News and notes on the PGA Tour's top 20 golfers -1

The Sports Xchange's PGA Tour rankings, selected by TSX Golf Staff, are based on results from 2009 and 2010 — with more emphasis on recent performance.

1. Phil Mickelson, United States:

Mickelson might have been unable to overcome the brilliance of Rory McIlroy in the Quail Hollow Championship, but by finishing second he moved closer to Tiger Woods in the World Golf Rankings. And with a victory in the Players Championship, depending on where Woods finishes, Lefty could ascend to No. 1 in the world for the first time in his career. Based on his play the last two times out, he is the player to beat this week, but then there's this to consider: Even though he won the Players by two strokes over Sergio Garcia in 2007, TPC Sawgrass has not always been kind to him. That was one of only three top-10 finishes he has recorded in 16 appearances on the Stadium Course, and he has missed the cut four times. He had another good chance to win in 2004 when he finished in a tie for third, four strokes behind winner Adam Scott. Since winning three years ago by shooting 69-69 on the weekend, he has not broken 70. As the defending champion, he closed with a 78 to finish in a tie for 21st, and he tied for 55th last year with a final-round 76. Coming off his victory in the Masters, Mickelson shot 4-under-par 68 in the final round last week at Quail Hollow but still wound up six strokes behind McIlroy, who closed with a course-record 62. Lefty might have been able to apply more pressure to the kid, but he missed five putts inside 10 feet in the final round, and errant drives on the back nine led to a par and a bogey on the two par-5 holes.

2. Tiger Woods, United States:

A missed cut in the Quail Hollow Championship, his sixth in 241 career starts, was more like what people were predicting for Woods in the Masters after he missed five months because of scandal and rehab. Perhaps it was only the adrenaline of playing at Augusta National that carried him to a tie for fourth there. He shot 74-79—153 in Charlotte and failed to make it to the weekend by eight shots, carding a 43 on the back side Friday to equal the highest nine-hole score of his career. Previously, the most Woods ever missed a cut by was three shots. It was his first missed cut since the Open Championship at Turnberry last July and first in a non-major since the 2005 Funai Classic at Walt Disney World. Woods needs a quick fix this week for the Players Championship, which he captured by one shot over Vijay Singh when he closed with a 5-under-par 67 in 2001. He has finished in the top 10 only four times in 13 appearances on the Stadium Course, including eighth last year and second in 2000, when he wound up one stroke behind Hal Sutton when both closed with 71. Last week, Woods didn't have a thing, hitting only 6 of 28 fairways and 20 of 36 greens in regulation while averaging 31.0 putts per round — including 34 on Friday. He was even par through nine holes in round two and one stroke off the cut-line but played the first five holes of the back nine in 7-over, finishing that stretch with consecutive double bogeys.

3. Steve Stricker, United States:

The No. 3 player in the World Golf Rankings withdrew from the Players Championship and hopes to return May 27-30 at the Colonial, where he is the defending champion. Going into this week, Stricker hadn't touched a golf club for about two weeks because of an injury to his right SC joint, where the clavicle meets the sternum. He said the injury has bothered him from time to time the last few years before really flaring up a few weeks ago. He played in the pro-am at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans two weeks ago and then was forced to withdraw, and he went home to Wisconsin to rest in hopes it would improve. Strick said he was swollen and sore, with the pain increasing on shots right after impact when he straightened out his right arm. He hoped that anti-inflammatory medication and physical therapy would allow him to return this week at TPC Sawgrass, but no such luck. Maybe it's just as well: Stricker has played has finished in the top 10 only once in 14 tries at TPC Sawgrass. And even when he tied for sixth in 1999, he could not break 70 in any of his four rounds. He has missed the cut seven times, including five of the last eight times he has played the event. The last time he posted a round in the 60s in the Players came when he shot 69 on Thursday in 2001, some 18 rounds ago. That is one of only two sub-70 rounds he has on the course in 42 tries, the other a 69 in the first round in 1995.

4. Ernie Els, South Africa:

The Big Easy spent last week back home in West Palm Beach after making the trip home from the Ballantine's Championship in South Korea, where he tied for ninth in the rain-shortened event. He was planning to spend some time on the practice range, and his goal was to get his swing back to where it was before he played in the difficult conditions on Jeju Island. Els heads up the East Coast of Florida this week for the Players Championship and hopes to add a third victory in the Sunshine State this season. He is playing at TPC Sawgrass for the 16th time, having missed only once since 1993, when he withdrew before the start because of a right wrist injury he suffered while hitting a punching bag in his garage. Ernie never has won the fifth major and has finished in the top 10 only four times, including two of the last four years. His tie sixth in 2008 was his best result, and he tied for eighth two years before that. Despite those solid finishes, however, he has broken 70 only once in his last 16 rounds on the Stadium Course. His best chance to win came in 2004, when he was right with the leaders by opening with 68-69, but he fell back to a tie for 26th by playing the weekend in 72-78. The three-time major champion has struggled to regain his place among the best golfers in the world after knee surgery in 2005, but he finally seems to be all the way back at the age of 40. His two victories this season lifted Els to No. 7 in the World Golf Rankings.

5. Jim Furyk, United States:

Playing for the first time since winning the Verizon Heritage for his second victory of the year, Furyk bounced back from a 3-over-par 75 in the first round to finish in a tie for seventh in the Quail Hollow Championship. His game is in excellent shape heading to his home course, TPC Sawgrass, but he never has won the Players Championship even though he has gotten closer in recent years. He has only three top-10 finishes in 14 appearances on the Stadium Course, and all of them have come in the last six times he has played down the road from his home in Ponte Vedra Beach. He grabbed the first-round lead with a 7-under-par 65 in 2006 but could not even shoot 70 in his last three rounds and tied for third, his best finish in the event. Furyk also tied for fourth in 2003, bouncing back from a 73 with three rounds in the 60s, and tied for fifth last year, when a second-round 74 eventually left him six strokes behind winner Henrik Stenson. He got back into the chase last week by posting a 7-under-par 65 in round two, carding six birdies on the back nine and eight in all. Although he could not challenge the leaders when he shot 71-71 on the weekend, Furyk closed with a flourish, making four more birdies in a bogey-free back nine Sunday. His putting has carried him this season, but this time he averaged a so-so 29.5 putts per round, taking at least 30 other than when he needed only 27 in his brilliant second round.

6. Camilo Villegas, Colombia:

Villegas had a day to forget in the final round of the Quail Hollow Championship, shooting 8-over-par 80 to finish in a tie for 57th. It was his worst score since opening 80-85 to miss the cut in the 2007 Masters. Since he has four top-10 finishes in six stroke-play events this season on the PGA Tour, including a victory in the Honda Classic, he should be able to forget it quickly and move on to the Players Championship. Spider-Man will be competing in the fifth major for the fifth consecutive year and has had mixed success at TPC Sawgrass in his first four tries, always with a large contingent of Florida Gator fans rooting him on. He tied for fifth, nine strokes behind runaway winner Stephen Ames, in 2006 and tied for 14th last year, when he opened with a 5-under-par 67 but could not shoot 70 the rest of the way. He shot 80-73—153 to miss the cut by a mile in 2007 and failed to even match par while finishing in a tie for 66th in 2008. The only Colombian to ever play on the PGA Tour did not record a birdie in his nightmare final round last week, carding six bogeys and a double bogey. The score was 13 strokes worse than his bogey-free 67 in the first round. Villegas carded five birdies on the first day and only four more plus an eagle in the last 54 holes. He needed only 28 putts in round one but averaged 33.30 the rest of the way to waste some solid ball-striking — he hit nearly three-quarters of the greens in regulation.

7. Padraig Harrington, Ireland:

Paddy registered his best finish in four tries near his home away from home in the United States when he tied for seventh last week in the Quail Hollow Championship. It could have been better — he climbed the leaderboard with an eagle and four birdies in the final round before carding bogeys on the 16th and 17th holes. That led to a slightly disappointing 4-under-par 68 that nevertheless gave him some good vibes going to the Players Championship. Harrington made runs at the title in the fifth major in 2003 and 2004, but other than that he has not been close in seven other appearances at TPC Sawgrass. He tied for second in 2003, when Davis Love III posted a flawless 8-under-par 64 on Sunday to win by eight strokes, and he finished alone in second place the following year, closing with a 66 to wind up one shot behind Adam Scott. Harrington shot 67 in the opening round a year later but has failed to break 70 on the Stadium Course in any of his 15 rounds since. He has missed the cut twice in the last five years, and his highest finish in that time was a tie for 49th last year. After making the cut by two shots at 72-72 last week, Harrington got it going early in the third round. After making bogeys on the third and fourth holes, he carded birdies on three of the next four holes and did not have another bogey en route to a 70. In fact, he did not lose another stroke until his two bogeys late in the final round.

8. Anthony Kim, United States:

Even though he will need surgery at some point because of a detached ligament in his left thumb, Kim continued his strong play when he tied for seventh in the Quail Hollow Championship. It was his third consecutive finish in the top 10 on the PGA Tour and his fourth in the last five events, and it came after he flew back from South Korea, where he was 16th in the Ballantine's Championship. Kim will tee it up in the Players Championship for the fourth time this week, and he has yet to find TPC Sawgrass to his liking. He has missed the cut in two of his three appearances on the Stadium Course and posted some big numbers along the way, failing to break 70 on any of his eight rounds at Pete Dye's loved and hated gem. Two years ago, he started 70-70, the only two times he has broken the par of 72, to easily make the cut. Then he shot 79-76 on the weekend to finish in a tie for 42nd. Kim shot 78-83—161 to miss the cut by nine strokes in 2007 and posted a score of 73-82—155 last year to miss the weekend by 11 shots. Last week, Kim was at his best when he shot 69-70 in the middle rounds at Quail Hollow, carding five birdies each day and costing himself a second consecutive round in the 70s when he made a double-bogey 6 on the 16th hole on Saturday. He needed only 26 putts in the first round but averaged 30.66 over the last three days.

9. Geoff Ogilvy, Australia:

Ogilvy got off to a promising start last week when he opened with a 4-under-par 68 in the Quail Hollow Championship. However, he could not break the par of 72 the rest of the way and wound up in a tie for 38th in his warmup for the fifth major. Ogilvy has played in the Players Championship in each of the last eight years, and, to put it kindly, it has been an exercise in futility for the only Australian to win a major title since Steve Elkington claimed the 1995 PGA Championship. He has missed the cut four times, and the only time he cracked the top 20 came when he tied for 16th in 2004. Ogilvy has broken 70 only twice in 24 rounds on the Stadium Course, when he shot 5-under-par 67 in the third round in 2007 and when he posted a second-round 68 in 2003. He had missed the cut three times in the previous four years before he tied for 22nd last year. Ogilvy recorded six birdies in the first round last week at Quail Hollow, but he could collect only five more over the last 54 holes, including one during a closing 75. He made four birdies in the last six holes Thursday and two in the last four holes of the back nine the next day, but he did not have another good run the rest of the week. Since winning the SBS Championship to start the season, Ogilvy has not finished in the top 25 in his last six stroke-play tournaments.

10. Zach Johnson, United States:

Johnson's struggles continued last week, when he failed to break 70 in any of his four rounds and wound up in a tie for 51st in the Quail Hollow Championship. After finishing in the top 25 of his first four tournaments this year, he has been outside that number in the last six heading to the Players Championship. Zach missed a good opportunity to win the fifth major in his first of five appearances at TPC Sawgrass, but he has not been close since. He was tied for the lead with eventual winner Fred Funk and Lee Westwood after an opening 7-under-par 65 in 2005 and was right with the leaders entering the final round, but he closed with a 76 to finish in a tie for eighth, four strokes behind. Since that opening 65, Johnson has broken 70 only once in 17 rounds, when he shot 69 on Sunday in 2007. That left him in a tie for 16th, the only time he has broken into the 20 in the last four years on the Stadium Course, including a tie for 32nd a year ago. Last week, Johnson was at even par with an outside chance to break into the top 25 with a strong finish until he hit into the water and made a triple-bogey 6 on the 17th hole in the final round. He never really had much going. Five times he made two birdies in close proximity, but each time he made bogey or worse before carding his next birdie. Johnson was not particularly sharp in any phase of the game; he hit roughly 60% of the fairways and greens and averaged 29.0 putts per round.