Saturday:
Seeing this picture made me appreciate at least three things about The Barclays: (1) You can plainly see why a couple of PGA Tour radio commentators were noting the on site discussions this week on how the greens at Plainfield resemble potato chips; (2) The green complexes at Plainfield are among the very best ever done by Donald Ross, but they were obviously designed before greens were played at the speed of today?s game; and (3) I can readily see how this course presents targets that frame shots from the tee all the way to the hole which would appeal to the shot making eye of Bubba Watson.
With my hopes riding on Spencer Levin and Sean O?Hair, I?d almost have to say I?m looking at Levin?s best chance of jitterbugging and twitching his way up the leaderboard at 500/1 would probably involve drifting back with a 71 or even 72 on Saturday, then hoping to see whatever place a rush from off the lead might take him to on Sunday, rather than his squarely embracing a day of leaderboard gravity while mixing it up on a Saturday afternoon and then landing in a spotlight group on Sunday. But with O?Hair at 250/1, I think I?d like the vibe I?d get from watching his name staying close and moving up, sooner rather than later. But at their odds, I expect both will probably oblige me as value losers.
Matchups:
Watson(-105) over Stenson
Z. Johnson(-140) over Finau
Mickelson(-135) over Howell
O?Hair(+105) over Villegas
- - - Seeing angles for all the plays, but I can also see the other side for each of them.
GL