The Aussie Strikes Again; Deutsche Bank Championship Preview

Adam Scott not only puts himself in contention, he wins again. This feels like a year where I have been repeating myself when it comes to big names winning these tournaments but the opposite could not be any truer. 2013 has been a year where many unknown names have risen to the top but the big guns are doing a fine job of reminding us why they are the best in the world. Scott’s victory in New York is his second of the year and maybe his luckier of the two.

If it were not for a Justin Rose three putt on the 18th, Scott would have played Rose and possibly others in a playoff scenario, but that was not the case. Adam’s clutch putter delivered down stretch and he showed us why he may now be the favorite for 2013 PGA Tour Player of the Year.

With three weeks left in the FedEx Cup Playoffs, the remaining field of 100 will head to Boston for the Deutsche Back Championship. As per tradition, the top three in the FedEx Cup standing will be paired together for both the first and second round. The way this tournament is structured is a bit different, seeing as it is played on a Friday-Monday schedule rather than the typical Thursday-Sunday setup given the Labor Day holiday. With this in mind, we will get to start our weekend watching drama unfold between Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott, and Tiger Woods. Ironically enough, The Tiger Woods Foundation actually manages this tournament which is put on at The Players Club in Boston.

The biggest story of this lead group will of course be surrounding the points leader, Woods. Midway through his final 18 last week, Woods fell to his knees from a severe back pain, which he stated was caused by his hotel bed. Tiger is looking to win this tournament again, as he in back in 2006, and extend his points lead going into the last two legs of the FedEx Cup. Mickelson and Scott both had impressive showings in their final rounds at The Barclays and look to keep that momentum rolling into this week.

Last year’s champion, Rory McIlroy, showed signs of turning his season around last week, where he finished T-19th despite only one round under par. Rory has noy broken through for a victory yet this season but if he were to win here, he would be the only multi-time champion besides Vijay Singh. I have read multiple interviews of tour players starting that length off the tee gives you a huge advantage on the course this week. We know Rory has the length, and I believe he will keep it in the middle to contend this week.

Since his U.S. open victory in 2012, Webb Simpson has yet to find his way to the winner’s circle, although he came close with a loss in a playoff at the RBC Heritage. Webb won here two years ago, in a second hole playoff victory over Chez Reavie. Simpson is in the top 10 in scoring average and will look to capitalize on his consistent play to lead him to his first victory of 2013.

As the tournaments continue to get smaller, the competition will continue to get more and more elite. Following the Deutsche Bank Championship, we will only see the top 70 in FedEx points advance forward. I gave you a handful of names to keep an eye on this week, but don’t limit your attention to just them. Anyone can win.

-Bryan 

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Tap's Trailers: A.C.O.D.

Put me down as someone excited for this one. I believe this is Adam Scott's first major movie role and I feel like he has true potential to breakthrough in 2014. This is also Jessica Alba's first big role in a long time and the first role for her that is not over-the-top with cheese or filled with action. It will be interesting to see how she does rocking the obviously fake but attractive tattoo half-sleeve. Amy Poehler, Scott's Parks & Rec co-star is also in the movie but not as his love interest, as his dad's (Played by Richard Jenkins) third wife. Like I said, this movie is worth your time and I would see it in theaters.

Charlie.

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Tap's Trailers: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

This is how you do a trailer folks. We have no idea what this movie is about right now except we have Ben Stiller, Kristen Wiig and Adam Scott in a movie where Stiller appears to work at LIFE magazine where he has dreams about being the people in the photos.  Now, this is all an assumption as Stiller could be actually doing all of this given the movie's title. Either way, it looks like a movie that will make you laugh, cry and all other sorts of emotions.  I am not a big fan in Stiller's serious work so we will see about this one. I will probably need some reviews first. Also great choice in song, my favorite Of Monsters of Men song.

Charlie.

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PGA Championship Preview: Bryan's Five to Watch

Bryan and I decided to do things a little differently for the final major of the year, the PGA Championship. We are just picking five players we like not named Tiger because it is more fun that way and then doing our usual tee time draft tomorrow. Enjoy.  

Coming off an outstanding victory at Firestone, Tiger Woods will be the hands down favorite to win this year’s final major. Rochester, NY and Oak Hill CC will play host to the 2013 PGA Championship and I can guarantee they will not disappoint. It has been 10 years, but this is not the first rodeo for Oak Hill when it comes to this championship. Back in 2003, Shaun Micheel raised the trophy and marked himself one of the biggest underdogs to ever win this major or any other. There is always the chance that a ‘no-name’ with rise from the slums to win a major but let me take this chance to tell you who my ‘big-name’ favorites are to win the Tour’s final major

1) Adam Scott - This is not the first time Adam Scott will play the PGA at Oak Hill. When it was played here 10 years ago, Scott notched a top 25 finish at the young age of 23. Since the 2003 PGA, Scott has only been able to record one top five finish at the final major, coming back in 2006. We all know he is the defending Masters champion but that does not carry any value this week. He fared well in Scotland, with a third place finish but was less than impressive at Merion. With two out of three incredible runs in majors this year, I expect Mr. Scott to stay consistent and keep the putter hot to be near the top this week.

2) Matt Kuchar - If it were not for the incredible year Tiger is having this year, Kuchar would be the easy favorite for Player of the Year. Kuch has established himself this year by gathering two victories and two more second place finishes. Also, he is still the tour’s leader in made cuts going back to last year and it does not look to be letting up. Kuchar does not necessarily have a vast history at this championship, especially considering he has only made the cut once. That occurrence came in 2010 when he was able to finish in a tie for 10th overall. With a victory here, Kuchar would put himself in a prime spot to compete for the FedEx Championship.

3) Sergio Garcia - Really Bryan? Sergio? I know it’s a bit crazy but that is how golf works sometimes. What amazed me the most prepping for this tournament was the fact that Sergio is the exact same age as Adam Scott. Knowing this, it is about time Sergio turned that frown upside down and labeled himself a major champion. He has had three top five finishes at previous PGA’s but missed the cut last year. He ranks first on Tour in stokes gained putting, which was long held by his best buddy, Mr. Tiger Woods.

4) Henrik Stenson -  have to pick Henrik here to redeem myself for leaving him off the list last week. He has been incredibly consistent this year but is yet to break through this season. Stenson's best major finish of 2013 was second place at The Open Championship. He also took an impressive second last week considering he spend his Sunday playing alongside Tiger. While he ranks second in ball striking and GIR, his most important performance stat to keep up will be his scrambling from the rough; where he currently leads all players.

5) Rory McIlroy - If we look back to this time last year, it would be hard to believe picking Rory this week would be a surprise. He is the defending PGA Champion and with a victory here, he could be only the fifth player in history to get three majors before the age of 25. He placed in the top five in three of his four attempts at this major and has never missed a cut. Also, 2009 was the last year that we saw Rory go a season without a victory. I do not know if he has the confidence to pull through for a win this week but he really needs to put himself near the top to get back on track.

-Bryan

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