all be sideshows until Thursday morning. And I think we're all fine with that."

7. Count Ben Curtis among those who've played a practice round with Tiger Woods, of late. "We work on the same things,'' the 2003 British Open champ said, "Tiger just does it better than I do.''

8. Just a couple of months ago, everyone was throwing Phil Mickelson into the mix at Augusta. Now, not so much. If Lefty's close to rocking, it's time to get moving. After scraping it around Bay Hill with closing rounds on 75-77 ... well, he headed to Augusta for two days. Always a good tonic for what ails a player. Next up, the Shell Houston Open.

9. Jim Furyk finally wins again and the man remains an afterthought. He gets overshadowed by Tiger announcing he'll play the Masters, then he doesn't even get a cover shot. One golf magazine went with Arnold Palmer winning the U.S. Open; the other with Kristi McPherson.

10. Tiger's two five-minute interviews -- one with GOLF CHANNEL, the other with ESPN -- had everyone talking about the time limit. But ... there is precedent. Sort of. According to Reliable Sources, when doing multiple on-camera interviews the same day, the White House often puts a five-minute limit on reporters speaking to President Barack Obama.

11. Gotta love Davis Love III, who spent the week before Bay Hill on a snowboard. Closes with a pair of 74s, ties for 14th. Heads for Houston. Shades of 1995 and playing his way into the Masters with a win in New Orleans? We'll have to wait and see.

12. Snaps from Q18 to Purdue women's golf coach Devon Brouse who disqualified his top player -- Maude-Aimee LeBlanc -- for unsportsmanlike conduct. She was 11 over when he sent her to the locker room. "This is about disrespecting the course, fellow competitors, her team, her school and the game,'' Brouse said.

13. From the GOLF CHANNEL's Priceless Foursome ... Arnold Palmer was hosting a roundtable on the one shot players wanted back. Arnie didn't have just one. "I had 10 that cost me major championships,'' the King said.

14. Next time you're scouring the scores from the mini-tours, look for Russell Knox. The guy has a win and two runners-up finishes combined on the eGolf and Hooters Tours. The Scot lives in Jacksonville Beach and played at Jacksonville University.

15. Another tournament, another rules oops for Michele Wie. She splashed out of a hazard, but her ball remained inside the hazard line. Her club touched the grass and, well, that's a penalty. She said she was trying to balance herself (which wouldn't have been a penalty). Officials disagreed. Cost her about $90,000 and 10 minutes pleading -- some on camera -- with officials. She's hardly the first player to have a brain blip in a hazard. One unnamed player was simply waiting in a hazard to play his shot, reached down and grabbed a blade of grass to chew on. Yep, a penalty. Q 18's advice? She's on TV more than any other LPGA player, but that's no excuse. Wie just needs to slow down and think.

16. When it comes to pizza, Quick 18 is a snob. You haven't lived until you've had a slice at John's or Lombardi's in Manhattan. We hear Grimaldi's is right up there too. So it's hard to believe we checked out http://www.johndalypizza.com/. The slogan? Grip it, Rip It and Eat It. No kidding. Branded pizza for your golf course or business. And, there's a link to Loudmouth Pants. Daly says his pizza is a 350-yard drive down the middle.

17. Bo Van Pelt tweet of the week: "Rule 2 for spectating- if your name is not John daly and u r wearing loud mouth pants and yelling "u da man" -u need to evaluate things."

18. Interesting twist from Sports Illustrated, who found the best golfers -- by position -- in Major League Baseball. The Cliff's Notes? The Minnesota Twins had three players in the lineup -- reliever Joe Nathan (10 handicap), catcher Joe Mauer (7) and short stop Nick Punto (0.5). And from Yankees first-baseman Mark Teixeria, who plays to a 10: "I hope this doesn't mean my friends will give me fewer shots.''

Melanie Hauser is a columnist for PGATOUR.COM. Her views do not necessarily represent the views of the PGA TOUR.