Monday Pin Placement: Is PGA West Way Too Easy?

Every Monday during the PGA Tour season, Monday Pin Placement will run as a wrap-up of the weekend's action, with a little commentary mixed in. We'll focus on what you may have missed while you were out grinding on the putting green.

The Argument Against PGA West -- David Duval (right) has been floundering for a while now, but a place that brings back positive memories for Duval is PGA West. In 1999, at the height of his dominance on the PGA Tour, Duval fired a 59 on the last day at the Bob Hope Classic, a round that also included an exclamation-mark eagle putt on the 18th hole that gave him a one-shot win.

These days, Duval is searching for something, anything, positive to happen. So at this past weekend's Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, the 37-year-old Duval fired rounds of 68-68-70-68 to finish at 14-under par for four days (the Hope is five days long) and yet he still missed the cut!

What does Duval have to do with anything? Well, that's easy -- the PGA West is basically a pitch-and-putt course at this point for PGA Tour pros. A golfer that shoots 14-under and misses the cut isn't acceptable.

My problem with a golf tournament like this is about the timing of the event. Some rookies who didn't, or couldn't, make the trip to Hawaii for the Sony Open were debuting at the Hope, meaning it was their first tournament on a tour that they've probably dreamed of playing on for a while now. As far as golf goes, confidence can carry you or sink you fairly easily, so going out and firing three below-par rounds only to find out you won't be collecting a check that week has to be pretty demoralizing.

So, what to do? Since they aren't going to end the Hope, I think the best move is to push it back to the third or fourth week of the continental U.S. tournaments. Give people a chance to warm up. Let the rookies make cuts in tournaments that aren't "goofy" golf. And give golf fans a chance to transition from the Hawaiian swing to the West Coast without having to say things to each other like, "Well, I wonder if anyone gets to 35-under this week."

Stricker Chokes, Perez Eagles -- The case I make above, however, could be killed by one name: Steve Stricker. The 41-year-old was three shots up on the field after Friday-Saturday rounds of 61-62 (seriously), but tanked on Sunday with a nasty five-over 77 that looked about as consistent as Waffle House bacon. Stricker had two birdies, 14 pars, zero bogeys, zero double-bogeys, but a triple and a quadruple took him out of contention. That 77 was the highest score of the week for anyone finishing in the top 58, and it allowed Pat Perez to snag his first tour win.

Perez opened the week with rounds of 61-63, the lowest two-day total in PGA history (until Stricker broke it with his Friday-Saturday total) but "stumbled" a bit with with consecutive 67s on Friday and Saturday. A final round 69 that included an eagle on his 18th hole wrapped up the three-shot win for Perez.

Red Hot Rookie -- Webb Simpson is quickly becoming a name you need to remember. In his rookie season on the PGA Tour, Simpson has finished in the top-10 in his first two tournaments, on the way to racking up a quick $324,938. How important is this early hot streak for Simpson? Last year, the 125th player on the money list, Martin Laird, ended his season with around $852,000, which means Simpson just needs a couple solid finishes the rest of the year and he could be set for 2010.

Final-Round Handshakes ...

-- Perez made 35 birdies during the week against just 48 pars.

-- Chad Campbell, whom you might remember as the guy who flew to Hawaii only to find out he forgot to sign up for the Sony Open, actually remembered to submit his name this week, and finished t-9 after a final round 64. It sure helps your chances if you are actually in the tournament.

-- Only three players (four if you include Bart Bryant, who withdrew) in the entire field failed to break par in four rounds at the Hope.