Golf Central

I’ll be the first to admit that last week was an absolute nightmare, but problems on the domestic front meant that the BD’s mind wasn’t fully on the job. So without further ado, here are three fresh pick for you all this week. Keep the faith…

Adam Scott @ 16/1: it’s that damn Adam Scott, he’s so hot right now! He’ll be buzzing after his win at the Byron Nelson last week, and has finished under par here for the past three years, including a third place finish in 2006. Case closed.

Anthony Kim @ 50/1: it took all my might not to go with him last week, so I’ve given into temptation. The force is strong with this one; Kim’s already had a second and third place finish this year as well as two top tens, and you feel that it’s only a matter of time before…

Charley Hoffman @ 66/1: if ever a hairdo deserved to win a PGA event, then Charley Hoffman’s wavy blonde Barbie doll look would be the most worthy. That not being the case, a good price and a string of solid finishes in 2008 makes him a tasty pick for the week.

Last week’s tips:

The PGA Tour
Ian Poulter (tied 35th)
Trevor Immelman (missed cut)
Fredrik Jacobson (missed cut)

When the champion gets booed off, you'd have thought he had hit a fan, shouted at an old lady or slagged off the locals, but the folk down in South Carolina have been deprived for a year, so we can excuse them.

Walking out with a three stroke lead, Booooo [Weekley] went around in 71 strokes, his highest ever score at Harbour Town Golf Links, staving off a final-round challenge from Anthony Kim and 2006 winner Aaron Baddeley who finished on -12.

Weekley didn't three-putt all week and defended his crown with ease but our thoughts go out to poor old Nick Dougherty who missed out on posting a career-best finish due to an emergency family illness that caused him to pull out.

China Open champion, Damien McGrane reckoned if anyone had any sense they wouldn't have left the clubhouse given the torrential conditions in Beijing on Sunday. Good job he's lost his marbles then after carding a final round 73 to finish on -10 and claim a nine-shot victory.

English pair Simon Griffiths and Oliver Wilson shared second place with Michael Lorenzo-Vera of France on -1.  Wilson and Lorenzo-Vera both carded final-round 79's while Griffiths (74) made more of a fist of it.

So excited about winning his first European Tour title, McGrane has already decided to dip into the £183,500 pot of gold by holidaying in Antarctica - he must like the adverse weather conditions.

The world's greatest sartorial golf-fest will be back in full swing when the William Hunt Trilby Tour 2008's signature event tees up in July, and if you thought the PGA Tour's dress codes are a bit too lenient these days when caddies are allowed to wear shorts, this is your kind of event.

Mind you, it all looks great too - as styled-out fields of professional and amateur golfers will to gear it up and tee it up at Hunt's showcase - a one-of-a-kind blend of top golf and style run by the Savile Row thread-meister to showcase his wears, as well as some of the best young golf swings in Britain ...

OK, here's nine things you might, or might not know about the heritage of the tournament now played at the TPC Louisiana...

1. Lee Trevino won in 1974 without recording a single bogey - the last player to achieve that feat on The PGA Tour.
2. It's the 11th oldest event on the PGA Tour, including the co-sanctioned Open Championship, which is the oldest by 35 years and is still called the 'British' by American golf fans who really should know better. Sorry, but it's still really annoying...
3. David Toms became the first Native Louisianan to win in 2001 with a weekend that few could ever dream of - a 63 on Saturday and a 64 on Sunday. He will be missing his first event in 13 years, having pulled out with a bad back.
4. Davis Love III had to win in 1995 to make the field for The Masters. He did just that and came second at Augusta to Ben Crenshaw.
5. 14 members of golf's Hall Of Fame have won the Zurich Classic, including Harry Cooper, Byron Nelson, Jimmy Demaret, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Tom Watson, among others.
6. PGA Tour players Kelly Gibson and Steve Elkington had a hand in helping Pete Dye design the TPC course, which was badly damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  
7. The last three big cheques have been written out to first-time winners on tour - Tim Petrovic, Chris Couch and Nick Watney.
8. Steve Stricker, Padraig Harrington, Jim Furyk and Retief Goosen head the list of favourites this week.
9. Zurich Financial Services is an insurance-based financial services provider founded in 1872. Its headquarters are in Zurich, Switzerland (quit now, before you start going on about Leadbelly and Jelly Roll Morton... Ed).