OWGR Week 50 & YEAR END

Assuming NONE of the players below were to earn points this week, this is how the OWGR would look a YEAR END.   Players in bold are playing this week,

45 - Rickie Fowler - Thailand
46 - Jimmy Walker
47 - Thongchai Jaidee - Thailand
48 - Peter Hanson
49 - Joost Luiten
50 - Richard Sterne
51 - Branden Grace - Nelson Mandela
52 - Harris English
53 - Boo Weekley
54 - Bernd Wiesberger - Thailand
55 - Scott Piercy
56 - Gary Woodland
57 - Bo Van Pelt
58 - Brendon de Jonge
59 - Chris Kirk
60 - Kiradech Aphibarnrat - Thailand

Scenarios for the players in action this week who can affect the top-50 bubble at YEAR END.  (Thailand at 38 points, Nelson Mandela at 20)

The likely safe spot for any of the players would be to pass Hanson for #48.  But passing Luiten for #49 is probably good enough, and  passing Sterne could be enough.

Branden Grace - Playing Nelson Mandela (Currently T3 in R2 in progress)
* Needs the minimum 1.2 points to pass Sterne (T22 or better)
* Needs 4.2 points to pass Luiten (2-way T5 or better)
* Needs 6.7 points to pass Hanson (2-way T3)

Bernd Wiesberger - Playing Thailand (T27 after 2nd rd)
* Needs 2.3 points to pass Sterne (21st place)
* Needs 5.5 points to pass Luiten (2-way T9)
* Needs 7.9 points to pass Hanson (2-way T5)
* Needs 1.3 points more than Grace to pass Grace

Kiradech Aphibarnrat - Playing Thailand (T7 after 2nd rd)
* Needs 12.0 points to pass Sterne (2-way T3)
* Needs 15.2 points to pass Luiten (solo 3rd)
* Needs 17.6 points to pass Hanson (2-way T2)
* Needs 11 points more than Grace to pass Grace
* Needs 10 points more than Wiesberger to pass Wiesberger

Thorbjorn Olesen will miss the cut at Thailand and finish the year at #65 at best.

D.A. Points - Playing Thailand (T27 through 2nd rd)
* Needs a 2-way tie for 2nd to pass Sterne & Luiten, and a solo 2nd place to pass Hanson

Michael Thompson will miss the cut at Thailand and finish the year at #79 at best.

Ryo Ishikawa (T27 after 2 rounds) can pass Sterne (but not Luiten) with a win in Thailand. Grace could knock Ryo back out of the top-50 with 3.3 points or a 16th place finish.

NO other players can factor in top-50 bubble by year end.

I've never liked Rickie Fowler, so glad to see him live up my expectation of him being mediocre and believing his own hype. He could easily do an Anthony Kim and disappear and I hope he does.

super_realist wrote:I've never liked Rickie Fowler, so glad to see him live up my expectation of him being mediocre and believing his own hype. He could easily do an Anthony Kim and disappear and I hope he does.

Not a big fan myself. Got to say that he is prob like lw in what drives you once you've earned a few mill? Especially with lucrative apparel contracts. Would be nice to be in the same boat I reckon, but the 75 quid I've got saved won't keep me going long...

Very exciting as to whether Luiten will make top 50. I'd say Grace will stay in front so up to Aphibarrabanabramt / Wiesberger to not make it!

MontysMerkin wrote:Not a big fan myself. Got to say that he is prob like lw in what drives you once you've earned a few mill? Especially with lucrative apparel contracts. Would be nice to be in the same boat I reckon, but the 75 quid I've got saved won't keep me going long...

Actually Fowler has the reputation of being one of the harder workers out there. I just wish he would relent and let someone help him with his swing. I agree with the concept of a guy coming out of college not changing up what got you there... but it's been long enough now it should seem evident that his swing, so dependent on perfect timing, isn't going to take him to a level much beyond what he is now.

Otherwise, while I don't care for the "Orange Popsicle" outfits or that flat hat... he's about as fan and sponsor friendly as they get. And I certainly don't begrudge a guy who has fun in his off time, or who's come up with something unique to make some serious coin on the endorsement front.... that is UNTIL it negatively affects his game... which I doubt is the case with Fowler.

Mighty one: I think you left out 3 r's and 2 b's in your Aphibarrabanabramt spelling... but good attempt... :-)

Good insight on the rankings, robo. Thanks.

As for Rickie Fowler, I kinda like him, he's great to follow, plays quickly and, as robo says, is very fan-friendly.
(Interesting that some of the media faves are really not at all fan-friendly - sure we can all think of one or two!)
Fowler shoots himself in the foot though doesn't he? Almost always clocks up a high number, double-bogey or worse wherever he plays; I've always put that down to course management and an iffy short game. Isn't he still with his high school-mate on the bag?

Playing well so far this week.

PS: All that on Rickie Fowler and a birthday (25) today!

I just think Rickie Fowler looks like a Duplo man!

kwinigolfer wrote:Good insight on the rankings, robo. Thanks.

As for Rickie Fowler, I kinda like him, he's great to follow, plays quickly and, as robo says, is very fan-friendly.
(Interesting that some of the media faves are really not at all fan-friendly - sure we can all think of one or two!)
Fowler shoots himself in the foot though doesn't he? Almost always clocks up a high number, double-bogey or worse wherever he plays; I've always put that down to course management and an iffy short game. Isn't he still with his high school-mate on the bag?

Playing well so far this week.

PS: All that on Rickie Fowler and a birthday (25) today!

IMO one of the issues with Fowler's game is he's actually too aggressive down the stretch or at least in final rounds.  I think he's was kind of smarting at the criticism he got for NOT going for the par-5 in two in Phoenix a few years back and that's hurt him since. And such could cause him to doubt his own strategy at times.  And just an outsider looking it... it does kind of seem that Rickie has a bit of indecision in key moments...

BUT... all that said... I think it goes back to his swing.  I'm no swing guru... but I've heard it repeated time and time again from those that are... his swing is so dependent on perfect timing... I have to wonder if that works when the pressure is on and adrenaline flowing...

Also note:  GPB brought up the possibility of the Nelson Mandela being shortened to 36-holes. If that come's about, the points for the Mandela are reduced to .75% of the original value. That changes Grace's scenarios slightly. I'll recalculate those.

I have always thought the criticism of Fowler laying up at Phoenix is unfounded.  Fowler was a rookie on Tour and subject to the re-shuffle.  He didn't have full access to all tour events and insuring a high finish was going to keep near the top of the QS/Nationwide* pecking order.

I think if Fowler had full playing privileges, he would have gone for the 15th green at Scottsdale

Yes, Web-com now, it was the Nationwide Tour back then.

================


Robo:  As I told you elsewhere, UFR, I am not sure the Mandela will get discounted 75% if it is shortened to 36 holes since it is  subsidized to the tour minimum.

I recall a discussion with Prince Dracula about this scenario about a year ago.

That didn't take long.

Last years Mandela tournament was shortened to 36 holes, and the winner, Scott Jameson got 20 points.

http://www.owgr.com/events/events_scorecard.sps?EventID=5149


Edit:

and here is the thread where PD and I had the discussion:

https://www.606v2.com/t38278-owgr-week-49?highlight=OWGR

GPB wrote:That didn't take long.

Last years Mandela tournament was shortened to 36 holes, and the winner, Scott Jameson got 20 points

If that's what they did last year, I assume they'll do the same this year. I have an inquiry in, but have yet to hear back... officially

Grace in a 2 way tie for 5th! Right on the mark now!

Daniel Brooks: 14 birdies and 22 pars in his first two rounds. 5 pars, 4 bogeys and a double after 10 holes in the third. The English word for "plastron" (a scarflike garment for dandies) comes to mind...

GPB wrote:I have always thought the criticism of Fowler laying up at Phoenix is unfounded.  Fowler was a rookie on Tour and subject to the re-shuffle.  He didn't have full access to all tour events and insuring a high finish was going to keep near the top of the QS/Nationwide* pecking order.

I think if Fowler had full playing privileges, he would have gone for the 15th green at Scottsdale.

I agree with the first part. I thought the kid got a raw deal with all the criticism. From his comments (see below), and realizing the downhill mushy lie, he felt getting close enough for eagle was all but impossible, and he felt he had as good a chance of making birdie by laying up than going for it... and with less risk. With that in mind... I doubt he would have gone for it either way based on his playing status at the time... unless as he said... he had gotten within 5-iron distance.

This is what he said: "I kind of told myself that I didn’t really want to go for it unless I had about a 5-iron in, which I would feel more comfortable hitting it to that pin with the pin being in the front. It’s not very wide. The miss right and the miss left, obviously there’s water, but missing the green right or left, the up-and-down wasn’t very easy. So I felt giving myself that wedge from the middle of the fairway was my best chance at making an easy birdie."

Robo:  Based on last years Mandela, I think the Tour Minimums do take preference over the 25% discount for 36 hole tournaments.

However, the 25% discount for 36 hole tournament is only applicable to about 1/4 of the tournaments since about 75% of OWGR rated tournaments are subsidized

Grace one shot too many to pass Luiten. Luiten safe now I reckon. Based on current standings in Asia: Luiten 49, Grace 50? Unless apirabnabarabba or beefburger pull off a formidable last round

themightyone wrote:Grace one shot too many to pass Luiten. Luiten safe now I reckon. Based on current standings in Asia: Luiten 49, Grace 50? Unless apirabnabarabba or beefburger pull off a formidable last round

Correct...

Luiten continues to hold #49 for the time being.

Sterne has been knocked out of the #50 spot by Grace.   Scenarios for remaining players in Thailand with a possibility of passing Grace for #50 are as follows.

* Bernd Wiesberger (currently T26)  needs 4.8 points or a solo 11th place to catch. As of now that puts him about 4 shots behind the player(s) he needs to catch. (A 2-way T9 would get him past Luiten as well)

* Kiradech Aphibarnrat (currently T11)  needs 14.5 points or a solo 3rd to catch. As of now that puts him 6-7 shots behind the player(s) he needs to catch.  (The solo 3rd would also put him past Luiten)

* D.A. Points (currently T11)  needs 17.3 points or a 2-way 2nd place to catch.   That puts him 6-7 shots behind the player(s) he needs to catch as well  (A 2-way 2nd would get him past Luiten as well)

* Ryo Ishikawa can't get there even with a win.

REMINDER: These are YEAR END projections... NOT necessarily for week #50.

Sterne's likely to be out for four months anyway, so he'll miss out on most of the bennies that would accrue. Never really sure whether he cares too much, always the sense he feels there are more important things in his life.

I'd say grace has done just enough, apridabarrarabara and beefburger won't make up the groud they need to

Great win by garcia. 2 year high 12th spot on the rankings and top 10 within reach

Year end week 52 OWGR should look like this:  (Those #50 and above will get Masters invites... those in BOLD are otherwise qualified for the Masters before the top-50 year end OWGR is applied.)

1 - 11.695 - Tiger Woods
2 - 9.596 - Adam Scott
3 - 9.158 - Henrik Stenson
4 - 7.164 - Justin Rose
5 - 7.060 - Phil Mickelson
6 - 6.499 - Rory McIlroy
7 - 6.153 - Matt Kuchar
8 - 5.723 - Steve Stricker
9 - 5.447 - Zach Johnson
10 - 5.306 - Sergio Garcia (winner Thailand - moves up from #19)
11 - 5.288 - Jason Day
12 - 5.238 - Ian Poulter
13 - 5.181 - Brandt Snedeker
14 - 5.006 - Graeme McDowell
15 - 4.978 - Jason Dufner
16 - 4.803 - Dustin Johnson
17 - 4.765 - Luke Donald
18 - 4.740 - Charl Schwartzel
19 - 4.546 - Jim Furyk
20 - 4.311 - Keegan Bradley
21 - 4.296 - Webb Simpson
22 - 4.151 - Jordan Spieth
23 - 3.876 - Hideki Matsuyama
24 - 3.764 - Thomas Bjorn
25 - 3.690 - Lee Westwood
26 - 3.660 - Jamie Donaldson
27 - 3.546 - Ernie Els
28 - 3.454 - Bubba Watson
29 - 3.350 - Bill Haas
30 - 3.264 - Nick Watney
31 - 3.234 - Hunter Mahan
32 - 3.224 - Victor Dubuisson
33 - 3.156 - Ryan Moore
34 - 2.963 - Louis Oosthuizen
35 - 2.954 - Gonzalo Fdez-Castano
36 - 2.858 - Graham Delaet
37 - 2.786 - Miguel A Jimenez
38 - 2.773 - Francesco Molinari
39 - 2.708 - Martin Kaymer
40 - 2.663 - Rickie Fowler
41 - 2.627 - Billy Horschel
42 - 2.624 - Jonas Blixt
43 - 2.602 - Matteo Manassero
44 - 2.585 - Kevin Streelman
45 - 2.579 - David Lynn
46 - 2.571 - Thongchai Jaidee
47 - 2.478 - Jimmy Walker
48 - 2.402 - Peter Hanson
49 - 2.355 - Joost Luiten
50 - 2.342 - Branden Grace
- - - -
51 - 2.293 - Richard Sterne
52 - 2.286 - Bernd Wiesberger
53 - 2.269 - Harris English
54 - 2.257 - Boo Weekley
55 - 2.249 - Scott Piercy
56 - 2.221 - Gary Woodland
57 - 2.154 - Bo Van Pelt
58 - 2.119 - Brendon de Jonge
59 - 2.106 - Kiradech Aphibarnrat
60 - 2.067 - Chris Kirk
61 - 2.053 - D.A. Points
62 - 2.030 - Kim Hyung-sung
63 - 2.017 - Peter Uihlein
64 - 2.016 - Angel Cabrera
65 - 1.986 - Thorbjorn Olesen
66 - 1.986 - Stephen Gallacher
67 - 1.893 - Koumei Oda
68 - 1.869 - Nicolas Colsaerts
69 - 1.837 - Tim Clark
70 - 1.829 - Roberto Castro
71 - 1.826 - Ross Fisher
72 - 1.817 - Marc Leishman
73 - 1.795 - Patrick Reed
74 - 1.767 - Chris Wood
75 - 1.758 - Brett Rumford
76 - 1.758 - Shane Lowry
77 - 1.754 - Shingo Katayama
78 - 1.736 - Charles Howell-III
79 - 1.726 - Michael Thompson
80 - 1.711 - Robert Garrigus
81 - 1.711 - Chris Stroud
82 - 1.693 - Luke Guthrie
83 - 1.673 - Ryo Ishikawa
84 - 1.647 - Mikko Ilonen
85 - 1.623 - Martin Laird
86 - 1.617 - Brooks Koepka
87 - 1.601 - Paul Casey
88 - 1.583 - Matthew Jones
89 - 1.581 - Russell Henley
90 - 1.572 - Marcel Siem
91 - 1.564 - John Merrick
92 - 1.560 - Fredrik Jacobson
93 - 1.558 - David Howell
94 - 1.551 - Hideto Tanihara
95 - 1.551 - Alexander Noren
96 - 1.551 - Park Sung-Joon
97 - 1.551 - Marcus Fraser
98 - 1.531 - George Coetzee
99 - 1.519 - John Huh
100 - 1.517 - Gregory Bourdy
- - - - -
101 - 1.514 - Pablo Larrazabal
102 - 1.511 - Charley Hoffman
103 - 1.509 - Chesson Hadley
104 - 1.482 - Liang Wen-chong
105 - 1.478 - Carl Pettersson

Funny that the gap that used to be in place at #30 has disappeared altogether, no significant gaps other than 1-2 and 3-4 remaining...

Stenson, Stricker, Johnson are three players I would not have expected to finish in the top 10 in 2013.  

I thought Oosthuizen was poised to have a big year in 2013, and he was my long shot pick to be PoY.  So much for that prediction. I would have also picked Luke and Keegan to finish in the top 10.

Although not a big fan of Sergio, I am glad he won this week and got to the top 10.  Sergio near the top of elite golfers is good for golf.

And man, Fraulein Boehm is HOT.  Hope she continues to be on Sergio's bag.  She was given a carry bag for the week.  I think she might balk at the 40-50 lb staff bags.

Scott will be 84 pts behind Woods at year end
Stenson will be 131 pts behind Woods and 23 pts behind Scott at Year end.

Last year, Rory was ahead of #3 Woods by 186.6 pts and 234 points ahead of #2 Luke.

(Even though Luke finished the year #2, Luke had a much bigger divisor to overcome).

If Stenson and Scott can start 2014 like they ended 2013, it could be real close leading up to the Masters.

My list of surprises for the year:

To the good

Henrik Stenson - I had a sneaking suspicion that once Henrik fully recovered (mentally) from his financial wipe-out at the hands of one Alan Stanford he would be back. BUT... I never thought he would not only get back but get himself into a position where he now has a legitimate shot to compete for OWGR #1.

Phil Mickelson - I never write Phil off. Well ALMOST never. I thought he might sneak in and get another major in his career, but I never thought it would be the Open Championship. I also was expecting a somewhat slow march down the OWGR and thus was quite surprised when he once again got as high as #2.

Jordan Spieth - There have been two up and coming high schoolers from Texas in the last 10 years who I thought were "can't miss" for the PGA Tour. The first was Bronson Burgoon (hero of Texas A&M's NCAA National championship.... who DID miss... at least so far. (he's in good shape in this year's web.com q-school so maybe all is not lost. The other was Spieth. However, I didn't think Spieth would come THIS FAR, at least not this fast, especially considering starting the year with zero status as he did.

Tiger Woods - Sure I thought he'd win again, and I thought he'd win more majors (and still do), but after 2010-11, I was not expecting to see him return to the level of winning 5 events of the quality he won this year. And while I thought getting back to #1 was a possibility, I was not expecting him to take such a dominant position as a #1 as he did following his win at the WGC-Bridgestone.

Hideki Matsuyama - For some reason the Japanese players games rarely translate to the world stage in a big way. Hideki appears to be bucking that trend. While not a world beater yet, he's sure showing more potential to turn into one than Ryo ever did. Course so did K.T. Kim and how's that working out?

Kevin Streelman - Seriously? But hey, if there ever was a hard work, dig it out of the dirt feel good story, I think this guy getting into the OWGR top-50 is it.

To the bad

Rory McIlroy - What else is there to say except I'm not sure anybody saw this year coming. I thought reaching last year's heights was going to be difficult with the equipment change and all, but who knew about all the other distractions and him struggling to this level.

Louis Oosthuizen & Peter Hanson - I put them in the same category. I expected more, but then again, who can predict injuries. While neither has had extremely long layoffs, they've both had enough nagging issues to be non factors.

Nicolas Colsaerts - Welcome to the PGA Tour... but oops... not quite as easy as it looks from afar is it?

Surprising high? Stricker for me (and Stenson!).
(Always kinda liked Streelman, lots of good results on top courses where accuracy is a virtue.)
Surprising low? Mahan - tho' due to his Canada departure his low has an asterisk. Then there's Bubba, not to mention Donald ducking out of the Top Ten.

Saw Mahan chunk a chip in Thailand the other day. Don't think I've seen a pro make as many amateur mistakes as him. Apart from poults and the couple of cracking shanks he had a few years ago.

kwinigolfer wrote:Surprising high? Stricker for me (and Stenson!).
(Always kinda liked Streelman, lots of good results on top courses where accuracy is a virtue.)
Surprising low? Mahan - tho' due to his Canada departure his low has an asterisk. Then there's Bubba, not to mention Donald ducking out of the Top Ten.

Good call on Stricker... Interesting how he was able to have such long layoffs and pick it right back up the weeks he did play... be interesting to see if he can do it once again next year.

But Mahan... no surprise really... I have him pegged for a guy that might sniff the top-10 OWGR here and there in his career, but even though he's working on his short game, IMO without dramatic further improvement from what he's already shown... he's about a top-25 player on average.

Bubba is no surprise to me... Many are saying that once he gets over being a golf celebrity and gets back to work, then better things are in store for him.  I'm not so sure... better maybe, but not way better.  Remember, we're still talking about a guy with only 3 career top-10's in majors and he's already 35 years old.  IMO he might eek out a few more wins over the years... but IMO we've seen his high water mark and he won't come near approaching it again.

And one guy I left off my list... WESTWOOD... I thought the move to the states would benefit him.... but it seemed to be more a distraction than a help... at least so far.  Hopefully now that he's more settled he can really bear down and concentrate at the task at hand...

Luke... as you are probably aware... I'm not surprised there either.   Bottom line: Short and crooked is no way to go through life son. IMO the aberration was Luke actually driving it so much better there for a few years and getting to the top.  But I don't think that's really him... IMO the real Luke is the guy similar to the way he played from late 2004 through early 2010... Solid top-30 player with maybe a purple patch here and there, but nothing like before.

I like Mahan, perhaps more than a rational follower should; in the final pair of consecutive Majors and would have had a top 3, at least, in Canada had nature not called.
73rd in scrambling is better than one might expect and 27th in putting.
Two wins (incl WGC's) in each of the past even-numbered years - expect more of the same.

Agree on Bubba, tho' bet he was "surprised"!
No surprise here regarding Westwood, tho' strangely his season seemed to turn on his shambles at Wentworth when it was his tournament to lose - and he did, convincingly!
Better in 2014 though, and better for Luke also. (Fingers crossed as I type.)

kwinigolfer wrote:I like Mahan, perhaps more than a rational follower should; in the final pair of consecutive Majors and would have had a top 3, at least, in Canada had nature not called.
73rd in scrambling is better than one might expect and 27th in putting.
Two wins (incl WGC's) in each of the past even-numbered years - expect more of the same.

Well one thing for sure... the guy's ball striking can be absolutely incredible at times.. and one can never write off a guy like that. I suppose there will be times that he hits it so well the short game is less a factor. And I was surprised at the 27th in putting stat. IMO strokes gained putting is the best of the putting stats, and 27th is certainly enough to get the job done a lot of the time.

robo,
Your mate Zach Fischer going well in the desert.
Rory's mate Scott Pinckney, Challenge Tour veteran that he is!, leading from Scotland's Jimmy Gunn; Trev with plenty of work to do.

kwinigolfer wrote:robo,
Your mate Zach Fischer going well in the desert
Rory's mate Scott Pinckney, Challenge Tour veteran that he is!, leading from Scotland's Jimmy Gunn; Trev with plenty of work to do.

Yep... Zach is going well so far, but the one I'm watching most closely is Bronson Burgoon. I've known/watched him since he was in Jr High school... and just have a feeling that if this guy can finally get status this year... he can do something with it. He finished 7th on the LatinoAmerica Tour money list, just short of the 5 who get full exempt status. Bottom line is he needs to try to hold on one of the "golden" top-10 spots in Q-school... those are exempt through until the 3rd reshuffle.

Pinckney... not sure what to make of him. I thought he might have fared better on the Challenge Tour, and he struggled mightily in most of his Webby starts this past year...

Good to see 9C dip below the 12 average.    

Speculation at the Golfchannel dot com says that Woods, Scott, Rose and Mickelson will all skip the accenture match play.

Rose, because he wants to rest
Woods, because he may go to the Olympics
MIckelson, because he skips it frequently
Scott:  No reason given.

GPB wrote:Speculation at the Golfchannel dot com says that Woods, Scott, Rose and Mickelson will all skip the accenture match play.

Rose, because he wants to rest
Woods, because he may go to the Olympics
MIckelson, because he skips it frequently
Scott:  No reason given.

In 2016?

No, in Russia.  His Girlfriend is Lindsey Vonn.  Downhill Skier. 

A black man in Russia? That will be the day.

super_realist wrote:A black man in Russia? That will be the day.

And Buddhist. Hope he's not gay as well...?   

GPB wrote:Speculation at the Golfchannel dot com says that Woods, Scott, Rose and Mickelson will all skip the accenture match play.

Rose, because he wants to rest
Woods, because he may go to the Olympics
MIckelson, because he skips it frequently
Scott:  No reason given.

My guess is they're right about Mickelson and Woods (assuming it's looking even remotely possible Vonn will be healthy enough to ski the Giant Slalom on Feb 18th, she's not even attempting slalom so that would be her last event). Rose's comments make sense... but I'm not sure where they would have gotten the info on Adam Scott or if it's all speculation. At first it seemed to make sense with Adam playing so much in Australia late in the year, but then looking back... he played 4 events after the Tour Championship last year too, but returned for Riviera...

Rob Bolten has a list of 90 players that are exempt and expected to play the US Masters.



Ken Duke . . . Matthew Fitzpatrick . . . D.A. Points . . . Martin Kaymer
John Huh . . . Jose Maria Olazabal . . . Ian Poulter . . . Jimmy Walker
K.J. Choi . . . Francesco Molinari . . . Justin Rose . . . Bubba Watson
Tim Clark . . . Brendon de Jonge . . . Vijay Singh . . . Henrik Stenson
Jason Day . . . Victor Dubuisson . . . Nick Watney . . . Steve Stricker
Ernie Els . . . Thongchai Jaidee . . . Boo Weekley . . . Dustin Johnson
Jim Furyk . . . Matteo Manassero . . . Tiger Woods . . . Phil Mickelson
Bill Haas . . . Hideki Matsuyama . . . Ian Woosnam . . . Billy Horschel
Mike Weir . . . Jordan Niebrugge . . . Thomas Bjorn . . . Graham DeLaet
Y.E. Yang . . . Thorbjorn Olesen . . . Stewart Cink . . . Rickie Fowler
Chris Kirk . . . Louis Oosthuizen . . . Fred Couples . . . Sergio Garcia
Sandy Lyle . . . Garrick Porteous . . . Ben Crenshaw . . . Branden Grace
David Lynn . . . Charl Schwartzel . . . Jason Dufner . . . Lee Westwood
Larry Mize . . . Jamie Donaldson . . . Lucas Glover . . . Chang-woo Lee
Ryan Moore . . . Trevor Immelman . . . Peter Hanson . . . Marc Leishman
Adam Scott . . . Bernhard Langer . . . Zach Johnson . . . Michael McCoy
Tom Watson . . . Graeme McDowell . . . Joost Luiten . . . Jordan Spieth
Jonas Blixt . . . Brandt Snedeker . . . Hunter Mahan . . . Craig Stadler
Luke Donald . . . Kevin Streelman . . . Rory McIlroy . . . Gary Woodland
Derek Ernst . . . Keegan Bradley . . . Mark O'Meara . . . Sang-moon Bae
Oliver Goss . . . Roberto Castro . . . Patrick Reed . . . Angel Cabrera
Matt Kuchar . . . Harris English . . . Webb Simpson . . . Darren Clarke
Miguel Angel Jimenez . . . Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano

Let's hope at least two or three (Woosie, Stads, Crenshaw, Mize?) choose to turn up for the dinner and no more.

I'll add Sandy Lyle to that list of dinner only invitations

and Mike McCoy, although he is an amateur and has qualified by virtue of a recent good result, he will certainly end up trailing the field by a mile

Its not like anyone will replace Woosie, Lyle, Mize, Stadler if they do not play so I don't see the harm in them playing.

If Kevin Stadler ever qualifies, I think that will be Craig's last year.

And FWIW, Lyle has had some good tournament rounds there and DID made the cut last year.  Something that Poulter and GMac could not do, among others.

Lyle also made the cut in the Open Championship.

A list of all the Big tournament qualifiers can be found here.

http://www.pgatour.com/fantasy/major-qualifiers.html

I am all in favour of letting previous winners play in The Masters if they wish. They have earned that right. There are many ways for the others to qualify. And if one of those qualifiers go on to win it, then they are exempt to play it as long as they want to.

Professional golf is entertainment. That means the organisers need to bring in the players the fans want to see, which aren't necessarily the best players

If you've won it you can play. I think it's down to the professional pride of the individual to judge the point at which he shouldn't bother any more. They have earned that right. Granted some of them don't appear to know when not to bother any more, but that's one of the quirks of the tournament.

Ray - Bingo!

The good ol' boys down South will run this invitational tournament exactly to THIER wishes. Until someone comes up with a more attractive tournament for the top professionals that exact same weekend in April, look for continuing interest and demand in this "tradition like no other".

Someone told me (do NOT know how reliable the source) that the wrinkled green coated boys will sometimes ask the truly non-competitive past champs to step aside as I was told they did for Doug Ford (one cut made in his last 32 starts) among others.

Spot on from Roller,
"professional pride to judge (when) he shouldn't bother any more".

The "wrinkled green-coated boys" should be having a quiet word with some of the guys who are clearly not competitive and don't care. Woosnam exhibit A.

It's clearly not true that these guys don't take someone else's place when they ceiling the field at 100, preferably less. The Past Champs have earned the right to play as long as they can be remotely competitive, not until they can no longer walk.

Five straight missed cuts after the age of 50 should get them gonged.