BMW Championship : Power Rankings and Sleeper Picks – SportsBlog.com (blog)
Despite missing the cut for the first two events of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, Jordan Spieth still finds himself atop the leaderboard. Will this be the week that he returns to the form we have all grown accustom to?
Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports
There are only two more weeks left in this year’s PGA Tour Season. The 2015 season has been highlighted by the proverbial passing of the torch from last generation’s “Big 3” of Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia to the new “Big 3” of Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Jason Day. It is safe to say that the new faces of golf are ready to take on the challenges of competing week in a week out; this year’s FedEx Cup has been the proof many golf fans have been seeking.
The race for the FedEx Cup is in full effect and currently there are several golfer’s vying for this elusive and hard fought championship. With Jordan Spieth still comfortably atop the leaderboard, the likes of Spieth, McIlroy, Fowler, and several others are merely one win away from supplanting the Aussie. The time is now for golfer’s to find their stride and find that fire in their belly. In 2014, Billy Horschel won the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship en route to hoisting the Cup – are there any golfers out there today that can find that momentum to recreate Horschel’s groundbreaking victory?
The BMW Championship has served as the second to last stop on the tour for the better part of this decade. This year’s event returns to Tom Fazio designed Conway Farms Golf Club in suburbs of Chicago. Stretching just shy of 7,200 yards, the tour’s top 70 on the FedEx Cup Leaderboard will be vying for 2,000 points; the points will be incredibly important for some as the Tour Championship will be only the top 30 in the rankings.
As always, we want to provide all of you fantasy golf players and golf fans a guide to who we believe to be the top 5 in the power rankings entering this week as well as the top 5 sleeper/dark horse picks that will have the greatest bang for their buck.
Top 5 Power Rankings:
1: Henrik Stenson
Stenson’s “hiccup” on the 16th hole of the Deutsche Bank Championship essentially cost him the title. Arguably the hottest golfer on tour at the moment, it’s just a matter of time until Stenson finds himself back in the winner’s circle.
2: Jason Day
The hangover from winning the RBC Canadian, PGA Championship and The Barclays in the last 2 months showed at the Deutsche Bank where he finished T12. Regardless, Day is still one of the hottest golfer’s on tour. Realistically, it’s a tossup between him and Stenson as to who I prefer at #1 heading into this week.
3: Rickie Fowler
Fowler is seemingly making the come behind win his trademark in 2015. With win’s at the Deutsche Bank where he overtook Stenson in the final 3 holes, and his impressive come from behind victory at The Players, Fowler finally appears to be improving under the tutelage of Butch Harmon. Can Fowler be this year’s Horschel and win out to claim the FedEx Cup Championship?
4: Rory McIlroy
Since returning from his “freak” ankle injury Rory has been steadily improving his game; during his closing round at the Deutsche Bank, Rory exhibited flashes of what made him #1 in the world. It would not shock me to find Rory out to a great start on Thursday and Friday and making the field chase him. The young Irishman has something to prove and this just might be the week he does so.
5: Jordan Spieth
If you have followed golf throughout the 2015 season then you would know that Spieth was a staple in the top 10 of nearly every event he played in – that is until this year’s playoffs. With 2 cuts missed in a row, Spieth will need to rebound this week if he wants to be able to decide his own fate during next week’s Tour Championship. Can Spieth recover from his 2 previous starts and regain the form we have all grown accustom to?
Top 5 Sleeper Picks:
1: Matt Kuchar
Absent for most of the 2015 season, Kuchar appears to have found the form that made him a contender for the FedEx Cup in past years. With a T7 at both the RBC Canadian Open and PGA Championship and a T9 at The Barclays, Kuchar will hope the off week didn’t slow his momentum. Currently ranked 20th in the rankings, Kuchar will look to cement his name in the field of 30 for the Tour Championship.
2: Danny Lee
Danny Lee is a name that we should expect to hear for many years to come. The young South Korean golfer has been playing some great golf and is looking to add another win to his resume after claiming the Greenbrier earlier this year.
3: Patrick Reed
Reed has the ability to win any tournament he plays, unfortunately for him 2015 has been rather difficult and one or two mental mistakes have cost him greatly. With a T4 finish and a solid final round at the Deutsche Bank Championship, Reed may have finally figured out what he needs to do to remain relevant in the conversation of the future of American golf. Currently tagged for a spot on the President’s Cup roster, Reed will need another impressive week to find his way to next week’s Tour Championship.
4: Tony Finau
In his rookie season Finau is nearly in for next week’s Tour Championship. With a missed cut at TPC Boston, Finau will look to rebound on a course where his length can be an x-factor that he can utilize to cut corners and find a greater success of “risk/reward” shots. It would be great for the young American to find his way into the Top 30 for next week.
5: Sean O’Hair
It’s incredibly difficult to not cheer for O’Hair. Once pegged as the future of American golf, O’Hair has overcome several mental hiccups to get back into true PGA form. With an impressive T4 finish at the Deutsche Bank, O’Hair is still seeking a win to finalize his comeback. Could this be his week?
History has proven that the BMW Championship can serve as the make or break event of the season for many of the world’s best; while some will be looking to merely extend their season, the top 10 know that two solid starts could move them straight to the top. With many storylines to follow, the most important is the final positioning heading into the final week of the season. Will Spieth continue his dominance and return to form this week or are we in store for a twist in the 2015 PGA Tour story? Cheers!
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