Fantasy Insider: Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial

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The Power Rankings are out -- and they included one former champion (Zach Johnson) and another (Steve Marino) who lost in a 2009 playoff at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. Who else should you be looking at to fill out your fantasy team for the classic par-70 test at Colonial?

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Power Rankings Plus
11. Ben Crane ... Seven top 25s in nine starts this season. Ranks eighth on TOUR in fairways hit, 19th in greens and 26th in strokes gained-putting. Also leads the circuit in birdies or better on par-4s and par-4 performance, stats that deserve additional value given that Colonial is a par 70. Also has top fives in three of his last four starts here, including last year's share of third.

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12. Spencer Levin ... His T12 at THE PLAYERS is his seventh top 20 of the year. He swallowed just six bogeys all week. Sits 30th on TOUR in greens in regulation, seventh in scoring average and fourth in total birdies.

13. Brian Gay ... Steady as he goes, with eight consecutive cuts made upon arrival, including last week's share of 12th, where he finished T3 in putting and T2 in birdies (also had one eagle). He's made 10 of 11 cuts at Colonial, and leads the TOUR in fairways hit, proximity to the hole, scrambling, sand saves and putting inside five feet. Also fifth in scoring average and 18th in the all-around.

14. Rory Sabbatini ... The 2007 Colonial champ hasn't cracked the top 30 here since, but he's been a mainstay on leaderboards this season. His three top 10s (including the Honda victory) already matches last year's total. En route to a T26 at THE PLAYERS, he ranked T10 in fairways and T4 in greens hit. Overall, he's second on TOUR in total birdies (13th in birdie average) and 15th in the all-around.

15. Matt Jones ... Top 25s in each of his last three starts, including a T19 at THE PLAYERS, where he closed bogey-free 6-under on his last 14 holes. He's also strung together 12 consecutive rounds of par or better. The Aussie finished T13 here last year with four rounds under par.

Power Rankings Distribution for Yahoo! (rank)

Group A ... Steve Marino (2); Matt Kuchar (10); Brian Gay (13); Rory Sabbatini (14)

Group B ... Hunter Mahan (3); David Toms (4); Pat Perez (5); Kevin Na (8); Ben Crane (11); Spencer Levin (12); Matt Jones (15)

Group C ... Jason Day (1); Zach Johnson (6); Stewart Cink (7); Jason Dufner (9)

Dark Horse (Yahoo! Group)
Sergio Garcia (C) ... At some point, he's going to put four rounds together and return to the winner's circle. He closed out THE PLAYERS with a sublime 65 and led the field in putting for the week. He's more ball-striker than shot-maker, but his first of seven PGA TOUR titles occurred here in 2001. This is his first appearance since 2005.

Martin Laird (A) ... The long-hitting Scot throttled it back here a year ago en route to a share of 10th place. He finished 40th in distance off the tee, and incurred just seven bogeys all week, with just one over his final 41 holes. After a torrid start to 2011, he's been inconsistent, but he deserves a look given his splits across the board.

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Adam Scott (C) ... Gunning to become the first to the Texas Slam, with wins already at the Shell Houston Open (2007), Byron Nelson Championship (2008) and Valero Texas Open (2010), coincidentally his most recent three (of seven) PGA TOUR victories. Seventh on TOUR in ball-striking (26th in greens hit), but 182nd in strokes gained-putting. Yet, he's managed four top 25s, including a pair of top 10s.

Scott Verplank (C) ... Just two top 10s in 21 appearances here, but both occurred in the last four, including last year's career-best T5 when he shot 16-under 67-66-66-65=264. He's also figured out how to play through his injured left wrist this year, with a pair of top 10s in seven starts. Always still a threat when fairways and greens are premiums.

Nick O'Hern (C) ... Sneaky play this week. The lefty is 4-for-4 at Colonial, with three top 25s and 11 of 16 rounds under par, including his last five. Prior to missing the cut at THE PLAYERS, he posted three top 20s in four starts and escaped any psychological weight that his medical extension might have possessed. Now fully exempt for the remainder of the year, look for him to tee-to-green his way to another weekend.

Corey Pavin (C) ... With a pair of wins and six other top 10s among his 24 cuts made in 27 appearances, including last year's T7, it's no wonder that he's fourth in all-time earnings at Colonial. In fact, he's posted four top 20s in the last five years here to earn smart speller material for others Yahoo! gamers would rather holster.

Kenny Perry (B) ... If you asked him who sits No. 1 on the all-time money list here, he himself may be surprised to learn that he does. That's valuable to gamers. In 21 starts, he's won twice and missed just two cuts. He has just one top 25 in the last five years here, but that was last year's T22. Still hits enough greens (24th on TOUR) to warrant your short list.

Bobby Gates (C) ... No rookies have finished inside the top 25 here since 2007, but Gates has already posted a trio of top-six finishes this season, including in his last start at Quail Hollow (T6). The Texas A&M product is a first-timer at Colonial, but should find a bit of a comfort zone knocking it around in the wind.

Danger (Yahoo! Group)
Jim Furyk (A) ... He was trending for something special at THE PLAYERS, and then hit just 23 greens and still needed 59 putts, including 33 in the second round. I'm not sour in the long-term, and you never should fade him, but other deserve lineup spots ahead of him this week. Plus, he's alternated top 10s with missed cuts here over the last four years.

J.B. Holmes (C) ... With four top 10s -- including two straight coming in -- and zero missed cuts in 10 starts this year -- his spot here may be a surprise for some. However, he's 0-for-2 at Colonial with just one round under par. Consider this a good time to give him a break.

J.J. Henry (B) ... After starting the year with 11 consecutive cuts made, he's stumbled, managing just one round in the 60s over his last 11. He ranks 11th on TOUR in ball-striking and 61st in strokes gained-putting, but given his recent play and the fact that he has just one top-40 finish in nine starts here (T22, 2009), take a pass on the local resident.

Jeff Overton (B) ... With top-15s here in both of his appearances, including last year's share of third place, he's going to see an inflated number of starts in the Yahoo! format. However, he entered both of those showings with more mojo than this week's ramp-up. Zero top 25s in his last six starts. I'll grant you that he's not worth discarding entirely, just that his track record may portend higher expectations.

Hunter Haas ... The Fort Worth native hasn't broken 70 in his last 10 rounds (all courses were par 72s) and has just one round in the 60s over his last 24. This is his fourth appearance at Colonial dating back to 2000; he hasn't cracked the field since 2005, when he placed T44.

Medic! (Yahoo! Group)
Jimmy Walker (C) ... Per his wife, Erin, in her blog entry on May 13: "Jimmy had a bit of a rough week in Charlotte when a lower back injury caught us all by surprise. It wasn't a great result, but after the way the week started and talks of withdrawing on Friday, we were happy he was able to grind it out. Only after he made the cut -- and some prodding, stretching, massage, ice, ice and more ice -- were his therapists on TOUR able to identify that the strain was actually stemming from an agitated leg muscle in his upper thigh." Jimmy finished T68 at Quail Hollow and missed the cut at TPC Sawgrass by two strokes, although he carded a 69 in his second round. Has now gone seven starts without a top 25.

Briny Baird (C) ... Not in the Colonial field, but he's scheduled to tee it up at the BMW Charity Pro-Am on the Nationwide Tour this week. He's been out since withdrawing during his second round of the Zurich Classic in New Orleans (April 29) due to an ear infection.

Notable WDs (Yahoo! Group)

Tim Clark (B) ... A mere formality after appearing in the published field on Friday. After withdrawing 28 holes into THE PLAYERS, he said that he'd take one or two months to rest his ailing right elbow. He also confirmed that the pain is due to tendinitis.

Chris Couch (C) ... This is the second time this season that he's withdrawn after the commitment deadline and before the tournament started (AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am). He's 9-for-9 this year with three top 10s. Because he's taking a more deliberate approach at his schedule, remain patient. The dividends have exceeded his preseason fantasy value.

Kevin Sutherland (C) ... Had played in each of the previous three tournaments, missing the cut in all.

Rob Bolton is the freelance fantasy columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily reflect the views of the PGA TOUR.