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Every week of the 2010 PGA Tour season, the editorial staff of the SI Golf Group will conduct an e-mail roundtable. Check in on Mondays for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors and join the conversation in the comments section below.
PETTERSSON’S WIN AND WILSON’S CLOSE CALL
David Dusek, deputy editor, Golf.com: Welcome aboard PGA Tour Confidential. This week we’re traveling far and wide, so I’ve parked the bus and grabbed a plane. We'll be visiting the ladies in France and the old timers in Scotland after starting our journey in Canada. Carl Pettersson's 60-67 weekend gave him a one-shot win in Toronto. It's the Swede's fourth career PGA Tour title, but the week after a major it's always tough to attract a strong field. What can we take from this week at St. George's Golf Club?
Cameron Morfit, senior writer, Golf Magazine: What I take from Canada is this: Not counting opposite-field events, Americans haven't won much lately on the PGA Tour. In addition to having to settle for second at the Senior British, that fact must be somewhat of a downer for U.S. Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin.
Rick Lipsey, writer-reporter, Sports Illustrated: Yeah, the tide — on paper — is strong for anybody who's not American. That could change on a dime, but heading into the Ryder Cup, as Cam says, Pavin's gotta be worried.
Gary Van Sickle, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: Too early to get excited about that. The Ryder Cup, as Azinger realized, is all about who's got the hot putters. The ballstriking is pretty much a wash. All 24 guys are studs. Who's hot on the greens in July isn't relevant to who will be holing the putts in early October.
Dusek: Pettersson started the day four shots behind Dean Wilson, a guy who lost his PGA Tour card last year and played this week on a sponsor's exemption. Wilson made a nice check for his second-place finish, but a win could have jump-started his career. Does Pettersson feel good that he was able to get the win, or fortunate that Wilson wasn’t able to close it out on Sunday?
Jim Gorant, senior editor, Sports Illustrated: He feels fantastic. Is Wilson still working the stack and tilt? Is anyone? That thing came and went like a bad cold.
Mark Godich, senior editor, Sports Illustrated: If I’m Pettersson, I’m feeling pretty good about making the cut on the number, shooting 60 on Saturday and making six birdies in an eight-hole stretch on Sunday after two early bogeys. He earned this victory. Hard to believe that he has four PGA Tour wins.
Van Sickle: It's got to be both. There's so much more pressure on a non-winner/quasi-journeyman like Wilson when he's trying to win versus a previous established winner like Carl. Pressure on Carl, too, but so much more was riding on it for Wilson. That's why the Cinderellas have a tough time closing out Tour wins.
Godich: The look on Wilson’s face at the end said it all: He knew he threw away an opportunity, and he had to be wondering when the next one will come along.
Morfit: Gotta think he feels like he won it. Wilson's career will get nice boost even though he didn't win.
Van Sickle: You can feel empathy for Wilson, but let's face it, the Tour is quite the meritocracy. If you shoot the scores, you win the trophies. At 40, it’s tough to come up short like that once you've had the lead. But that's tour golf. You've got to play well for four days and putt your rear end off to win. If not, you get a nice check as consolation. Good sign for Wilson, though.
Lipsey: Pettersson was awesome. I wonder if he'll try for the Ryder Cup.
Van Sickle: Good point, Rick. Monty's team is already loaded, but he'd be crazy not to seriously consider Pettersson. He's a ball-striking machine.
Dusek: Yet Colin Montgomerie was quoted this week as saying he’s got headaches (the good kind) about selecting the European Ryder Cup team. In a nut shell, he said he’s got two teams’ worth of players who could compete well against the Americans.
Van Sickle: Monty has 20 pounds of soil to fit into a five-pound bag. A nice problem to have. If Monty is somehow implying that he's got two lineups better than the Americans, though, I'd have to disagree.