Expert Picks: the Memorial Tournament

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May. 31, 2011

The PGA TOUR travels to Murifield Village Golf Club this week for the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance. Here's how the PGATOUR.COM experts sized up the top contenders:

MAKE YOUR PICKS: Tell us who you think will win this week at Murifield Village.

EXPERT PICKS
How it works: Our experts from PGATOUR.COM select the player they think will win this week's event by using a draft process -- no two picks can be the same. The player who wins the previous week picks last the following week.
SLEEPER PICKS
Of the players who didn't make the cut for our top picks, which have the best chance as sleepers? To see who our experts picked, click here.

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Expert picks: the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance

Expert	Pick order	Player selected
Ryan Smithson			STEVE STRICKER. It's tough having the No. 1 pick this week. Donald? He's played a ton lately and has got to be tired. Mickelson? Too inconsistent. Stricker has just nine starts but is still 34th in FedExCup points. He'll crack the top 10 with a win this weekend.

Amanda Balionis			STEWART CINK. Cink finished in the top 10 last year at the Memorial and in 2011 has six top-25 finishes including a top-10 at the Wells Fargo Championship. Cink has also finished 4th at the tournament in 2001, and has only missed one cut here since 1996.
If Balionis had the top pick ... Cink
Helen Ross			MATT KUCHAR. Kuchar appears to be back on track with Sunday's T6 at the HP Byron Nelson Championship -- his seventh top-10 in 13 starts this season. He's finished 13th or better in his last four Memorial appearances, too, so he's comfortable at Muirfield Village.
If Ross had the top pick ... Kuchar
John Swantek			NICK WATNEY. Has elevated his game to a new level this year, performing at his best on the toughest courses against the deepest fields; among his seven top 10-finishes were a T4 at THE PLAYERS and the victory at the WGC-Cadillac.
If Swantek had the top pick ... Kuchar
Lauren Deason			PHIL MICKELSON. Mickelson is having a very good season, with four top-10 finishes and a win in Houston. With three top-10s in his last five starts at the Memorial, Mickelson could be poised to move up from his sixth-place mark in the FedExCup standings.
If Deason had the top pick ... Mickelson
Chris Dunham			LUKE DONALD. Since the start of last year's Playoffs, Donald has made 11 cuts in 12 TOUR starts with nine top-10s, three runners-up and a win. He's finished inside the top 20 in his last two trips to Dublin (T6, 2008; T14, 2009).
If Dunham had the top pick ... Donald
Brian Wacker			RORY McILROY. He has a history of playing big in big events even if he's had some equally big meltdowns in major championships. McIlroy tied for 10th at the Memorial last year and I don't see any reason he won't at least be in the top 10 this year.
If Wacker had the top pick ... Kuchar
Mike McAllister			JUSTIN ROSE. It's not often you get to pick a defending champion -- especially one with three top 10s and eight top 25s to go with a 30th place FedExCup standing -- with the eighth pick. In addition to his win, Rose has two other top-5s here.
If McAllister had the top pick ... Stricker
Anne Szeker			RICKIE FOWLER. Almost made history here as a rookie last year, but settled for second place. He's had a hot and cold season, with six top-20 finishes. He'll step up to the plate this week and take care of some unfinished business.
If Szeker had the top pick ... Kuchar
John Schwarb			JEFF OVERTON. The Hoosier is heating up with the weather, last week at the tough HP Byron Nelson he was T8. He was T12 last year at the Memorial, slowed only by a Sunday 73. If it's hot and humid this weekend, all the better.
If Schwarb had the top pick ... Kuchar

Standings after 22 events

LAST WEEK: John Schwarb made a veteran business pro move, taking Jason Day (T5) last week and moving up a spot in the standings.
Position	Name	Wins	Top-5s	Top-10s	Top-25s	FedExCup points
1	Mike McAllister Managing Editor, PGATOUR.COM	1	6	7	13	2211.21
2	Lauren Deason Editorial Coordinator, PGATOUR.COM	2	6	8	10	2054.65
3	Brian Wacker Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	0	3	6	14	1448.91
4	Ryan Smithson Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	1	5	6	10	1409.82
5	John Swantek Host, On The Tee	1	3	7	11	1248.61
6	Helen Ross Chief of Correspondents, PGATOUR.COM	1	1	4	9	1088.40
7	Anne Szeker Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	0	1	3	13	953.32
8	John Schwarb Site Producer, PGATOUR.COM	0	1	6	10	856.37
9	Chris Dunham Editorial Coordinator, PGATOUR.COM	0	2	7	10	845.49
10*	Amanda Balionis Host, PGA TOUR Today	0	1	1	2	305.00