2015 Shell Houston Open: Five Golfers To Watch

The Masters Championship is just a week away and time is running out for players struggling this season to get back on track. And that’s what this post will be focusing on. Golfers that we haven’t seen in awhile, or have struggled this season.

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We don’t necessarily have to watch Jordan Spieth or Jimmy Walker or anybody like that has played of late and is in great form right now.

So, with that said, here are five golfers to watch this week at the Shell Houston Open.

Justin Rose– With how Justin Rose played down the stretch last year and how he played at the Ryder Cup I thought for sure this would be an absolutely huge year for Rose. As it turns out the 2015 year has been just absolutely horrible for Rose.

Rose has only made the cut twice this PGA Tour season year and both of those were WGC events that have no cut. In the three other tournaments Rose has participated in he has missed the cut.

Rose comes to the Shell Houston Open looking for any kind of momentum. Just making it to the weekend would be a big win for Rose.

Right now there is no reason to play Rose at The Masters as his form is completely off. But, if he shows any kind of life here at the SHO this week then that may change things.

Victor Dubuisson– I was extremely high on Victor Dubuisson last year. He was featured in my sleeper picks last year at the U.S. Open, The Open, and PGA Championship. Dubuisson didn’t disappoint finishing T-28, T-9, and T-7 respectively.

This year it has been a different story for Dubuisson. Aside from a T-4 at Abu Dhabi, Dubuisson’s season has been a mess. I’ll put it this way, Dubuisson has withdrawn from three tournaments and has played in three tournaments this season. Dubuisson played at Abu Dhabi, the Honda Classic, and the WGC-Cadillac Championship.

Dubuisson had a fantastic finish at the Abu Dhabi in January, but then a missed cut at the Honda Classic and T-62 at the WGC-Cadillac Championship where he shot an 85 in the final round.

You’d like to see Dubuisson put together four solid rounds at the Shell Houston Open this week just to show that he’s heading in the right direction for the Masters next week.

Phil Mickelson– Phil Mickelson has showed flashes that his game is heading in the right direction. Mickelson has made the cut in his last three tournaments which is something he hasn’t done in the last two years headed to the SHO.

In 2012, Mickelson made the cut in five straight tournaments heading into the SHO and ended up finishing T-4 there and followed that up with a T-3 at The Masters.

I would keep an eye on Mickelson this week to see where his game is now and if he’s competing for a win this week, you may want to think about taking him next week.

Charl Schwartzel– The 2011 Masters champion had a great start to the year on the European Tour, but that success hasn’t translated on the PGA Tour of late.

While he has made the cut in four of five PGA events this season, Schwartzel has yet to record a top ten this season. In fact, his best finish has been a T-19 was way back in November at the CIMB Classic.

Schwartzel needs a quality finish here at the SHO.

Here is some food for thought: In 2010, Schwartzel finished T-3 at the SHO and followed that up with a decent T-30 finish at The Masters. In 2011, Schwartzel finished T-30 and then, of course, followed that up with a win at Augusta. In 2012, Schwartzel missed the cut at the SHO and followed that up with a T-50.

With how Schwartzel has played this season, a good finish at the SHO would be really beneficial for him and history shows that if he plays well at the SHO he normally follows that up and plays really at The Masters.

Bill Haas– Unlike the previous four golfers we’ve mentioned, Bill Haas really hasn’t struggled at all this year. In fact, Bill Haas has played very well this season making the cut in six of seven tournaments including a win at the Humana Challenge.

The only set back Haas has faced this year is the fact that he has battled with a wrist injury this season. Which is why we haven’t seen him play competitively too many times this season.

The last time we saw Haas play was at the WGC-Cadillac Championship where he showed no ill effects finishing T-6.

I would keep an eye on Haas this week just to see if his game is still sharp. If it is, I really like Haas next week; so much that you can expect him to be featured in the fantasy sleeper picks for The Masters.

Next: Steve Stricker to return at The Masters

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