PGA Tour rankings -- July 16, 2012

The Sports Xchange's PGA Tour rankings are selected by TSX Golf Staff, based on play in the 2011 and 2012 seasons, with more emphasis on recent results.

1. Tiger Woods, United States -- Once again, it's difficult to know exactly what to expect out of Woods this week in the 141st Open Championship even though he has won three times in his last eight tournaments and is the favorite of the bookies. That's because he also has missed the cut in two events during that time, and in the majors this year he tied for 40th in the Masters and tied for 21st in the U.S. Open after sharing the 36-hole lead at the Olympic Club. ... Tiger has called the oldest championship in the world his favorite major in recent years because the R&A doesn't give its already challenging courses the USGA treatment. He has won the Open Championship three times, the last in 2006 at Royal Liverpool, but has not finished in the top 10 in three appearances since in addition to missing the tournament in 2008 and last year because of leg injuries. His other titles came in 2000 and 2005 at St. Andrews, where he tied for 23rd in 2010. Woods has been stuck on 14 major titles in his pursuit of Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 since winning the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in a playoff for the ages against Rocco Mediate. ... Woods has a history at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, having finished in a tie for 22nd in 1996 to claim the Silver Medal as low amateur, bouncing back from an opening 75 to shoot 5-under-par 66 the next day to make the cut. When the tournament returned to the Lancashire links in 2001, he could manage to break 70 only with a 68 in round two on his way to a tie for 25th.

2. Luke Donald, England -- Donald make a good run in his title defense at the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open for three rounds, but he struggled to a closing 1-over-par 73 after starting Sunday only four strokes out of the lead. After three relatively calm days, Donald skidded to a tie for 16th when the wind picked up in the final round, and he missed out on his fifth top-10 finish of the season on both major tours after missing the cut in his last outing at the U.S. Open. ... The critics continue to say that Donald's one-year hold on the No. 1 spot in the World Golf Rankings won't mean that much until he wins a major title, and he gets another shot on home soil this week in the Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes. He hasn't played the course since his amateur days and has only one finish in the top 10 in 11 appearances in the tournament, a tie for fifth in 2009 at Turnberry. Luke missed the cut in his first five appearances and again last year at Royal St. George's, where he shot 71-75--146, to fall three strokes short. He has only six top-10 finishes in the majors, topped by ties for third in the 2005 Masters and the 2006 PGA Championship at Medinah. ... Donald opened with three rounds of 4-under-par 68 or better last week at Castle Stuart but ran into trouble right of the chute on Sunday with bogeys on two of his first four holes. After carding 18 birdies in the first three rounds, he managed only two in the final 18 holes.

3. Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland -- Because of McIlroy's recent slump, a golf writer for the Irish Independent has said that Graeme McDowell has become Ireland's best chance to win the Open Championship this week at Royal Lytham & St. Annes. Rory finished in a tie for 10th in the Irish Open three weeks ago at Royal Portrush after missing the cut in four of his previous six tournaments, and he has not played since. His skid began after he finished in the top five in six of his first seven tournaments of the year on both major tours, including a victory at the Honda Classic. ... McIlroy is playing in the third major of the year for the fifth time; a tie for third in 2010 at St. Andrews is his best result. He scorched the Old Course for a 9-under-par 63 in the first round but struggled to an 80 in inclement weather the next day. Afterward, he surprisingly said that he prefers to play when it's sunny and warm even though he grew up playing links courses in his homeland. A look at his record in the Open Championship seems to bear that out -- his second-best result was a tie for 25th last year at Royal St. George's. ... Since winning the U.S. Open with a record-breaking performance at Congressional last year, McIlroy has not played well in the Grand Slam events. His best finish was that tie for 25th at Sandwich. He tied for 64th in the PGA Championship last August at Atlanta Athletic Club, tied for 40th in the Masters in April and missed the cut in the U.S. Open last month at the Olympic Club.

4. Jason Dufner, United States -- As long as he does not have any rust on his game after taking a month off following the U.S. Open, Dufner could be a player to watch this week in the Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes. He has finished no worse than a tie for fourth at the Olympic Club in four of his last five tournaments and has been out of the top 25 only once in his last 10 tournaments. That came when he tied for 68th in the Players Championship, a week after his wedding. ... After a belated honeymoon to the Bahamas with his bride, Amanda, Duf headed to the United Kingdom early to play some of the classic links courses with his pals. He hoped to learn a little more about playing the game over there because he has missed the cut in his only two appearances in the oldest championship in the world. He shot 73-82--155 to miss the weekend by eight strokes in 2010 at St. Andrews, and he improved to 74-72--146 last year at Royal St. George's but still missed by three shots. ... Ever since that failure in Sandwich last July, Dufner has shown that he is a major player. He almost won the PGA Championship in August at Atlanta Athletic Club, blowing a five-stroke lead in the last four holes before losing in a playoff to Keegan Bradley. Not letting it get him down, he has won twice this year in addition to tying for 24th in the Masters and staying in the hunt most of the way at the Olympic Club.

5. Bubba Watson, United States -- Watson played his best golf since winning the Masters when he tied for second in the Travelers Championship three weeks ago, shooting 65-65 on the weekend, so it will be interesting to see how he does this week in the Open Championship. He has played in Europe only a handful of times, and the only time he has performed well came when he tied for sixth in the Nordea Scandinavian Masters last year. That came a few weeks after his forgettable performance, on and off the course, at the Alstom Open de France, in which he missed the cut. ... Bubba is playing in the third major of the year for the fourth time, and unlike his high school teammate Boo Weekley, he has yet to really captivate the British although he did loosen up a bit with the media last year. Of course, the Brits had to love it that he thumbed his nose a bit at the French. ... Watson did post his best finish in the oldest championship in the world last year when he tied for 30th at Royal St. George's, making the cut for the first time. He shot 1-under-par 69 in the first round, the only time he has broken 70 in eight rounds in the tournament. In his previous trips to the Open Championship, Watson shot 73-75--148 to miss the cut by four strokes in 2009 at Turnberry and posted 74-73--147 to miss the weekend by one shot in 2010 at St. Andrews. Bubba has all the shots, so there's no reason he can't be a contender this week at Royal Lytham & St. Annes.

6. Phil Mickelson, United States -- Coming off a missed cut in the Greenbrier Classic, Mickelson made the most of his last minute decision to play in the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open even though he had to be disappointed at the finish by his tie for 16th. After shooting 64-65 in the middle rounds, he told reporters that he finally is appreciating the vagaries of links golf, but then he had trouble in the wind while closing with a 2-over-par 74. ... A year ago, Mickelson went from his tie for 58th at Castle Stuart to posting the best finish of his career in the Open Championship, tying for second behind Darren Clarke at Royal St. George's. The American had a great chance to claim his fifth major title when he played the first 10 holes in 6-under-par and was briefly tied for the lead with Clarke, but Lefty carded four bogeys in a span of six holes and wound up three strokes back. His only other top-10 finish in the oldest championship in the world was solo third in 2004 at Royal Troon, where he finished one stroke out of the playoff in which Todd Hamilton beat Ernie Els. Mickelson tied for 30th in 2001 and tied for 40th in 1996, the last two times the tournament was played at Royal Lytham & St. Annes... After opening with a 1-over-par 73 last week at Castle Stuart, extending to eight his career-worst streak of eight rounds over par, Mickelson holed his approach shot for an eagle on No. 10, his first hole of the day, to kick-start his two-day surge. But after carding 14 birdies the previous two days, he could manage on two on Sunday.

7. Hunter Mahan, United States -- Following a dry spell after winning the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship and the Shell Houston Open earlier this year, Mahan seemed to get his game on track when he tied for 11th in the Travelers Championship and tied for eighth in the AT&T National in his last two outings. He's hoping to ride that momentum into the 141st Open Championship this week at Royal Lytham & St. Annes and reverse a string of poor performances in the oldest championship in the world. ... Mahan is playing in the third major of the year for the eighth time but has missed the cut three times in the last four years, including last season at Royal St. George's, where his 74-69--143 left him one shot shy. Those struggles began a year after he posted his best finish in the Open Championship, a tie for sixth in 2007 at difficult Carnoustie, where he shot 69-65 on the weekend to wind up three strokes out of the playoff in which Padraig Harrington beat Sergio Garcia. ... Mahan seemed to be well on his way to becoming a consistent contender in the majors in 2009, when he tied for 10th in the Masters, tied for sixth in the U.S. Open at Bethpage Black and tied for 16th in the PGA Championship at Hazeltine. But after tying for eighth in the 2010 Masters, he missed the cut in four of the next six Grand Slam events, failing to finish in the top 35. He tied for 12th this year at the Masters, falling out of contention with a final-round 74, and then tied for 38th at the U.S. Open.

8. Zach Johnson, United States -- After hitting his second shot from a bunker into the water on the first playoff hole, Johnson stroked a shot from the same bunker to within kick-in range for a birdie to beat Troy Matteson on the second extra hole at the John Deere Classic. Zach, who started the final round four strokes behind Matteson, closed with a 5-under-par 66 to get into the playoff. He earned his ninth PGA Tour victory and joined Tiger Woods, Jason Dufner and Hunter Mahan as the only two-time winners on the circuit this year. ... The 2007 Masters champion posted his best finish in eight appearances at the Open Championship when he tied for 16th last year at Royal St. George's after finishing second to Steve Stricker at TPC Deere Run. He was only three strokes off the lead after shooting 3-under-par 68 in round two at the third major of the year but played the weekend in 71-74 and finished 10 shots behind winner Darren Clarke. Since winning at Augusta, he has only two top-10 finishes in the majors, a tie for 10th in the 2009 PGA Championship at Hazeltine and a tie for third in the 2010 PGA at Whistling Straits. ... Johnson was virtually accepting the plaudits of the fans for winning last week at TPC Deere Run when Matteson dropped in a 60-foot eagle putt on the 17th hole to force the playoff. After both players found the water on the first playoff hole, Zach came through with his brilliant shot on the second. It was a popular victory -- he grew up nearby in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

9. Webb Simpson, United States -- Putting his family first, the U.S. Open champion will not play in the 141st Open Championship this week at Royal Lytham & St. Annes to be with his wife, Dowd, for the birth of their second child. He is the first U.S. Open champion to miss the tournament since Tiger Woods could not play in 2008 at Royal Birkdale after undergoing surgery on his right knee following his victory at Torrey Pines. Webb will return next week at the RBC Canadian Open. ... Simpson showed last year that he has the game to contend in the oldest championship in the world when he tied for 16th in his first appearance in the tournament at Royal St. George's. He was only one stroke out of the lead shared by Thomas Bjorn and amateur Tom Lewis after he opened with a 4-under-par 66, but he fell back by playing the last two rounds in 74-72-73. That came after he tied for 14th in the U.S. Open at Congressional, so it should have been no big surprise when he was the last man standing in June at the Olympic Club. ... Not that there was any question that he would return to defend his title in the Wyndham Championship next month, but Simpson made it easy for tournament officials to begin a marketing campaign focused on him by committing early. The PGA Tour's stop at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, N.C., has not had the reigning U.S. Open champion in its field since Jim Furyk played in the tournament in 2003. Defending champion or not, Simpson would probably be there anyway given that he was born in Raleigh and lives in Charlotte.

10. Steve Stricker, United States -- Stricker made a gallant effort to become the fifth male golfer to claim the same tournament four consecutive times, staying in the hunt until carding three bogeys in a span of four holes down the stretch on Sunday. After posting scores of 65-67-66 to enter the final round two strokes out of the lead, he closed with a 1-under-par 71 to wind up in a tie for fifth, but it was his best finish since he captured the season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions. ... Stricker talked recently about how he knows his time is running out to win a major title at the age of 45, which might keep him out of the World Golf Hall of Fame, but he believes he has the game to do it and the fact that Jack Nicklaus won the Masters at 46 gives him hope. He has played in the Open Championship 12 times previously. His best results were a tie for seventh in 2008 at Royal Birkdale and a tie for eighth in 2007 at Carnoustie, where he missed his best chance. His 7-under-par 64 in round three put him right in the thick of things, but he closed with a 74 and finished four shots out of the playoff in which Padraig Harrington beat Sergio Garcia. His best major finish was solo second behind Vijay Singh in the 1998 PGA Championship at Sahalee. ... Stricker was one stroke behind leader Troy Matteson last week at TPC Deere Run on Sunday before hitting his tee shot at No. 14 into a hazard, leading to the first of his costly bogeys. He made only four bogeys in the first 67 holes before his game went sideways.

11. Matt Kuchar, United States -- Kooch has shown he has the stuff to be a major player at every one of the Grand Slam events except the Open Championship. He shows up at Royal Lytham & St. Annes having missed the cut in six of his seven appearances in the oldest championship in the world, including the first five. After tying for 27th in 2010 at St. Andrews, he shot 74-77--151 to miss the weekend by eight strokes last year at Royal St. George's. When he posted a 3-under-par 69 in the final round on the Old Course two years ago, it was the only time he has broken 70 in 16 rounds in the third major of the year. ... Despite a stellar amateur career that included the 1997 U.S. Amateur Championship, Kuchar never has played well in the United Kingdom. He posted a 0-3 record in the 1999 Walker Cup at Nairn, Scotland, but he showed he might someday be a major player when he finished as low amateur in the 1998 Masters and U.S. Open, before shooting 75-75--150 later that year to miss the cut by four strokes in his first Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. ... Despite some early success on the PGA Tour, including a victory in the 2002 Honda Classic, it took Kuchar awhile to figure things out, including the majors. He didn't post his first top-10 in the Grand Slam events until tying for sixth in the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach and tied for 10th later that year in the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits. This year, he recorded his best finish in the majors, a tie for third in the Masters.

12. Lee Westwood, England -- In addition to working on his game, Westwood has been getting treatment for injuries to his right knee and groin that he sustained when he stumbled on the way to the first tee before the third round of the Alstom Open de France. He finished out the tournament and said he would be ready to make another try for that elusive first major title when he arrives at Royal Lytham & St. Annes this week for the 141st Open Championship. ... Westy will be playing in the oldest championship in the world for the 18th time but has only three top-10 finishes in the major played in his own backyard. He finished second two years ago at St. Andrews but was seven strokes behind runaway winner Louis Oosthuizen when it was over. Westwood led for much of the final round at Turnberry in 2009 and tied for third, and he finished solo fourth in 2004 at Royal Troon, four strokes out of the playoff in which Todd Hamilton beat Ernie Els. He has said he loves Lytham, but he tied for 47th there in 2001 and missed the cut in 1996, failing to break 70 in any of his six rounds. ... Westwood, who missed the cut last year at Royal St. George's, has finished in the top 10 twice in the majors in each of the last four seasons, including a tie for third in the Masters and a tie for 10th in the U.S. Open this year. He is trying to become the first Englishman to win a Grand Slam title since Nick Faldo captured the 1996 Masters. An English citizen has not claimed the Claret Jug on home soil since Tony Jacklin in 1969 at Lytham.

13. Justin Rose, England -- While Luke Donald and Lee Westwood are considered the leading contenders to end England's major championship drought, which dates to Nick Faldo winning the 1996 Masters, Rose could fly under the radar and make a run for the title this week in the Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes. He is having a terrific season -- he scored the biggest victory of his career in the WGC-Cadillac Championship and has eight top-10 finishes on both major tours. ... Rosy is playing in the oldest championship in the world for the 10th time, but his best finish still is the tie for fourth he recorded with a dramatic chip-in on the 72nd hole as an amateur at Royal Birkdale in 1998. In fact, he does not have another top-10 result, but he has finished in the top 25 on three other occasions, including a tie for 12th in 2007 at Carnoustie, when he bounced back after an opening 75. Last year, he played solid golf for three rounds, but a 9-over-par 79 in the second round left him in a tie for 44th at Royal St. George's. Justin tied for 30th when the Open was last played at Royal Lytham in 2001. ... Rose, who leads the European Tour's Race to Dubai and is second in the Euro Ryder Cup standings, has played well for the most part this year in the majors. He tied for eighth in the Masters, and only a 75 in the second round at the Olympic Club kept him from better than a tie for 21st in the U.S. Open. Those improved results came after he missed the cut four times in a span of six majors.

14. Rickie Fowler, United States -- Having taken a full month off since the U.S. Open, Fowler should be fresh as he shows up at Royal Lytham & St. Annes for the 141st Open Championship. He hopes to find his game on the Lancashire links -- he tied for 52nd in the Memorial Tournament and then tied for 41st at the Olympic Club following a string of four consecutive top-10 finishes, including his first PGA Tour victory in the Wells Fargo Championship. ... Rickie has shown he has the game for links golf. He posted his best finish in a major when he tied for fifth last year at Royal St. George's, where he entered the final round with a chance to win after rounds of 70-70-68. However, he closed with a 2-over-par 72 and wound up five strokes behind winner Darren Clarke of Northern Ireland. That came a year after Fowler tied for 14th at St. Andrews in his first trip to the oldest championship in the world. He opened with a 7-over-par 79 on the Old Course but bounced back with 67 to make the cut and then played the weekend in 71-67. Fowler also had success in the United Kingdom as an amateur, posting a 3-1 record to help the United States win the Walker Cup in 2007 at Royal County Down in Ireland. ... Fowler still is trying to develop a major mojo; he has not played well in the Grand Slam events since his breakthrough last year at Royal St. George's. He tied for 51st in the PGA Championship last August at Atlanta Athletic Club, and this year he tied for 27th in the Masters before that tie for 41st in the U.S. Open.

15. Bill Haas, United States -- The reigning FedEx Cup champion seemed ready to pick up right where he left off last year when he got his season off to a strong start, which included a playoff victory over Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley in the Northern Trust Open. However, he enters the Open Championship at Royal St. George's having struggled since, including a stretch where he missed the cut in four of six tournaments. ... Haas is playing in the third major of the year for the third time but has yet to figure out links golf. He shot 73-77--150 to miss the cut by four strokes at St. Andrews in 2010, and he then tied for 57th last year at Royal St. George's, starting out with a solid 72-70 before playing the weekend in 79-73. In Haas' first appearance in the United Kingdom, he posted a 2-2 record in the 2003 Walker Cup, but Great Britain and Ireland defeated his U.S. team at Ganton Golf Club in North Yorkshire, England. ... Haas showed that he can win against the strongest of fields when he captured the Tour Championship last year at East Lake, but that has yet to translate into success in the major championships. His best result in the Grand Slam events was a tie for 12th last year in the PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club, but he has been unable to back up that showing in the first two majors this year. Haas tied for 37th in the Masters and then shot 76-73--149 to miss the cut by one stroke in the U.S. Open at the Olympic Club.

16. Dustin Johnson, United States -- There might be better players who have yet to win a major championship -- Lee Westwood and Luke Donald immediately come to mind -- but even DJ will tell you that he probably should have won a Grand Slam title by now. He gets his latest chance this week in the Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, and he has the talent to at least challenge for the Claret Jug. ... Johnson is playing in the oldest championship in the world for the fourth time, and last year he posted his best result in a major when he tied for second at Royal St. George's. He was right there after shooting 68-68 in the middle rounds, but he posted a 72 on Sunday and finished three strokes behind champion Darren Clarke of Northern Ireland. DJ might have wound up in a playoff had he not hit his drive out of bounds en route to a double-bogey 7 on the 14th hole and had avoided a bogey 5 on the last. After shooting 78-76--154 to miss the cut in 2009 at Turnberry, he was in the hunt in 2010 at St. Andrews before shooting 2-over-par 74 in the final round to tie for 14th. ... Johnson let two majors get away in 2010. He took a three-stroke lead into the final round of the U.S. Open after shooting 5-under-par 66 at Pebble Beach, but he closed with an 82 to finish in a tie for eighth. DJ had a one-shot lead on the final hole of the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits but took a two-stroke penalty for grounding his club in a bunker and tied for fifth, missing the playoff in which Martin Kaymer beat Bubba Watson.

17. Keegan Bradley, United States -- The PGA champion will be playing in the Open Championship for the first time this week at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, but he got his United Kingdom links baptism three weeks ago in the Irish Open. Even though he missed the cut at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, he said it was worth the trip because it gave him an idea of what to expect this week in the links in Lancashire. He certainly enjoyed the greeting he got from the Irish fans -- they called out "welcome home" to Bradley, who was called a "Boston Irishman" by one writer. ... Keegan made a bit of golf history last year when he beat Jason Dufner in a playoff to win the PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club. He joined Francis Ouimet (1913 U.S. Open at the Country Club in Brookline, Mass.) and Ben Curtis (2003 Open Championship at Royal St. George's) as the only players to win a major championship in their first try. This will be the last major before he defends his title on the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, and he would like to play better than he did while tying for 27th in the Masters and tying for 68th in the U.S. Open at the Olympic Club. ... Bradley is trying to snap out of a funk he has been in since he finished in the top 25 in his first nine outings this year. He has only one more top 25 since but seemed to regain his form by starting with three rounds in the 60s in his last outing, the Greenbrier Classic, after making the return trip from Ireland. He shot 74 on Sunday, when he ran out of gas.

18. Adam Scott, Australia -- Had Scott lived up to the expectations that were put on him as a youngster, he might be considered the best golfer without a major championship, but he hasn't come close to becoming the next Greg Norman. Although he has had a career that most players would take, with 19 victories around the world, he comes to Royal Lytham & St. Annes for the Open Championship ranked alongside Sergio Garcia as the biggest underachievers of this era. ... Scotty is playing in the third major of the season for the 12th consecutive year, and the only time he has finished in the top 10 came when he tied for eighth in 2006 at Royal Liverpool. He had a chance that year after opening with 68-69, but his 70-72 on the weekend left him nine strokes behind winner Tiger Woods. The Aussie was again close to the lead after opening with 69-70 last year at Royal St. George's, but he played the weekend in 73-75 to tie for 25th. When the tournament was last played at Royal Lytham in 2001, he tied for 47th. ... Scott comes into the Open off his best finish of the season, solo third in the AT&T National, and he has played well in the majors this year, tying for eighth in the Masters and tying for 15th in the U.S. Open at the Olympic Club. He came closest to winning a major last year in the Masters, tying for second after Charl Schwartzel roared past him with birdies on the last four holes, and then finished solo seventh later in the year at the PGA Championship.

19. Charl Schwartzel, South Africa -- The 2011 Masters champion comes to Royal Lytham & St. Annes for the Open Championship this week after taking four weeks off to heal injuries to his left rib and right abdomen. He probably has no idea if he can regain the major mojo that he displayed in 2010 and 2011, when he recorded seven consecutive top-20 finishes in the Grand Slam events. ... The South African, one of several talented pros who came out of Ernie Els' Fancourt Foundation, will be playing in the oldest championship in the world for the eighth time. He would love nothing more that to etch his name on the Claret Jug alongside countrymen Els, Gary Player, Bobby Locke and his pal Louis Oosthuizen, who won in 2010 at St. Andrews. Charl has missed the cut in four of his seven appearances in the Open but has finished in the top 25 in the other three. He tied for 22nd in 2006 at Royal Liverpool, tied for 14th in 2010 at St. Andrews and tied for 16th last year at Royal St. George's. Schwartzel was in the hunt a year ago when he opened with 71-67, but he played the weekend in 75-72. ... His string of seven consecutive top-10 finishes in the majors ended when he tied for 50th in defense of his Masters title in April, and he then tied for 38th in the U.S. Open. Schwartzel almost skipped the second major of the year because of his injuries but was tied for ninth after 36 holes before struggling on the weekend and decided he needed to take a month off.

20. Brandt Snedeker, United States -- Snedeker joins Lee Westwood and Charl Scwhartzel as players in coming into the Open Championship this week off an injury, but he probably has a better idea of what to expect of himself at Royal Lytham & St. Annes. After missing more than a month because of a cracked rib in his right side, he was able to get through the Greenbrier Classic two weeks ago without incident, posting three rounds in the 60s while finishing in a tie for 38th. ... Sneds is trying to change his luck in the third major of the year, having missed the cut in each of his three previous appearances in the tournament. He shot 72-79--151 to miss by three strokes in 2008 at Royal Birkdale, posted a score of 72-77--149 to miss the weekend by four shots in 2009 at Turnberry and fell three shots shy by shooting 75-70--145 last year at Royal St. George's. He is a cumulative 25 over par in his six rounds in the tournament. ... Snedeker does have three finishes in the top 10 in the major championships: He tied for third in the 2008 Masters after being in the hunt most of the way, tied for ninth in the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines and tied for eighth in the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. His tie for 19th in the Masters earlier this year was his third result in the top 20 of the Grand Slam events in the last two seasons, but then he had to withdraw before the U.S. Open at the Olympic Club because of his injury.

Others receiving consideration: Mark Wilson, United States; Jason Day, Australia; Graeme McDowell, Northern Ireland; Louis Oosthuizen, South Africa; Johnson Wagner, United States; Kyle Stanley, United States; Robert Garrigus, United States; Ernie Els, South Africa; Jim Furyk, United States; Kevin Na, United States; Carl Pettersson, Sweden; Ben Curtis, United States; John Huh, United States; Nick Watney, United States; Marc Leishman, Australia; Bo Van Pelt, United States.