Backspin: Sudden move to the top won't change Bubba

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When Bubba Watson was growing up in the Florida panhandle in the tiny town of Bagdad, his late father Gerry told him he was going to have to be either really smart in school or really good at a sport.

Watson was never much for school work -- "I was too lazy to be good in school," he said -- but he could hit a golf ball pretty well.

It took a few years and a change in attitude for Watson to win on the PGA TOUR. Once he did, last June in Hartford at the Travelers Championship, he just seemed to keep getting better and better.

"[My wife] helped me realize that I've got to grind it out," Watson said. "I've got to practice. I can't be lazy.

"She, being a professional athlete herself, she had to practice. She had to train. She had to eat properly. She had to do all these things that you don't want to do until you get results."

Watson has gotten plenty of results since, including making last year's Ryder Cup team and two wins this season, including Sunday's Zurich Classic of New Orleans that vaulted him to the top of the FedExCup standings.

Once known simply as one as a bomb-and-gouger, Watson this year has added a level of accuracy that has him third on TOUR in total driving and first in greens in regulation. That's been the biggest difference in his progression. He's no longer a one-trick pony.

Is he the best player in the world? No ... not yet. Is he one of the best? Absolutely.

Not that any of this will change Watson.

"The media's going to say I'm a better player. The media's going to say I'm higher ranked," Watson said. "But if I play the way Bubba should play, the way I know I can play, then I know I should be somewhere around at least the cut. That's the way I see it.

"So it doesn't change. It doesn't change that now I have another trophy. I'm still trying to win next week, the week after, and the week after that if that makes sense."

Stock up

Luke Donald: Seven starts, six top-10s, including a win. But Donald's good play goes well beyond this year, which is why he's near the top of the Official World Golf Ranking. Dating back to the beginning of 2010 he has a total of 13 top-10s. Seven of those were finishes in the top three. FedExCup rank: 2 (2 last week). K.J. Choi: The biggest difference in Choi this year and Choi the last couple of years is that he's finally healthy thanks to some acupuncture and other treatment for the area where his lower back meets his hip. The result? Top-10s in his last three starts, including a tie for eighth at the Masters and a tie for third last week. He hasn't won since 2008, but he's playing too well not to win this year. FedExCup rank: 29 (38 last week). Webb Simpson: Two runner-up finishes in a little more than a month are bittersweet to an extent, but Simpson is obviously playing some really good golf right now. In 10 starts this year, he has seven top-25s. Three of those are top-10s. Three more of them are all finishes in the top 16. FedExCup rank: 10 (24 last week)

Stock down

Graeme McDowell: This is not how I pictured McDowell's season going. He's missed three of his last four cuts and the one he did make he finished in a tie for 61st. He hasn't had a stretch like that since 2007. Is McDowell worn down? Maybe. He barely had an offseason, has played a lot this year and he's about to go on a run of four straight events beginning with THE PLAYERS Championship. FedExCup rank: 50 (44 last week). Sean O'Hair: O'Hair's greatest win came two years ago this week at Quail Hollow. He'll need something to jump-start his season: He's missed five straight missed cuts. During that stretch, O'Hair is a combined 22 over and he hasnt broken 70. In New Orleans, OHair shot 78-75 in what was just the latest example of his struggles. FedExCup rank: 161 (150 last week) John Daly: This one's pretty simple and not all that surprising at this point really: Eight starts, six missed cuts and an 81 in the opening round last week in New Orleans. Since 2008, Daly has just one top-25, which came last year in Puerto Rico. FedExCup rank: 236 (236 last week)

THE BACK NINE: 9 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW

1. Webb Simpson might not like the rule about being penalized if your ball moves after you address it, but he knows it, and Sunday wasn't the first time it cost him. Two years ago in the final round of the Bob Hope Classic, he had the exact same thing happen. It cost him a stroke and he went on to finish fifth. "The problem with the rule is you get greens like this that they get pretty bare, almost like this table top, wind's blowing, balls can wiggle and move so easily," Simpson said. "I go up to tap it in. It's not like I rushed up there, I took my time. The unfortunate thing and the reason I don't think it's a good rule is golf is supposedly the last gentleman's game. There is so much on the player to call the penalty on themselves. When wind or other natural things affect the golf ball, the player shouldn't be penalized."

2. Don't take anything away from Bubba's victory. When he hit the ball in the bunker off the tee on the second playoff hole, he didn't think twice about going for the green. Here's the kicker: It had never been done before by anyone other than Bubba Watson. He's 3-for-3 in hitting the green from that bunker. No one else on TOUR had ever done it. Since 2005, 978 players have gone for the 18th green in two shots, and only 136 have been successful in their attempts (14 percent).

3. At this point last year, Ernie Els was in the midst of a 22-week stay atop the FedExCup standings. Watson's now No. 1. But it could be tougher for Watson to duplicate Els' run. Watson has six pursuers with more than 1,000 points each; at this time last year, just two other players besides Els had more than 1,000 points.

4. We officially just passed the halfway point of the 2011 season and here's what we know: Not a whole lot, other than there's not a dominant player in golf right now. And Tiger Woods isn't among the few who have been dominant lately. Will he ever be again? Only time will tell.

5. Will Tiger be back in time for THE PLAYERS Championship? It all depends on how quickly he recovers from the injury to his knee and Achilles. My guess is yes. But it's just that, a guess, and as of last week no one in his camp had any idea either.

6. Last week I had a chance to spend part of the day with Arnold Palmer for an upcoming story. At 81, he's as spry as ever. I'll share a couple of nuggets without spoiling the story. He goes to his office at Bay Hill five days a week, along with his dog Mulligan, when he's not traveling and he always stops for a picture or autograph when asked. His eyes also lit up when he talked about his days in the coast guard, which is where he got his start in designing golf courses, and of course about flying, something he finally gave up earlier this year after 50 years and 20,000 hours.

7. One other nugget from Palmer: He thinks it's possible Tiger Woods can still break Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 major championships, but he also thinks that at this point, there's a better chance of it not happening.

8. The rookies will be wide-eyed this week at Quail Hollow in the Wells Fargo Championship. Rookie Jhonattan Vegas, 13th in the FedExCup standings, was already at the course on Monday morning for a practice round, and almost every rookie that could get in the tournament is teeing it up this week. If the course has the feel of a major, it's because the course was selected earlier this year to host the 2017 PGA Championship.

9. Graeme McDowell saw Congressional, host of this year's U.S. Open, for the first time Monday as he was part of a media event there. No doubt he's looking to pick up some tips on how best to play the course as he prepares to defend his title next month. On his Twitter feed, McDowell speculated that no one will break par.

Forward Spin

Tiger Woods won't be in the field at the Wells Fargo Championship after announcing that he injured himself during the Masters, but Rory McIlroy will be. He's back to defend a title he won with a final-round 62 a year ago in one of the most impressive rounds of golf we've seen anywhere in the last couple of years. Phil Mickelson is also in the field in what's quickly become one of the best stops on TOUR. Quail Hollow is a big golf course and this tournament has produced some pretty big winners in its brief history, and I wouldnt be surprised to see someone like Mickelson be on contention come Sunday.

Next Kodak Challenge hole

TOURNAMENT: Wells Fargo Championship HOLE: The par-5, 566-yard 15th at Quail Hollow ABOUT THE HOLE: The last of the par-5s plays uphill after the tee shot. To spectators, water on the left and right of the fairway may appear dangerous; however, it will probably have little effect on the professionals. A ridge running down the middle of the green requires perhaps more caution and an accurate approach. Kodak Challenge standings