Golf with a View

Being a professional golfer certainly has its perks.

Last week, the world's best played in front of record crowds in the Arizona desert, and across the globe in the wealthy land of Dubai.

This week, they play at the course known as "The greatest meeting between land and sea."

That distinction belongs to Pebble Beach Golf Links, situated perfectly off the coast of the Pacific on Carmel Bay.

Welcome to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

The PGA Tour is yet again blessed with a star-studded lineup, featuring the likes of Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth, and many others.

And, as the name suggests, this is a Pro-Am, which gives fans a chance to check out some of their favorite celebrities, including Bill Murray, Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning, and fellow Okie Toby Keith. Here is a full list of the celebrities in the field.






Pebble Beach gets the most attention during tournament week, but there are actually three courses the players will take on over the four day event. Each will play Pebble, Spyglass Hill, and the Shore Course at Monterey Peninsula the first three days, then return to Pebble for the final round.

Predictions

An interesting statistic from the PGA Tour website: 3 of the 4 shortest courses on the Tour schedule are in this tournament. Also interesting is that Spyglass Hill generally plays as the toughest course, which goes against the natural belief that Pebble is the toughest.

I say all that to say this. In order to win here, you don't have to bomb it like at most events, but that doesn't mean it doesn't help. Dustin Johnson has played historically well here at the event, which means you can win this tournament in multiple ways.

The weather is supposed to be miserable all week, with temps in the 50s, and chances of rain early in the tournament. That could play a factor in the outcome as well.

Guys like Dustin Johnson, Brandt Snedeker and Phil Mickelson have all won the tourney multiple times, so they are likely going to be in contention late on Sunday.

However, my pick is a guy who has gone almost forgotten thus far. Jordan Spieth has been overshadowed by the early-season dominance of his buddy Justin Thomas, but Spieth has played solid to open his year. In his three starts, he has three top-10s, and two top 3s. In his past three appearances in the event, Spieth has finished T-21, T-7, and T-4.

He doesn't hit it as long as everyone else, but he's still one of the premier putters on Tour, and he has the short game to save himself when he gets in trouble. Plus, his Pro-Am partner is country star Jake Owen, a relaxing pairing with a solid amateur that shouldn't distract him. I think this is the week Spieth steals the spotlight back.