Predictions: Deutsche Bank Championship

With the Labor Day weekend ahead for those in the states, golf is pushed back a day and things get started tomorrow at the Deutsche Bank Championship at TPC Boston.

Yesterday, I told you about my three sleeper picks for the tournament.

Today, we dive into full-on predictions for the weekend action. So without further ado, here are my predictions for the Deutsche Bank Championship:

The Sleeper

Of the three that I talked about yesterday, I really feel pretty confident in Nick Watney‘s play this week. He was red hot to start the season, and now he’s starting to get a roll to finish the season.

Watney’s long drive has been a staple of his game, and with only three par 5’s this week, he’s got to take advantage of those holes and try to get on in two. If his iron play is spot-on, and he can keep things in the fairway, look for Watney to have a big weekend.

The Contenders

Here’s who I think are your contenders this week: Tiger Woods, Padraig Harrington, Ernie Els, Steve Stricker, Sergio Garcia, Vijay Singh, Jim Furyk, and Hunter Mahan. Honorable mention: Phil Mickelson, Retief Goosen. Here’s the current Vegas betting odds.

Elimination-style format once again this week, so let’s get to it.

I’ve had high hopes for Mahan over the last few weeks, even predicting him to have a showdown with Tiger last week at the Barclays. That didn’t happen, but he did finish tied for 20th at 2-under for the tournament. He’s been on fire lately, although none of that has translated into a win. He could be a surprise here, but in my opinion, he’ll have to settle for a top 15 finish.

Furyk is always a favorite this time of year, as he’s a veteran, and should at least be a possible pick in your mind. He finished tied for 15th last week, and a win here could wipe away what’s been a sub-par season for Furyk up until this point. I think he plays well again here, but not well enough to win.

Singh is another guy that is a big-time favorite this week, and why not? He won the FedEx Cup last year, and won this event in the process. But like Furyk, this hasn’t been Singh’s best year. He missed the cut last week, but did play well at the PGA. He’ll bounce back and have a good week, and I’d expect a good finish here.

Stricker has got to be the most picked guy to win tournaments this year, aside from Tiger. But there’s good reasoning behind that, as he’s having one of the best years of his career. He was a putt or two away from winning last week, and you can bet he’ll ride some of that momentum into this week. Could definitely see a top five for him again.

The Final Four – Woods, Harrington, Garcia, Els

I was really happy to see Els play so well last week. Ernie is clearly one of the good guys on tour, and he’s one of my favorite players. If I had to pick who I would want to see win this week, he’s easily my pick. But unfortunately, I see someone else taking that spot at TPC Boston.

And that guy won’t be Woods. Ever since I’ve been making these predictions, Tiger has at least made it to the final two. Not this time, as the putting has got me a little worried. Yes, the greens were very difficult last week at Liberty National. But remember, he didn’t putt well at Hazeltine either. So that’s a cause for concern in my mind. And of course, now that I say this, he’ll probably smoke the field this week.

The Finals – Harrington vs. Garcia

The perfect good guy vs. bad guy scenario here, as we’ve seen these two go at it plenty of times in the past, and I would like to see it happen again this week.

Both guys are playing some of their best golf right now, as both have had down seasons until the last few weeks or so. Harrington’s putting well again, and Sergio’s making big shots when he needs to (except for that whole Wyndham episode).

Golf is a lot better when these two are at the top of their game, and I think we’ll see that this week.

And although he may not be a popular pick, or popular in general, I’m taking Sergio Garcia to win the Deutsche Bank Championship.

He’s gotta get the best of Paddy sometime, right?

Let me hear your predictions for this week’s championship! Should be a great week of golf action!