This article is part of our Golf Barometer series.
UPGRADE
Rory Sabbatini: He's long been one of our favorites for a few reasons: he's a quick player, a feel player, a brutally honest player in the interview room. We need more like Sabbatini out there. His putting was never better than last weekend in his win at The Honda Classic, and don't forget he bagged a Top 5 the week before at the Mayakoba Golf Classic. Sabbatini looks primed for a strong season as he approaches his 35th birthday in April; while there's still plenty of passion boiling below the surface, his emotional management on the course does seem to be vastly improved.
Spencer Levin: Make it seven checks in eight events for the steady ball-striker, and the last four paydays have all been six figures. Levin looks like one of the prime breakout stars of the season; it pains me that he's not on any of my rosters.
Y.E. Yang: He went deep at the Match Play and then backed it up with a near miss at The Honda Classic, throwing a sterling 67-66 on the field the last two days. Yang looks fully healthy these days, and his confidence is probably close to where it was when he took down Tiger Woods at the PGA Championship a couple years ago. I like Yang's chances to grab a victory at some point in 2011.
Tommy Gainey: He's got a funky and unorthodox game (almost reminds you of Allen Doyle a little bit), a likable personality
UPGRADE
Rory Sabbatini: He's long been one of our favorites for a few reasons: he's a quick player, a feel player, a brutally honest player in the interview room. We need more like Sabbatini out there. His putting was never better than last weekend in his win at The Honda Classic, and don't forget he bagged a Top 5 the week before at the Mayakoba Golf Classic. Sabbatini looks primed for a strong season as he approaches his 35th birthday in April; while there's still plenty of passion boiling below the surface, his emotional management on the course does seem to be vastly improved.
Spencer Levin: Make it seven checks in eight events for the steady ball-striker, and the last four paydays have all been six figures. Levin looks like one of the prime breakout stars of the season; it pains me that he's not on any of my rosters.
Y.E. Yang: He went deep at the Match Play and then backed it up with a near miss at The Honda Classic, throwing a sterling 67-66 on the field the last two days. Yang looks fully healthy these days, and his confidence is probably close to where it was when he took down Tiger Woods at the PGA Championship a couple years ago. I like Yang's chances to grab a victory at some point in 2011.
Tommy Gainey: He's got a funky and unorthodox game (almost reminds you of Allen Doyle a little bit), a likable personality and five straight cashes, including a sold fifth last week and a T8 in Phoenix. Check your waiver wire, Gainey might be floating around.
Ricky Barnes: Funny hat, aggressive swing, big check down at The Honda (T4). Looks like the back pain has subsided, so let the good times roll.
PGA National: The Honda Classic got mixed reviews, and PGA National also fell into that rut, but I enjoyed the event because I like seeing the players challenged, and I like seeing the field back up from time to time. Birdie-heavy courses just don't do it for me. Don't change a thing with this event, there's nothing wrong with how the tourney played out last week. I suppose the layout at PGA National doesn't do a lot for everyone, but there's only so much you can do with the real estate in Florida. They've established a quality event here.
DOWNGRADE
Camilo Villegas: Another trunk slam last week, and he did it in explosive fashion (79-78, see you later). He hasn't given us a sub-70 round since the last week of January, and he's made just $63K for the season. It will be a surprise if he cracks the Top 30 at Doral, but at least he'll get paid -- there's no cut at this event.
Adam Scott: He got his money's worth at PGA National, taking 159 shots over two days then heading for the exits. At what point do we accept that he's just a more likable version of Sergio Garcia? Scott remains a talented, maddening enigma.
Mike Weir: He needs a break, a retooling, a timeout, something. Consider his last nine rounds: 78-75-68-73-74-77-77-77-85. Weir's medical extension is over, so he'll be relying on sponsor's exemptions for a while. Every likes the Canadian lefty, but what's happened to his game?
