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Rocket Mortgage Classic: Dark Horse Candidates in Detroit

By Christopher O'Day

HONOLULU, HI - JANUARY 10: Brian Stuard of the United States plays a shot on the tenth hole during the first round of the Sony Open In Hawaii at Waialae Country Club on January 10, 2019 in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
HONOLULU, HI - JANUARY 10: Brian Stuard of the United States plays a shot on the tenth hole during the first round of the Sony Open In Hawaii at Waialae Country Club on January 10, 2019 in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, WV – JULY 31: Jimmy Walker hits a shot during the final round of The Greenbrier Classic at The Old White TPC on July 31, 2011 in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images)
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, WV – JULY 31: Jimmy Walker hits a shot during the final round of The Greenbrier Classic at The Old White TPC on July 31, 2011 in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images) /

Jimmy Walker – 80/1

Jimmy Walker looked to be turning it on just in time for the U.S. Open. He had finished strong at three tournaments in a row. T-23rd at The PGA Championship, T-19th at The Charles Schwab, and then T-35th at The RBC Canadian Open.

In the end, it was all for not. Walker would miss the cut at The U.S. Open, shooting 75-71.

Let’s call it a break from his good golf, and look for the streak of strong finishes to resume. It is a little difficult to add in previous play at an event or course, as this is the first go-round for the Rocket Mortgage Classic, as well as the first time and event will be at The Detroit Golf Club.

Where Hoffman struggles out of the sand, Walker is the antithesis to Hoffman. He ranks 13th on sand save percentage, going up-and-down 60.16% of the time.

A great scrambler as well, Walker comes in at 25th there, scrambling 63.48% of the time. Walker will need that scrambling when he gets into trouble, as his approaches from inside 100 yards out of the rough leave a lot to be desired.

A solid bet for this week is that he will scramble if he makes it to the fringe, as he is 20-for-20 on the season. His ability to recover from in close makes him one of my dark horse picks for this week.

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