The Bear Trap Is Open for Business

PGA National may see fewer of the top players this week, but the Honda Classic's Bear Trap will nevertheless see plenty of victims. And the first leg of the Florida Swing should finally give us some decent weather.



Justin Thomas is the defending champion -- note that this event was played before the WGC-Mexico last year. PGA National's Champion Course plays around 7050 yards, which is not so long but is incredibly tight, with a lot of water to navigate. In the last few years it has been the top players who tend to win this event; we've seen few surprise winners recently, but we have seen three playoffs in the last five years.

So let's get right to the Weekly Twofer. Although I see a number of players who I think can do well here, my choices were pretty obvious to me from the get-go:

• My Top10 pick is Rickie Fowler. He won the 2017 Honda and, while he has only one Top10 this year -- and that was the Phoenix Open win -- I think getting back on a familiar track with Celebration Bermuda grass from tee to green will suit him. And maybe, just maybe, the presence of the Golden Bear himself will inspire him a bit.
• And my winner is Justin Thomas. I know I've been riding JT hard for the last few weeks, but what can I say? He's in form. His five finishes this year are 3, T16, 3, 2 and 9. He's posted those finishes in hard conditions, and he's the defending champion here to boot. JT is due and, as consistently as he's playing, it's just a matter of time till he wins.

So those are my picks for the Honda Classic. I feel unrealistically good about them, which may be a bad sign! But I really believe that the only way I can miss this week is if Rickie wins and JT just Top10s.

GC's coverage begins Thursday at 2pm ET, with PGA TOUR LIVE starting their streams at 7am ET. Perhaps a number of big name players like Rory and Tiger are skipping this week, but there will still be plenty to see!