Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial Preview: FanHouse Roundtable

The top players are getting ready to tee up at the 2010 Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, and much of the focus falls on defending champ Steve Stricker.

He somehow managed to squeak out the victory in 2009, edging out Tim Clark in three-hole playoff. A year later and he's back at it, this time with a banged up shoulder.

The field is strong, as five of the world's top 10 players prepare to do battle at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas. Before the exciting action begins, let the FanHouse experts bring you the latest scoop on the course, field and who has the best shot at the cup in our weekly writers roundtable.

FLASHBACK TO GREATNESS

Steve Stricker won in 2009 with a two-foot birdie putt on the second hole of a three-way playoff, but it's easy to argue that Tim Clark is the one who most decided the championship.

Clark, who had never won on the PGA Tour until this year's Players Championship, left short a 9-foot putt on the 72nd hole that would have won, and then pulled a 7-footer that would have ended the playoff on the first extra hole.

A final punch in the stomach for Clark came on the second playoff hole, when his approach shot hit the flagstick, but then bounced 20 feet away.
-- Mick Elliott

Defending champ Steve Stricker has quietly become one of the most consistent golfers on tour in recent years. He may have only won five times since 2007, but he's catapulted from 66th in the world rankings to as high as 3rd (he's now 4th). Everybody knows Stricker makes his money with his putter, but his ability to scramble might be the most underrated part of his game.
--Ryan Wilson

It wasn't so much that Steve Stricker won last year's tournament -- he did pretty much all he could do to blow it -- it was that Tim Clark lost it. Clark withered away a two-shot lead with five holes left and then yanked a 4-foot putt that would have won it on the first playoff hole to allow Stricker to hit his approach shot on the second playoff hole to within three feet for the tap-in and the tournament.
-- Matt Romanoski

THE QUICK FIX

Colonial will always be remembered as the site LPGA star Annika Sorenstam chose to compete against the men when she played here in 2003. The reason she chose Colonial is the par-70 course rewards shot making more than simply long bombs.

Colonial's calling card is the "Horrible Horseshoe" -- a brutish trio of holes consisting of the dogleg-left 483-yard 3rd, the 247-yard 4th and the 481-yard 5th.

Ben Hogan had an affinity for the course that became known as "Hogan's Alley." He won the Colonial National Invitation Tournament five times, beginning with the inaugural event in 1946.
-- Elliott

Holes 13 and 16 (both 190-ish par 3s) have given up the most holes in one at Colonial during the tournament (five apiece).
-- Wilson

All four of last year's major winners -- Angel Cabrera (Masters), Lucas Glover (U.S. Open), Stewart Cink (British Open) and Y.E. Yang (PGA Championship) -- headline a field vying for the five-foot tall Leonard Trophy and a place on Colonial's historic Wall of Champions.
-- Romanoski

LIFE ON THE CUTTING EDGE



Share John Daly's game has shown some life lately. He had played nine events and made six consecutive cuts, although he has had to withdraw midway through his last two events with a hip injury.

All the same, this isn't a golf course that sets up well for Daly's talents. He'll be a fan favorite, but anyone wanting an autograph had best get it early.
-- Elliott

Steve Stricker opted to play this week even though he's battling a shoulder injury that kept him out of the Masters. He admitted that if he hadn't won here last year his return might have been put off another week.
-- Wilson

Geoff Ogilvy hasn't finished in the Top 25 since winning the 2010 opener and is coming off a missed cut at the the Players Championship. Don't expect things to get better at Colonial.
-- Romanoski

SLEEPING BEAUTY

Veteran Scott Verplank is a supreme shot-maker but never one of golf's big hitters. That's perfect for this week. Verplank is coming off a T13 at The Players and a T5 last week at Byron Nelson. He finished seventh here in 2007.
-- Elliott

I'm going with Hunter Mahan again this week. He got off to a fast start at the Byron Nelson before fading in the final two rounds. He's missed just two cuts in 12 starts this season, and has five top-5 finishes.
-- Wilson

Keep an eye on Jeff Overton, who has a pair of second-place finishes (last week at the Byron Nelson and last month at the Zurich Classic) in his last handful of starts.
-- Romanoski

WHO'S HOISTIN'?

Somebody good. The field features five of the world's top 10 players: Phil Mickelson (2), Steve Stricker (4), Jim Furyk (5), Ian Poulter (6) and Paul Casey (8).

On a golf course that rewards accurate shotmaking, it doesn't make a lot of sense to go with anybody but the guys who are best at hitting shots.
-- Elliott

Tim Clark is playing his first event since winning the Players Championship. He's another player you don't notice during the first 56 holes, but come Sunday he's usually on the first page of the leaderboard.
-- Wilson

After nearly 250 weeks at No. 2, Phil Mickelson can move past Tiger Woods into the top spot in the world with a victory. It's never easy to bank on Lefty when the pressure is on, but maybe his Masters victory last month changed all that. He's won twice here (2008, 2000) and, with his eye on the the bigger prize, will complete the hat trick this week.
-- Romanoski