Texas Open Preview: Hoffman Ready to Defend Title

We as humans are fascinated by potential. It's partly why Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison and Kurt Cobain are not remembered as great musicians, but legends. Sports fans are even more enamored with potential. It's why we remember names like Len Bias and Hank Gathers, guys who never played a minute in the NBA but could have been All-Stars. It's why the NFL draft is one of the biggest events on the calendar each year.

Professional golf is not immune to this phenomenon, either. Every year a new crop of rookies hits the PGA Tour and just like clockwork, a couple golfers are anointed as the best of the new guys. In other words, the ones with the most potential.

Wesley Bryan was certainly one of those coming into the season as he earned his way onto the PGA Tour via the "Battlefield Promotion," a distinction shared with only 10 other golfers since the inception of the promotion in 1997. The moment Bryan joined the PGA Tour last fall, the "potential" label was planted firmly on his back. Anything short of thriving on the PGA Tour and he'd be labeled a disappointment. That might sound harsh, but looking back at the list of previous "Battlefield" winners it's hard to label the majority as anything else but disappointments ... on the golf course anyway.

With his win at the RBC Heritage last week, Bryan has reached the first level of that potential. But with winning comes higher expectations, and we are left to speculate even further about Bryan's new potential.

This week: Texas Open - TPC San Antonio, San Antonio

Last Year: Charley Hoffman shot a final-round 69 on his way to a one-stroke victory over Patrick Reed.

PLAYERS TO CONSIDER

Charley Hoffman

Hoffman's track record at this event is beyond compare. He won this event last year and since it moved to its current location in 2010, Hoffman has finished no worse than T13. That's seven consecutive top-15s, including three top-3s. Hoffman missed the cut last week at the RBC, but considering he played extremely well for 51 holes the week prior, his game appears in good enough shape to win here again.

Brendan Steele

Steele won this event in 2011 and is batting about .667 here over his six starts. In four of his six starts, he's finished T13 or better. Steele has yet to miss a cut this season and finished in the top 25 in six of his 12 starts. He missed the top 25 in his last three starts, but those came at the Masters and two WGC events. He's not ready to join the elite level yet, but this is exactly the spot to use him.

Daniel Summerhays

Summerhays is off to a rough start this season, not disastrous, but rough. The distinction is that Summerhays is making plenty of cuts, but he can't get anything done on the weekend. That said, this is probably his best spot on the PGA Tour as he's posted four consecutive top-15s here, two of which were top-5s.

Billy Horschel

Horschel has been all over the map this season. He has two top-5s, but he missed the cut in four of 12 events. He also has his fair share of poor finishes on the weekend. But he has a solid track record in San Antonino, so perhaps we'll see another top-5 this week. Horschel has finished in the top 5 here three of his last four starts.

Martin Laird

Laird is quietly having a solid season. Through 11 starts, he has four top-10s, three of which have come during this calendar year. Laird's track record here is a bit scattered, with two good showings and two poor ones since 2010, but he did win this event in 2013.

PLAYERS TO AVOID

Freddie Jacobson

Jacobson certainly has the track record here to contend, but his game just isn't good enough. Jacobson has five top-20s in seven starts at the current venue, but his two worst showing came the last two years. He's also only made one cut in five starts this year, so it doesn't look good for Jacobson this week.

Justin Leonard

Leonard has seven top-10s at this event in 19 starts, but none have come at the current venue. Perhaps Leonard could be a sleeper pick if had had shown any ability to maneuver around the course, but his game continues to deteriorate, so even though this event is in his home state, he's no longer a lock in Texas.

Jhonattan Vegas

Vegas played this event in 2008, which has little consequence now, but I thought it was interesting since his rookie season was 2011. But I digress. His start in 2008 resulted in a T36, and he has not improved since. In four starts at the current venue, he twice missed the cut and finished no better than T44.

Ricky Barnes

Barnes caught my eye last week because of his track record at the RBC Heritage, but he flamed out and missed the cut. He might catch some eyes this week as well because of his T4 here last year, but if he couldn't make the cut last week, at a spot where he's had more success than here, then I doubt he fares well in San Antonio, either.

Steven Bowditch

Bowditch won this event in 2014 and that's where the positives end. Outside of that win, Bowditch has not fared well at this event. In four starts before and after that win, Bowditch has missed two cuts and finished outside the top-60 in the other two. Then there's the fact that he's made only one cut in 15 starts this season.

ONE AND DONE GOLFER

Last week: Matt Kuchar (T11) - $114,045; Season - $5,662,619

This week: Charley Hoffman - I really struggled with this pick. It would seem that Hoffman is the obvious choice, but Steele is also a really good option. I'd be fine with either, but in the end, I couldn't ignore Hoffman's consistency at this event, while Steele has laid a couple eggs.

YAHOO PICKS

Points: 1,916
Rank: 23,907

This Week:

Group A: Brendan Steele, Luke Donald

Group B: Charley Hoffman, Matt Kuchar, Daniel Summerhays, Jimmy Walker

Group C: Martin Laird, Zach Johnson

SURVIVOR PICK

Last week: Matt Kuchar - (T11); Streak - 4

This week: Charley Hoffman - The only possible reason I can see to take anyone else is if you are in a huge pool — I'm talking hundreds of people — and you want to take a chance that Hoffman gets food poisoning this week and your guy, hopefully Brendan Steele, makes the cut.