Summing up the Year

This is a post to sum up the results for the year between the Tour Outsider (me) and the Tour Insider (Rob Bolton -- for a 3rd year) for the 2012 season.  Usually I make this post at the end of the US PGA Tour season (i.e. after the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic), which was in November.  However, this year I was pre-occupied with finishing up my doctoral studies in November and December at the University of Louisville, while also teaching two courses (at Western Michigan University).  Therefore, I didn't get around to posting the end of year results until now, the last day of 2012.

Unlike the previous two years when Bolton was the Tour Insider, I was able to one-up him in 2012.  He had beaten me handsomely the previous two years, while graciously and unknowingly playing the Tour Insider role in my competition between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider.

Prior to having Bolton as the Tour Insider, I had not lost to the Tour Insider (the first 3 years of the competition).  In 2010, I lost to Bolton -- 19-21-4 (TO, TI, Draws), which was a close race.  In 2011, I lost in a big fashion to Bolton -- 12-30-3 (TO, TI, Draws).  However, in 2012, I came out ahead of Bolton for the first time -- 23-18-5 (TO, TI, Draws).

In analyzing the results this year, I have put together a summary of some of the results.  As with last year, when looking at our combined picks, we did rather well.  So if you used both of our picks, things turn out well for you.

In the 46 tournaments that we made picks, we had some winners, along with a good number of top 5s, top 10s, and top 25s.  Below is a summary of the aggregate figures for the 2012 season.

	TO	TI
Number of Tournaments	46	46
Number of Picks	230	230
Total Earnings	$33,755,837	$37,211,216
Average Rank	37.72	34.70
Number of Made Cuts	188	195
% of Made Cuts	82%	85%
Number of Winners	11	12
% of Wnners	24%	26%
Number of Top 5s	47	42
% of Tops 5s	20%	18%
Number of Top 10s	75	73
% of Top 10s	33%	32%
Number of Top 25s	110	120
% of Top 25s	48%	52%

In looking at our numbers this year, Bolton did better than I did in total earnings, average rank, and number of made cuts.  He earned more money than I did (total earnings: $33.8m compared to $37.2), his average rank was less (37.72 compared to 34.70), and his players made more cuts than mine (188 to 195).  He also did better in number of winners (11 to 12).

Since I won the number of tournaments, this means that he did very well in several of the tournaments, but I did better on average for each tournament.  This is supported in the number of top 5s and number of top 10s, where I had better statistics than he did.  In addition, I only had one less winner.  So I didn't lose a lot of in the earnings because of not picking a winner.  This is important since winners earn a lot more than 2nd place finishers in a tournament.

Compared to last year, we both earned more money (although, we are not comparing apples to apples since we had one more tournament to pick from this year compared to last year).  I earned $33.8m (last year $25.3m), and he earned $37.2 (last year $31.8m).  In addition, we both did better in the other  respective categories compared to last year, including in average rank, and number of made cuts (%), number of winners (%), number of top 5s (%), number of top 10s (%), and number of top 25s (%).

Here's to 2013!!!

Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic Review

It is now time to review the picks for the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Tommy Gainey | 40 | $16,046
2. Davis Love III | 40 | $16,046
3. Henrik Stenson | 19 | $49,454
4. Charles Howell III | 15 | $77,550
5. Robert Garrigus | 2 | $413,600

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Robert Garrigus | 2 | $413,600
2. Chris Kirk | 74 | $8,977
3. Charles Howell III | 15 | $77,550
4. Brendon De Jonge | 19 | $49,454
5. Tommy Gainey | 40 | $16,046

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$572,696	$565,627	TO
Avg Rank	23.2	30.0	TO
Made Cut	5	5	Draw
Outcome	--	--	TO

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was won by the Tour Outsider.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 23 wins to the Tour Outsider, 18 wins to the Tour Insider, and 5 draws.

I edged Bolton out in the earnings this week, and also clipped him in the average rank.  A win for the Tour Outsider. :-)

Children's Miracle Network Hospital Classic

This week the US PGA Tour is back in the United States to play the last official money event of the year and the last event of the Fall Finish.  The tournament, the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic is a fun end of the year tournament for the players as they get to take their families to Disney World in Florida.  However, players that are on the "125 bubble" (players need to be ranked 125 or better to keep their card for next year) might not be having as much fun as the other players in the field.

Below is the list of the top 15 players in the CLi rankings for the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic.

#	Player	CLi
1	Tommy Gainey	10.15
2	Davis Love III	12.05
3	Henrik Stenson	15.30
4	Charles Howell III	15.95
5	Robert Garrigus	17.80
6	Alexandre Rocha	20.05
7	Justin Leonard	22.05
8	Gary Woodland	22.85
9	Tim Petrovic	24.50
10	Brendon De Jonge	28.10
11	D.A. Points	29.75
12	Tim Herron	30.05
13	Mathew Goggin	32.15
14	Sean O'Hair	32.50
15	Steven Bowditch	33.85

The CLi rankings are high, with the lowest CLi figure being 10.15 (Gainey).  That usually indicates that it is difficult to predict which players will play well based upon past statistics (which the CLi uses).

However, when examining the details behind each of the CLi figures for the top players, the top five players look like good picks in this tournament.

Gainey (analysis) won several weeks ago at the McGladrey Classic.  He didn't play well last year in this event (missed the cut, finished 93rd).   But in the only other time he played, in 2008, he finished 2nd.

Love III (analysis) placed 4th in the McGladrey Classic several weeks ago when Gainey came from behind to beat him (Gainey shot 60 in the final round).  As with Gainey, Love didn't play well last year in this event (missed the cut, finished 76th).  However, placed 19th in 2010, won the event in 2008, and placed 5th in 2006 and 2003.

Stenson (analysis) has finished 26th, 27th, and 6th in the last 3 events he has played.  He finished 12th last year in this event, which is the only time he has played in the event.

In his last two outing, Howell III (analysis) finished 7th at the McGladrey Classic and 11th in the Frys.com.  He didn't play well last year in this event (missed the cut, finished 76th).  However, he finished 9th in 2010 and in 2006.

Garrigus (analysis) played well two weeks ago in the CIMB Classic where he finished 2nd.  However, he didn't play stellar last week in China at the HSBC Champions tournament.  And as is with Gainey, Love III, and Howell III, he missed the cut in the event last year (finished 88th).  However, he likes this event as he won it in 2010.

Here are my picks for the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic:

#	Player	CLi
1	Tommy Gainey	10.15
2	Davis Love III	12.05
3	Henrik Stenson	15.30
4	Charles Howell III	15.95
5	Robert Garrigus	17.80

It is interesting that I have two "thirds" in my picks -- Davis Love III and Charles Howell III. :-)

Below are the top 5 players in the Power Rankings from Rob Bolton:

1. Robert Garrigus
2. Chris Kirk
3. Charles Howell III
4. Brendon De Jonge
5. Tommy Gainey

Here is a link to Bolton's Power Rankings so that you can read more about his thoughts on his top players in this week's Power Rankings:

Bolton's Power Rankings: Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic

We have 3 players in common this tournament: Garrigus, Howell III, and Gainey

Below are the settings for the CLi calculation I used for the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic:

Number of Past Tournaments Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA1)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA1)
5	25%	25%
Number of Days Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA2)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA2)
60	5%	5%
Number of Tournaments Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA3)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA3)
4	20%	20%

If you don't like the configuration of my CLi calculation, feel free to run your own CLi calculation with your own desired settings by going to golfcli.com.

HSBC Champions Review

It is now time to review the picks for the HSBC Champions to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Luke Donald | 18 | $75,000
2. Justin Rose | 24 | $62,250
3. Peter Hanson | 24 | $62,250
4. Ian Poulter | 1 | $1,200,000
5. Phil Mickelson | 2 | $417,500

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Justin Rose | 24 | $62,250
2. Luke Donald | 18 | $75,000
3. Louis Oosthuizen | 6 | $190,000
4. Dustin Johnson | 39 | $47,000
5. Ian Poulter | 1 | $1,200,000

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$1,817,000	$1,574,250	TO
Avg Rank	13.8	17.5	TO
Made Cut	5	5	Draw
Outcome	--	--	TO

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was won by the Tour Outsider.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 22 wins to the Tour Outsider, 18 wins to the Tour Insider, and 5 draws.

We both picked Poulter this tournament, and he won.  Congrats Poulter!!!

HSBC Champions

This week the US PGA Tour is in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to play the HSBC Champions tournament.

Below is the list of the top 15 players in the CLi rankings for the HSBC Champions tournament.

#	Player	CLi
1	Luke Donald	2.9
2	Justin Rose	3.9
3	Peter Hanson	7.9
4	Shane Lowry	11.4
5	Ian Poulter	13.6
6	Phil Mickelson	13.7
7	Richard Ramsay	15.1
8	Nicolas Colsaerts	16.8
9	Martin Kaymer	16.9
10	Jason Dufner	18.5
11	Ernie Els	18.7
12	Francesco Molinari	19.2
13	Nick Watney	19.8
14	Lee Westwood	20.3
15	Adam Scott	20.5

I went through the analyses for the top players, and here are my picks for the HSBC Champions tournament:

#	Player	CLi
1	Luke Donald	2.9
2	Justin Rose	3.9
3	Peter Hanson	7.9
4	Ian Poulter	13.6
5	Phil Mickelson	13.7

Below are the top 5 players in the Power Rankings from Rob Bolton:

1. Justin Rose
2. Luke Donald
3. Louis Oosthuizen
4. Dustin Johnson
5. Ian Poulter

Here is a link to Bolton's Power Rankings so that you can read more about his thoughts on his top players in this week's Power Rankings:

Bolton's Power Rankings: HSBC Champions

We have 3 players in common this tournament: Rose, Donald, and Poulter

Below are the settings for the CLi calculation I used for the HSBC Champions:

Number of Past Tournaments Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA1)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA1)
5	20%	20%
Number of Days Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA2)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA2)
30	10%	10%
Number of Tournaments Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA3)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA3)
4	20%	20%

If you don't like the configuration of my CLi calculation, feel free to run your own CLi calculation with your own desired settings by going to golfcli.com.

CIMB Classic Review

It is now time to review the picks for the CIMB Classic to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Bo Van Pelt | 2 | $485,000
2. Jeffrey Overton | 16 | $79,000
3. Jason Dufner | 16 | $79,000
4. Tiger Woods | 4 | $265,000
5. Brendon De Jonge | 4 | $265,000

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Bo Van Pelt | 2 | $485,000
2. Jason Dufner | 16 | $79,000
3. Tiger Woods | 4 | $265,000
4. Seung-yul Noh | 14 | $87,000
5. Scott Piercy | 10 | $102,5000

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$1,173,000	$1,018,500	TO
Avg Rank	8.4	9.2	TO
Made Cut	5	5	Draw
Outcome	--	--	TO

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was won by the Tour Outsider.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 21 wins to the Tour Outsider, 18 wins to the Tour Insider, and 5 draws.

We both did rather well with our picks this tournament, but I was able to edge Bolton out to squeak out another win.  Things are coming down to the wire to see who will take the trophy this year between the both of us -- the Tour Ousider and the Tour Insider.

CIMB Classic

This week the US PGA Tour is in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to play the CIMB Classic.

Below is the list of the top 15 players in the CLi rankings for the CIMB Classic.

#	Player	CLi
1	Bo Van Pelt	5.05
2	Jeffrey Overton	5.55
3	Jason Dufner	6.40
4	Tom Gillis	8.75
5	Tiger Woods	9.55
6	Brendon De Jonge	9.65
7	Jimmy Walker	10.15
8	Chris Kirk	12.85
9	Robert Garrigus	14.80
10	Kevin Stadler	15.00
11	Nick Watney	16.30
12	John Senden	17.35
13	Masanori Kobayashi	17.90
14	Ben Crane	18.05
15	Marcus Fraser	19.05

I went through the analyses for the top players and here are my picks for the CIMB Classic:

#	Player	CLi
1	Bo Van Pelt	5.05
2	Jeffrey Overton	5.55
3	Jason Dufner	6.40
4	Tiger Woods	9.55
5	Brendon De Jonge	9.65

Below are the top 5 players in the Power Rankings from Rob Bolton:

1. Bo Van Pelt
2. Jason Dufner
3. Tiger Woods
4. Seung-yul Noh
5. Scott Piercy

Here is a link to Bolton's Power Rankings so that you can read more about his thoughts on his top players in this week's Power Rankings:

Bolton's Power Rankings: CIMB Classic

We have 3 players in common this tournament: Van Pelt, Dufner, and Woods

Below are the settings for the CLi calculation I used for the CIMB Classic:

Number of Past Tournaments Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA1)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA1)
2	15%	15%
Number of Days Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA2)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA2)
60	15%	15%
Number of Tournaments Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA3)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA3)
6	20%	20%

If you don't like the configuration of my CLi calculation, feel free to run your own CLi calculation with your own desired settings by going to golfcli.com.

McGladrey Classic Review

It is now time to review the picks for the McGladrey Classic to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Jeff Overton | 51 | $9,413
2. Jim Furyk | 3 | $272,000
3. Brendon De Jonge | 4 | $165,333
4. Billy Horschel | 43 | $12,827
5. Zach Johnson | 49 | $10,240

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Jason Day | 57 | $8,920
2. Jim Furyk | 3 | $272,000
3. Jeff Overton | 51 | $9,413
4. Zach Johnson | 49 | $10,240
5. Vijay Singh | 27 | $22,550

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$469,813	$323,123	TO
Avg Rank	30.0	37.4	TO
Made Cut	5	5	Draw
Outcome	--	--	TO

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was won by the Tour Outsider.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 20 wins to the Tour Outsider, 18 wins to the Tour Insider, and 5 draws.

McGladrey Classic

This week is the third Fall Finish tournament: The McGladrey Classic.

My picks for the tournament are:

Jeffrey Overton (analysis)
Jim Furyk (analysis)
Brendon De Jonge (analysis)
Billy Horschel (analysis)
Zach Johnson (analysis)

The Tour Insider (Bolton) picks for the tournament are:

Jason Day (analysis)
Jim Furyk (analysis)
Jeffrey Overton (analysis)
Zach Johnson (analysis)
Vijay Singh (analysis)

We have 3 players in common in this tournament: Furyk, Overton, and Johnson

Frys.com Open Review

It is now time to review the picks for the Frys.com Open to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Brendan Steele | 116 (MC) | $0
2. Bud Cauley | 55 | $11,250
3. Bill Lunde | 35 | $24,125
4. Justin Leonard | 88 (MC) | $0
5. Heath Slocum | 47 | $12,843

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Jonas Blixt | 1 | $900,000
2. Brendan Steele | 116 (MC) | $0
3. Jeff Overton | 8 | $155,000
4. Bud Cauley | 55 | $11,250
5. Vijay Singh | 4 | $196,875

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$48,218	$1,263,125	TI
Avg Rank	68.2	36.8	TI
Made Cut	4	4	Draw
Outcome	--	--	TI

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was won by the Tour Insider.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 19 wins to the Tour Outsider, 18 wins to the Tour Insider, and 5 draws.

Bolton kicked my rear in this tournament.  Ouch.

Frys.com Open

This week is the second Fall Finish tournament: Frys.com Open.

My picks for the tournament are:

Brendan Steele (analysis)
Bud Cauley (analysis)
Bill Lunde (analysis)
Justin Leonard (analysis)
Heath Slocum (analysis)

The Tour Insider (Bolton) picks for the tournament are:

Jonas Blixt (analysis)
Brendan Steele (analysis)
Jeff Overton (analysis)
Bud Cauley (analysis)
Vijay Singh (analysis)

We have 2 players in common in this tournament: Steele and Cauley

Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open Review

It is now time to review the picks for the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Chad Campbell | 54 | $10,305
2. Kevin Streelman | 22 | $39,488
3. Ryan Moore | 1 | $810,000
4. Robert Garrigus | 22 | $39,488
5. Nick Watney | 10 | $112,500

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Robert Garrigus | 22 | $39,488
2. Nick Watney | 10 | $112,500
3. Ryan Moore | 11 | $810,000
4. Scott Piercy | 6 | $156,375
5. Chris Kirk | 36 | $18,923

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$1,011,781	$1,137,286	TI
Avg Rank	21.8	17.0	TI
Made Cut	5	5	Draw
Outcome	--	--	Draw

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was a draw.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 19 wins to the Tour Outsider, 17 wins to the Tour Insider, and 5 draws.

We both picked a winner in Moore, and we both had all of our player picks make the cut.  However, Bolton edged me out this tournament with his other picks.

Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open

....another short post.  This time it is for the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.  The tournament is the first of the Fall Finish tournaments.

My picks for the tournament are:

Chad Campbell (analysis)
Kevin Streelman (analysis)
Ryan Moore (analysis)
Robert Garrigus (analysis)
Nick Watney (analysis)

The Tour Insider (Bolton) picks for the tournament are:

Robert Garrigus (analysis)
Nick Watney (analysis)
Ryan Moore (analysis)
Scott Piercy (analysis)
Chris Kirk (analysis)

We have 3 players in common in this tournament: Garrigus, Watney, and Moore

Ryder Cup Singles Matches Analysis

Today is the final round of the Ryder Cup.  Team USA has a commanding lead over Team Europe going into the singles matches today, with the score 10-to-6.  It will be difficult for Team Europe to come back from such a deficit.  They will have to win 8 of the 12 singles matches.  To have fun today, I have performed analyses to see if that is possible (at least on paper).

Below, I list out the singles matches and run head-to-head analyses using Fanooz's head-to-head tool for the Ryder Cup.  I compare the each player in a singles match with their opponent base upon four different criteria dating back from January 2008 in official money, medal play tournaments: 1) only majors-total tournament 2) all tournaments-total tournament, 3) all tournaments-first round scores, and 4) all tournaments-final round scores.

Europe	USA	Only Majors	#	Results
Donald	Watson	50%-50%	16	Tie
Poulter	Simpson	50%-50%	6	Tie
McIlroy	Bradley	20%-80%	5	USA
Rose	Mickelson	24%-76%	17	USA
Lawrie	Snedeker	67%-33%	6	Europe
Colsaerts	D. Johnson	50%-50%	4	Tie
McDowell	Z. Johnson	67%-33%	18	Europe
Garcia	Furyk	40%-60%	20	USA
Hanson	Dufner	73%-27%	11	Europe
Westwood	Kuchar	81%-19%	16	Europe
Kaymer	Stricker	35%-65%	20	USA
Molinari	Woods	23%-77%	13	USA
Team Europe				4
Team USA				5
Ties				3

Note: The figures in the # column indicates how many tournaments the players both played in (i.e. to be able to compare their results against one another).

When looking only at majors, the head-to-head tool predicts that Europe has an advantage in 4 of the matches, USA has an advantage in 5 of the matches, and that there is no advantage for either side in 3 of the matches.  Europe will want to see those close matches go their way if they are going to have a chance of retaining the Cup.

Europe	USA	All Tournaments	#	Results
Donald	Watson	63%-37%	61	Europe
Poulter	Simpson	51%-49%	41	Europe
McIlroy	Bradley	60%-40%	20	Europe
Rose	Mickelson	45%-55%	69	USA
Lawrie	Snedeker	60%-40%	10	Europe
Colsaerts	D. Johnson	44%-56%	9	USA
McDowell	Z. Johnson	48%-52%	46	USA
Garcia	Furyk	33%-67%	63	USA
Hanson	Dufner	54%-46%	24	Europe
Westwood	Kuchar	58%-42%	36	Europe
Kaymer	Stricker	32%-68%	37	USA
Molinari	Woods	38%-62%	26	USA
Team Europe				6
Team USA				6
Ties				0

When looking at all tournaments (both majors and non-major tournaments), the head-to-head tool predicts that Europe has an advantage in 6 of the matches, and USA has an advantage in the other 6 of the matches.

When combining both of the results (from the major only analysis and all the tournaments analysis), USA has a slight edge on paper per the results of the head-to-head tool.  It will be difficult for Europe to pull out a win in this Ryder Cup, as they will need to figure out how to pull out some of the close matches.  For example, if the 3 ties from the majors only analysis go to Europe, that would result in Europe obtaining 7 points.  Then they would only have to win one additional match to keep the cup.

Some additional analyses shows interesting results with Poulter and Westwood.  Poulter and Westwood tend to play better than their opponent in final rounds.  This is an indicator that they play better when there is more riding on the results....like in the Ryder Cup.  We saw that from Poulter yesterday (Saturday) by looking at his eyes (focus) and how he made several putts down the stretch to help his team earn a point in the afternoon play.

These head-to-head analyses for the Ryder Cup are not necessarily comparing apples-to-apples since the Ryder Cup is such a different event than medal play tournaments where players represent themselves, as opposed to their country.  However, it is fun to see how the analyses stacks up to the actual results.

Enjoy watching the singles matches today.   The fans have really turned out for the event, and Chicago has been a great host city this year.

TOUR Championship Review

It is now time to review the picks for the TOUR Championship to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Sergio Garcia | 15 | $167,200
2. Tiger Woods | 8 | $248,000
3. Phil Mickelson | 15 | $167,200
4. Nick Watney | 28 | $131,200
5. Ryan Moore | 3 | $468,000

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Tiger Woods | 8 | $248,000
2. Rory McIlroy | 10 | $205,760
3. Phil Mickelson | 15 | $167,200
4. Jim Furyk | 7 | $272,000
5. Adam Scott | 19 | $156,800

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$1,181,600	$1,049,760	TO
Avg Rank	13.8	11.8	TI
Made Cut	5	5	Draw
Outcome	--	--	Draw

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was a draw.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 19 wins to the Tour Outsider, 16 wins to the Tour Insider, and 5 draws.

After Bolton kick my rear the past two tournaments, I squeaked out a draw in this one -- winning the earnings category by $32,000 and giving Bolton a run for his money in the average rank category.

I am holding a slim lead going into the Fall Finish tournaments.

Ryder Cup

This week is the Ryder Cup.  A wonderful 3-day team event between the USA and Europe over 5 rounds using multiple playing formats.  This year the event is in Chicago at Medinah Country Club.

I won't be making any picks or predictions.  But if you want to have fun with a player head-to-head analysis tool, go to the following link on Fanooz:

• Player Head-to-Head Analysis - Ryder Cup

You will be able to select multiple players that are playing in the Ryder Cup and see how they have performed against each other in recent tournaments (....going all the way back to year 2000).

For example, if Tiger Woods and Bubba Watson are paired up against Sergio Garcia and Justin Rose, you can select those players and see the results against one another in the tournaments they all played in recently. 

Note: the tool works much better for the final day singles matches where one player from the American team plays against one player from the European team.

TOUR Championship

....and here we go, with another quick an short post.  This time it is for the TOUR Championship in Atlanta.  The tournament is the finale of the FedEx Playoffs, with only 30 players in the field.

My picks for the tournament are:

Sergio Garica (analysis)
Tiger Woods (analysis)
Phil Mickelson (analysis)
Nick Watney (analysis)
Ryan Moore (analysis)

The Tour Insider (Bolton) picks for the tournament are:

Tiger Woods (analysis)
Rory McIlroy (analysis)
Phil Mickelson (analysis)
Jim Furyk (analysis)
Adam Scott (analysis)

We have 2 players in common in this tournament: Woods and Mickelson

BMW Championship Review

It is now time to review the picks for the BMW Championship to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Sergio Garcia | 24 | $73,600
2. Tiger Woods | 4 | $352,000
3. Tim Clark | 59 | $17,600
4. Steve Stricker | 26 | $62,800
5. Keegan Bradley | 59 | $17,600

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Rory McIlroy | 1 | $1,440,000
2. Dustin Johnson | 6 | $278,000
3. Tiger Woods | 4 | $352,000
4. Lee Westwood | 2 | $704,000
5. Louis Oosthuizen | 16 | $108,600

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$523,600	$2,882,600	TI
Avg Rank	34.4	5.8	TI
Made Cut	5	5	Draw
Outcome	--	--	TI

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was won by the Tour Insider.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 19 wins to the Tour Outsider, 16 wins to the Tour Insider, and 4 draws.

Wow!!! Another great week for Bolton.  His picked earned more than $2.8m and their average rank was 5.8.  That is awesome.  That is very tough to beat....thus, the reason why I was left in the dust for a 2nd week in a row.

BMW Championship

Another quick and short post, this time for this week's BMW Championship, which will be held at a new course for this tournament -- French Lick Resort in Indiana.  This tournament is the 3rd tournament of the FedEx Playoffs.

My picks for the tournament are:

Sergio Garica (analysis)
Tiger Woods (analysis)
Tim Clark (analysis)
Steve Stricker (analysis)
Keegan Bradley (analysis)

The Tour Insider (Bolton) picks for the tournament are:

Rory McIlroy (analysis)
Dustin Johnson (analysis)
Tiger Woods (analysis)
Lee Westwood (analysis)
Louis Oosthuizen (analysis)

We have 1 player in common in this tournament: Woods

....another short post, as I continue to get settled in Kalamazoo.

Deutsche Bank U.S. Championship Review

It is now time to review the picks for the Deutsche Bank U.S. Championship to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Steve Stricker | 13 | $145,600
2. Jason Dufner | 18 | $116,000
3. Tiger Woods | 3 | $544,000
4. Jim Furyk | 13 | $145,600
5. Luke Donald | 26 | $54,444

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Brandt Snedeker | 6 | $288,000
2. Luke Donald | 26 | $54,444
3. Louis Oosthuizen | 2 | $864,000
4. Jason Dufner | 18 | $116,000
5. Rory McIlroy | 1 | $1,440,000

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$1,005,644	$2,762,444	TI
Avg Rank	14.6	10.6	TI
Made Cut	5	5	Draw
Outcome	--	--	TI

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was won by the Tour Insider.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 19 wins to the Tour Outsider, 15 wins to the Tour Insider, and 4 draws.

This was a good tournament for me, as my picks earned more than $1m (without one of them winning the tournament) and had an average rank of 14.6.  Normally, those two figures would win a tournament.  But Bolton had an even better tournament.  He picked the winner (McIlroy) and the 2nd place finisher (Oosthuizen).  In addition, he had another player finish in the top 6 (Snedeker), with his worst place finisher only being 26th (Donald).  Very nice!!

Deutsche Bank U.S. Championship

A quick and short post this week for the Deutsche Bank U.S. Championship, the second tournament of the FedEx Playoffs.

My picks for the tournament are:

Steve Stricker (analysis)
Jason Dufner (analysis)
Tiger Woods (analysis)
Jim Furyk (analysis)
Luke Donald (analysis)

The Tour Insider (Bolton) picks for the tournament are:

Brandt Snedeker (analysis)
Luke Donald (analysis)
Louis Oosthuizen (analysis)
Jason Dufner (analysis)
Rory McIlroy (analysis)

We have 2 players in common in this tournament: Donald and Dufner

This post is short, as was last week's post for the Barclays Classic, because I am in the process of packing up and moving from Louisville to Kalamazoo. Hopefully I will be back on schedule next week...

Barclays Classic Review

It is now time to review the picks for the Barclays Classic to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Steve Stricker | 54 | $18,000
2. Sergio Garcia | 3 | $464,000
3. Tiger Woods | 38 | $32,000
4. Justin Rose | 46 | $21,080
5. Tim Clark | 10 | $160,889

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Rory McIlroy | 24 | $56,700
2. Bubba Watson | 10 | $160,889
3. Keegan Bradley | 76 (MC) | $0
4. Tiger Woods | 38 | $32,000
5. Justin Rose | 46 | $21,080

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$695,969	$270,669	TO
Avg Rank	30.2	38.8	TO
Made Cut	5	4	TO
Outcome	--	--	TO

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The Made Cut category was won by the Tour Outsider.

The tournament overall was won by the Tour Outsider.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 19 wins to the Tour Outsider, 14 wins to the Tour Insider, and 4 draws.

Barclays Classic

A quick and short post this week for the Barclays Classic, the first tournament of the FedEx Playoffs.

My picks for the tournament are:

Steve Stricker (analysis)
Sergio Garcia (analysis)
Tiger Woods (analysis)
Justin Rose (analysis)
Tim Clark (analysis)

The Tour Insider (Bolton) picks for the tournament are:

Rory McIlroy (analysis)
Bubba Watson (analysis)
Keegan Bradley (analysis)
Tiger Woods (analysis)
Justin Rose (analysis)

We have 2 players in common in this tournament: Woods and Rose
 

Wyndham Championship Review

It is now time to review the picks for the Wyndham Championship to see how the results turned out.

Here are the results of the Tour Outsider (my) picks.

1. Jason Bohn | 110 (MC) | $0
2. Josh Teater | 37 | $21,320
3. Carl Pettersson | 4 | $214,933
4. Jerry Kelly | 50 | $12,542
5. Webb Simpson | 22 | $48,273

Here are the results for the Tour Insider's (Bolton's) picks.

1. Carl Pettersson | 4 | $214,933
2. Jason Dufner | 7 | $162,067
3. Tim Clark | 2 | $561,600
4. David Toms | 144 (MC) | $0
5. Webb Simpson | 22 | $48,273

Here is the comparison of the results for our picks.

	Tour Outsider	Tour Insider	Winner
Total Earnings	$297,068	$986,873	TI
Avg Rank	44.6	35.8	TI
Made Cut	4	4	Draw
Outcome	--	--	TI

The Total Earnings category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Avg Rank category was won by the Tour Insider.

The Made Cut category was a draw.

The tournament overall was won by the Tour Insider.

The overall results between the Tour Outsider and the Tour Insider is 18 wins to the Tour Outsider, 14 wins to the Tour Insider, and 4 draws.

Wyndham Championship

This week the US PGA Tour heads to North Carolina to play the last tournament before the FedEx Playoffs start, the Wyndham Championship.

Below is the list of the top 15 players in the CLi rankings for the Wyndham Championship.

#	Player	CLi
1	Jason Bohn	5.00
2	Josh Teater	11.60
3	Carl Pettersson	13.55
4	Tim Clark	16.45
5	Jerry Kelly	17.10
6	Webb Simpson	17.30
7	Daniel Summerhays	17.45
8	Brandt Snedeker	27.95
9	Kevin Streelman	29.65
10	Bud Cauley	32.30
11	John Mallinger	32.80
12	Alexandre Rocha	32.85
13	Bill Haas	33.80
14	David Toms	34.40
15	Jeffrey Overton	36.00

I am going to go with the first 3 players in the CLi rankings: Bohn (analysis), Teater (analysis), and Pettersson (analysis).

Bohn has only played in this event 5 times since 2004. However, in those 5 events, he has two 2nd place finishes and a 3rd place finish.  He finished 12th and 27th the other 2 times he played in the event.  He placed 19th in the Reno-Tahoe Open last week, and 2nd in the True South Classic a month ago.

Teater is on a streak of solid finishes coming into this tournament, finishing 7th, 4th, and 9th in the past three events.  He has also played well in this event the two times he has played in it, finishing 25th (in 2011) and 18th (in 2010).

Pettersson played well last week at the PGA Championship, even after having to deal with a 2 stroke penalty during the final round that could have derailed him.  His solid ball striking and focus mentally pulled him through the final round to be able to finish 3rd.  He likes this tournament, as he has won it in 2008 and finished 4th last year.

I am going to skip over Clark (analysis), even though he is a good pick.  The reason is that I want to be able to pick Kelly (analysis) and Simpson (analysis).

Kelly has played in this event 10 times since 2000, missing the event only in 2009 and 2007.  In the 10 times he has played the event, he has only missed the cut once (in 2006).  He has finished in the top 10 five times, with two 4th place finishes (in 2011 and 2001).  After a rough April and May, Kelly has turned up his play, and hasn't missed a cut since May.  In the 5 events he has played in since May, he has yet to break the top 10, but has and 12th place finish (Greenbrier Classic and a 13th place finish (True South Classic).

Simpson won this event last year, and placed 8th the year before.  He missed the cut last week at the PGA Championship.  However, his 3 previous tournaments before the PGA Championship included a 7th place finish at the Greenbrier Classic, and 29th finish at the Travelers Championship, and a win at the U.S. Open.

Below are my 5 picks for the Wyndham Championship:

#	Player	CLi
1	Jason Bohn	5.00
2	Josh Teater	11.60
3	Carl Pettersson	13.55
4	Jerry Kelly	17.10
5	Webb Simpson	17.30

Below are the top 5 players in the Power Rankings from Rob Bolton:

1. Carl Pettersson
2. Jason Dufner
3. Tim Clark
4. David Toms
5. Webb Simpson

Here is a link to Bolton's Power Rankings so that you can read more about his thoughts on his top players in this week's Power Rankings:

Bolton's Power Rankings: Wyndham Championship

We have 2 players in common this tournament: Pettersson and Simpson

Below are the settings for the CLi calculation I used for the Wyndham Championship:

Number of Past Tournaments Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA1)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA1)
5	25%	25%
Number of Days Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA2)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA2)
30	5%	5%
Number of Tournaments Looking Back
Number	Scoring Avg Weight (SA3)	Earnings Avg Weight (EA3)
4	20%	20%

If you don't like the configuration of my CLi calculation, feel free to run your own CLi calculation with your own desired settings by going to golfcli.com.