PGA Championship: Expert Picks

PGA Championship
When: July 27^th -€” 31^st

Where: Baltusrol Golf Club
2015 Winner: Jason Day (-20)

The format of this will go: I will select golfers based on the Yahoo format. I will select one A golfer, 2 B golfers and 1 C golfer that I think will do well as well as one dark horse pick, this should space out the selections and provide a vast field to select from for anyone who is in a format where you are limited to 10 starts per year.

Baltusrol -€”Founded in 1895 by Louis Keller, Baltusrol was the first club to host both the US Open for Men and Women on two different courses. The two courses were designed by A.W. Tillinghast in 1918 . While the Lower Course is on a flatter terrain and provides more ample space to hit, the Upper Course comes alongside Baltusrol Mountain and presents much more of an altitude change. This course is by no means ‘easy' but some records have been set here for lowest aggregate score at a tournament. If a golfer gets in a good rhythm they can carry it far with these courses.

A: 
Dustin Johnson -€” I really want to put Phil Mickelson in here. Phil hit a rough patch but has been playing excellent lately AND he has a track record of success here. Let's be honest though, Dustin is first in FedEx cup standings and he has 7 consecutive top 10 finishes. No brainer here.

B: 
Rory McIlroy -€” Rory's last ten tournaments: 5^th, MC, 4^th, 12^th, 4^th, 10^th, 4^th, 27^th, 3^rd and MC. That's 6 top ten, 2 top 30 and 2 MC. While it is tough to get a baseline for consistency at 3 of the Majors because they change venues, he still has a good track record at the PGA Championship in genearl. He finished 17^th last year at the PGA Championship, 1^st in 2014 and 8^th in 2013, he is no stranger to playing well late into the year.

Jason Dufner -€” He's been quietly putting together a nice 2^nd half to his season. His last 10 tournaments: 22^nd, 51^st, 6^th, 8^th, 33^rd, 6^th, 24^th, 49^th, 54^th and MC. Since his win in 2013 at the PGA Championship, he's regressed to a 48^th place finish in 2014 and a 68^th last year. His stroke is looking strong and he is the type who can rally off good shots (as he did in 2013), if he gets on a roll he can excel here.

C:
Thomas Pieters -€” The 24 year old out of Belgium has had quite the year. He played in just 4 PGA tournaments this year and 3 of the 4 he netted top 30 finishes. His last four tournaments overseas have netted the same result -€” 3 top 30 finishes. His game all around is strong and he has the raw talent to be someone who could impress in the future. He's ranked 63 in the world in official golf ranking.

Sleeper Pick:
Anirban Lahiri -€” Finished 5^th last year at the PGA Championship, the best finish ever by an Indian Golfer in a major. He had a great score through most of the British Open until a tough final round on Sunday. He's missed one cut in ten tournaments as he consistently plays well Friday and Saturday -€” he just needs to improve his putting and overall play on Sunday specifically. OWGR of 64.

Last tournament results -€” RBC Canadian Open (150 total) -€” Picks: Finau, McGirt, Hearn, Kuchar and Grillo -€” Not going to lie, this one was brutal. 
A: 70^th place
B: 59^th place; 103^rd place
C: 9^th place
Dark Horse: 43^rd place

YTD Avg: (Average field of 133 people)
A: 34^th place 
B: 37^th place
C: 50^th place
Dark Horse: 49^th place

Fun factoid about this tournament: The Club is aptly named Baltusrol after the original owner of the farm land which it was built Baltus Roll.