After my global travails the last few weeks, I can finally sit down on a Wednesday night and make some recommendations for fantasy golf.  This week, we have a tournament in the Quail Hollow that sits somewhere between 6th and 10th on the majors list.  Quail Hollow and the city of Charlotte stage this tournament like a major championship, and yield a great field with solid play as a result.

Aside from a relatively random Joey Sindelar win in 2004, past champions of this tournament have really made sense.  The likes of Anthony Kim, Tiger Woods, Jim Furyk, and Sean O'Hair - the defending champion - have buoyed this tournament's reputation in a short seven years.

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are clearly the focus this week.  The #1 player in the world and the Masters champion headline the field.  Woods typically finishes top five in this event, which makes him a good choice for this week.  Mickelson is great here, too, finishing worse than seventh only twice in six starts.  Flip a coin for which one you'd like to start on your A list.

On the B list, I'll maintain playing the defending champion, so Sean O'Hair is on the roster.  Jim Furyk is one of two players on the PGA Tour to win multiple times in '10, so he's got a spot.  After four horrible starts at Quail Hollow, Hunter Mahan has had some modest finishes in the last two tries.  Coming off of a T8 at the Masters, I'd like to see how he progresses. And, frankly, I think Lee Westwood is going to play some British pissed off golf this week - even with the sponsor invite to Memphis.  He's out to prove to the Americans that he is an elite golfer, not just a gracious runner-up.

I'll kick off the C list with Matt Kuchar, who has had a very solid few months.  And why not stick with Jason Bohn?  Go wire-to-wire in NOLA and you earn a spot on (albeit on the bench) this week, since there was no way in hell that I saw that win coming.

Before we get into this week's picks, be advised that the March totals for fantasy golf will be coming out tomorrow.  Keep on the look out for that.

We move on from the Masters and to another classic golf course, Harbour Town Golf Links, for the Verizon Heritage.  This is the final year for Verizon as title sponsor, but never fear as the state of South Carolina has committed up to $10 million to present the tournament if need be next year.  So unlike Buick in Michigan last year, there is no swan song this week.

Onto the picks and, I must admit, I am bewildered by Yahoo!'s lists this week.  The A list is filled with a slew of guys that should be on the B-list.  The B-list has guys who have already won on Tour this season.  And the C-list...well, ok, the C-list is fine.

For the A-list, let's start with Luke Donald.  He's a shorter hitter, but does well on positioning golf courses like this one.  He has his top three of the year at Riviera, which is also a course that places emphasis on positioning.  And since I was very happy to meet Bill Haas' dad, Jay, at the Masters, I'll throw him on the list.  He did very well in his first try at the Masters.

The B-list looks like the list of guys who won in March.  Coming off of an awful performance at the Masters, I'm going to stick Jim Furyk on the team.  He needs a pep boost and a vote of confidence can help, right?  Defending champion Brian Gay deserves a spot based upon my fantasy golf rubric.  Let's ride the KJ Choi train out of the Augusta station and see how that goes.  And in honor of Dan Jenkins' really terrible PF Chang joke about YE Yang, we'll go with Briny Baird (sponsored by PF Chang's and hitter of golf balls off of tall buildings into baseball stadiums so that we can all have free PF Chang's).

So, that brings us to the C-list.  Way too many players, but few choices.  I like Rickie Fowler because he's got to earn that Golf Digest cover after not getting into the Masters.  And I'll go with Mike Weir also because he can place the ball very well.  His lack of length will not be a problem.

This week is the Shell Houston Open and the final tune up for the first major of the year in a town called Augusta.  Houston's PGA Tour stop has seen a resurgence in recent years as tournament organizers have worked to setup host course Redstone GC as close to Augusta National as possible.  The tactic has worked in bringing better quality players into Humble, Texas, before the Masters.

The increased quality of field in Houston has created difficulties for Americans seeking to win this long-running Tour event.  A foreigner has won the last seven playings of this championship.  It makes sense, then, to ride that streak.  It also makes sense to break my streak of picking the prior week's winner.  The last two decades at the Masters suggests that the winner is more likely to miss the cut or not play at all the week prior to the masters than do well.  If Ernie Els and Fred Couples are truly favorites at Augusta, then I can't have them on my team.

On the A-list, it is slim pickin's give my conditions.  Vijay Singh is a former champion in Houston (three times over) and is finally starting to play like a guy fully recovered from knee surgery.  Meanwhile, my dark horse for the week is Martin Laird.

Moving along to the B-list, I like Geoff Ogilvy this week.  He is quite a student of the majors and had his best ever finish at the Masters last year (T15).  If he seeks to improve on that next week, he will work hard to do that this week.

Hunter Mahan continues to impress me and could be a real sleeper pick for the Masters.  (You heard it here first.)  Lee Westwood's game has never been better and could well be riding his last American road trip with Billy Foster on the bag.  Maybe that'll inspire an extra sense of purpose.

Fran Quinn has won on the Nationwide Tour this year and has done half decently in his PGA Tour starts.  He is worth a seat on the bench if you like winners.  I'm feeling the same about Ben Curtis, who seems to make it his habit to show up near the top of one major leaderboard per year.  Seemingly finding form at Bay Hill, I like him to continue this week.

Paul Casey will be starting for me off of the C-list because he is defending champion.  And, as I said on Fox Sports 1340 AM in New Mexico today, he could be finding his game and health just in time.

In the spirit of the 2008 winner in this tournament, I have to pick a potential absolutely random winner.  I'm going for Brett Wetterich.  Coming back off of injury, having not made the cut in either of his starts this season, he just screams Johnson Wagner to me.

This week is Arnie's week.  It's the King's tournament at Bay Hill in Orlando.  In the backyard of Tiger, the Golf Channel, and countless pros, this is one of the most cherished events on Tour.  The King has made changes to his track for 2010, including restoring par to 72 after several seasons with it at an arbitrary 70.  That has literally nothing to do with determining the winner, but it is worth noting.

With the notable exception of Tiger, the field is pretty solid this week.  Last week's winner Jim Furyk is in the field and somehow on the B-list, so he will be on the squad.  Sean O'Hair could do pretty well if he can get the slow play rebukes of Johnny Miller out of his head...oh, and the memory of that crushing defeat at Tiger's hands.  I'll round out the B team with Hunter Mahan.  Why not Robert Allenby either?

Steve Stricker has been absent from this event for the better half of a decade, but returns this week.  In a rare swerve, I'm not selecting him or Phil Mickelson.  Mickelson has sufficiently wasted his self-described "opportunity" with Tiger Woods' absence and appears to be more of a headcase than ever.  Until he starts hitting fairways, he can tee off with a putter for all I care.

Instead, this is a Steve Marino kind of week.  With two top tens this season, including a runner up, Marino is a good pick when trying to save up true A-listers. 

In the event that you missed the Transitions Championship, Stephen Ames appears to have resurrected himself for a few weeks.  Stick him on the bench and hope for the best.

All Tim Clark does is finish well and not win.  He is the perfect fantasy golfer.  And he's a great pick this week.

My final pick is a dirtbag.  Paul Goydos seems like the kind of crafty guy that could get into the fight this weekend.  That'll make Goydos my sleeper pick of the week for a tournament surely not to disappoint.

Despite common perception, there is a PGA Tour event this week - and it's a good one.  The Tour's Florida Swing continues this week in Tampa for the Transitions Championship.  Innisbrook is the host venue for the tournament that has really been a beneficiary of being a formal part of March through Florida.

The Copperhead Course was the site of Retief Goosen's win over a surging Tom Lehman and others in the mix.  Goosen is playing well coming into this year's tournament, whereas his win last year was a bit of a surprise.  Either way, Goosen is in the mix this week.

Since we're talking B-list, I liked what I saw out of Paddy Harrington last week.  Perhaps a road trip to the White House will inspire him to win this week.  Or St. Paddy's Day.

This is the week to bust out that hunch that a heavy fade might fare well.  That's why Calc will be on my B bench this week.

I also think that Dustin Johnson has a legit chance to overpower the course if he can remain straight off of the tee.

As for the A-list, Vijay Singh seems to be on his way back.  He won on this course in '04, so I expect to see him play well again this week.  Luke Donald has played well lately also, so he'll be my bench guy.

On the other end at the C-list, Steve Elkington made a nice run in Puerto Rico and I like him to follow up on that. 

Finally, with Rickie Fowler sitting inexplicably on the C-list, he will be my starter.  He's bound to win soon.

This week is the second of three WGC events played in the United States this season.  It's the first stroke play event of the three - the CA Championship - and it's played at the newly moniker-ed TPC Blue Monster at Doral. 

Phil Mickelson is the defending champion after holding off Nick Watney last year, including a right handed shot in the final round.  Mickelson, though, is not playing particularly well and complains of problems with his putter.  That is precisely what is required to win at Doral when the wind is minimal.  Having largely blown his self-proclaimed opportunity in Tiger's absence, I would be reluctant to pick Lefty this week.

Instead, I'm going to ride Steve Stricker on the A-list because of his strong putting.  And I'm going a little sentimental with having Ernie Els on the bench.  He has played solidly to start the year and no one else in the A group has been particularly consistent this year.

The B-list has a lot of depth to it in terms of talent, but not so much in terms of consistency.  The story of the '10 PGA Tour season is determining the right guy playing well for the right three week stretch.  Camilo Villegas is last week's winner and in week three of his hot stretch - and I don't mean the Spiderman pose.  Pick him.  This is a course that suits Retief Goosen well, too.

For giggles, I'm going to take Alvaro Quiros.  He is almost always a gamble.  I'll live dangerously with him and play safe by keeping Nick Watney around on the bench.

The C-list is very easy this week.  You'd be a complete idiot not to pick Ian Poulter.  And I like Paul Casey, too.

All of that advice aside, let me slip in a recommendation for Geoff Ogilvy, too.  The guy almost always plays well at Doral.  He's not especially hot right now because of inactivity, but I wouldn't be surprised to see him hoist the trophy provided that he is the WGC prince.

The dual Waggle Room fantasy golf leagues had a nice month in February with some very heated competition!  Four great tournaments gave us one very deserving monthly winner.  Congratulations to the team known as noname for winning this month's prize.  Be sure to drop me a line - ryan at thegolfnewsnet.com - with your name and address so I can send the prize your way.

noname was 30 points clear of second place for the month.

1. noname - 714
2. Downhill Lie - 684
3. Devo's 4 sum - 680
4. oneputtpar - 676
5. Tiger62 - 674
6. Tigerheads - 672
7. Golf Grouch - 668
8. Zanarkand Abes - 662
9. beachgolf - 656
10. DicedCarrots - 654

Also, check out the top 10 standings for the season!  Remember that the season-long champion also gets a prize!

1. Tiger62 - 1576
2. Oldgarcia Cronicagolf.com - 1563
3. DicedCarrots - 1562
4. Golf Grouch - 1551
5. LPGA Rules! - 1542
6. The Flow of the Hoff - 1537
7. Knocking Down the Pin - 1526
8. noname - 1522
9. Fun without Tiger - 1514
10. No3Putt - 1513

Thanks for playing and your continued support!

This week is the party of the year on the PGA Tour at the newly branded "Wasted Open" at TPC Scottsdale.  Expect over 200,000 people to drink their way through four days of a golf tournament being played there.  While the fans are often a bigger part of the tournament hype than almost any other event, the golf is going to be great this week as well.

TPC Scottsdale is a course that is (a) susceptible to very low scores and (b) a bomber's paradise.  The most modern example is the success of JB Holmes at this tournament.  Holmes' only two PGA Tour wins are in this event.  The bomber has been successful because the course has set up well for gouging after a long drive. 

That in mind, expect that trend to continue this week.  After evaluating the field for the bombers, it comes down to a guess of which ones will putt best this week.

Provided the aforementioned success, it seems silly not to pick JB Holmes, so I will.  He is a B-list lock.  I'm very encouraged by Marc Leishman's continued form after a solid finale to '09.  Seems like it's worth putting some faith in him.

Since the Champions Tour is effectively a putting contest, Fred Couples' hot start on the 50+ junket earns him a spot on the bench with the B-list.  Geoff Ogilvy is on the squad, too, in his second non-match play PGA Tour start of the year.

Phil Mickelson is back to struggling with the short stick, so I don't see him doing that well this week.  Instead, I'm going with the utilitarian philosophy and having Bubba Watson on my team.  He's a bomber.  Good enough, right?

The C-list is lush with talent this week, including Ian Poulter.  My fantasy golf rules say to pick last week's winner, so I will, though I honestly expect him to be very tired after his performance in the match play. 

May as well stick with the European theme from the match play last weekend and have Martin Kaymer on the squad, too.

Best of luck this week!