AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am: Expert Picks

Tournament Information

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
Date: February 4^th – 7th
Course: Pebble Beach Golf Links; Spyglass Hill Golf Course; Monterey Peninsula CC
Purse: $7.8MM ($1.4MM to winner)
2020 Winner: Nick Taylor (-19)
OWGR Points: 38

Course

Pebble Beach Golf Links built in 1919 by Harold Sampson, this tournament consists of one round on each of the three courses:

• Pebble Beach GL – This par 72, 6,816 yard course was built in 1919 and designed by Jack Neville and Douglas Grant, this course has a fun mix of the water and the cliffs. The dance between the water on one side and rough on the other makes this one a challenge for players.
• Monterey Peninsula CC – This par 71, 6,958 yard course opened in 1926 designed by Bob Baldock and Jack Neville, this course is quite the change from Pebble Beach in that it’s lined with trees and much more condensed.
• Spyglass Hill GC – This par 72, 6,858 yard course was designed by Robert Trent Jones this course dances along the coast as well with some scenic views of the water. It is known for the first five holes which will test the golfers right off the start.

Photo by Ben Jared/PGA TOUR

My Starting 4

Jason Day (second selection this year) — Day finished in the top five here over the last four years. It’s all or none for Day who has either finished in the top 12 or missed the cut the last five tournaments.

Kevin Streelman (first selection this year) — Streelman has been a top 15 finisher here every year since 2017. Fun fact about Streelman, he’s inside the top 100 on the tour in driving accuracy, greens in regulation, birdie average, strokes gained off the tee, approaching the green, tee to green, and total.

Phil Mickelson (second selection this year) — Top three finisher here the last three years, Mickelson is a beast at Pebble Beach. That’s the good news. The bad news: Phil has not finished better than 40th across eight tournaments this season. This isn’t necessarily a foreign spot for Phil who struggled out of the gate last year too and used Pebble Beach as an aid to start a positive trend.

Jordan Spieth (second selection this year) — Two amazing years here (2017 & 2020) bookended a 20th place and 45th place (not terrible) giving Speith a solid four year trend here. He comes into this tournament fresh off a fourth place finish at Waste Management, which might be a concern. The last time he had back to back top ten finishes was 2019. He’s currently 12th in strokes gained around the green thanks to him being 9th in scrambling 20-30 yards from the hole.

My Bench 2

Scott Piercy (first selection this year) — Piercy has landed inside the top 20 here the last three years. He’s 43rd in strokes gained approaching the green and 42nd in strokes gained tee to green. The biggest issue is he’s fresh off back to back missed cuts.

Scott Stalling (first selection this year) — Stalling had his first finish outside the top 15 since 2017. He’s 41st in strokes gained approaching the green and he’s 59th in strokes gained tee to green.

Fun Fact: Sam Snead won here three of the first five years.

2020-2021 Stats (1^st percent would be the top golfer picked every week)
Starting 4: avg finish 37^th (29^th percent)
Bench 2: avg finish 51^th (40^th percent)