9. Max Greyserman
I have a feeling that we could see a solid bounce-back week from Max Greyserman at PGA National. He's been a little cold as of late, with his best finish being a T24 at Genesis in his last 4 starts. However, I think that this cold streak really came down to the hand injury that forced a withdrawal at Pebble Beach, and he seems to be bouncing back from it after Genesis. Last year, almost 63% of approach shots played at the Cognizant were played from the 125-200 yard range, and the best case for Greyserman is that his skillset improves against PGA Tour average as the approaches get farther from the hole. Between that and his putter finding some form again, Greyserman should be able to work his way up the leaderboard this week in Palm Beach Gardens.
8. Ben Griffin
A lot of the Ben Griffin love this week is riding off the back of a very strong performance last week in Mexico, finishing T4 and making a strong run in the middle of a jam-packed leaderboard. A strong skill to have when going around PGA National is driving accuracy, and Griffin has been solid off the tee this year, hitting roughly 63% of his fairways so far. The approach skill I mentioned when talking about Max Greyserman also works when talking about Griffin, and I think his iron play along with his ability to keep the ball in the short stuff should bode well for him this week.
7. Alex Smalley
I had Smalley a little higher on the rankings, but his final round in Mexico disappointed me enough to drop him down in the rankings for Cognizant. However, Smalley is in the middle of a strong stretch of golf, with 4 of his last 5 starts giving him top-25 finishes, and with his best finish of the season coming in Mexico with a T10. Smalley's game in all aspects has been strong this season, not ranking outside of the top 50 in any of the 6 key strokes gained categories on Tour this season. PGA National loves players that have a strong all-around game, and Smalley's make up should fit the course perfectly.