With the exception of a couple of winners at Colonial, I don?t remember having much success with events in Texas. Looking for an edge (and encouraged by the taste of a big score last week), I started my capping early this week. So far my Texas team includes Jimmy Walker(55/1) and Ryan Palmer(55/1), and I can?t shake a liking for Bill Haas(66/1) . . . In early capping for Morocco, I started by thinking I was nicely encouraged that Matteo Manassero had a pretty good and consistent week at a birdie-fest venue I didn?t think would suit him (so much so that I passed on a play last week I otherwise might have liked after the three time Masters participant spent recent weeks far removed from those proceedings). But then I got to wondering whether there even is a venue that might suit Matteo these days, and maybe spacious and forgiving off the tee is his current ideal, and that his low place has taken him to places so dark and fragile that coveting for a return for the big stages of Augusta is far removed from his mindset. In any event, while winning seems unlikely in the immediate future, he has been taking some steps forward that has me expecting he is due and overdue for a serious jump beyond his season best finish of 30th place. Then finding that his 25th birthday is on Thursday, that sealed my fate so that there was really no chance I?d pass on some 200/1 e.w. speculation while dreaming of a back-to-back score after Steve Flesch at 100/1.
GL
