The Mulligan: Viva Las Vegas

The Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open kicks off this week with a pro am early in the week and the tournament this weekend. This should be a fun weekend filled with beautiful fall Vegas weather, celebrities, charity and great golf.

I never thought I would say this, but despite the mental scarring that N'SYNC music left in my brain, I kinda like Justin Timberlake. He supports golf. He generously supports charity. And his music has gotten much less annoying over time. To top it all off he was able to get Johnny Drama for the Pro Am. VICTORY!!!!! JT, you are okay in my book.

In all seriousness, Timberlake really is becoming a major part of the golf world. He recently purchased a golf course in Memphis, and he is a regular at Pro Ams throughout the year. He's good too, shooting an 88 at Bethpage Black and a 98 at Torrey Pines. Additionally, he hosts this week's charity tournament at TPC Summerlin in Vegas. The tournament raises a lot of money for Shriner's Hospitals, a great cause.

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Okay, enough about the host. Here are my weekly picks.

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First, I think Charlie Hoffman will have a good week in Vegas. He has the distance to compete here and he has that nice consistent tee-shot that should bode well on this course. He finished T-15th here last year, so we know he can handle the course. He has the game to win here, it is just a matter of execution for him this week.

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I am going to remain on the Hunter Mahan train. I have picked him many times this season, and this is not the time to stop. Going with Mahan has paid off for us too. He has six Top-10 finishes already this season. He is ranked 5th in Birdie Average, 19th in GIR %, and 9th in Total Driving. The only thing missing from this great year for Hunter is a victory. He might just get one this weekend.

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Finally, it is hard to pick against Anthony Kim right now. He played very well at the President's Cup last weekend and he has finished 2nd once and 3rd twice this season. He is ranked 2nd in putting average and 18th in Driving Distance on Tour, and a well rounded game like that should bode well this week. Look for Kim to play well.

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This should be a great week for golf and you should watch some this weekend if you get a chance.

The Mulligan: Fantasy Golf Picks for The Byron Nelson

If you have been following The Mulligan's fantasy golf picks, you are likely moving up your fantasy golf leaderboard very quickly. Last week was about as good as it gets, with Zach Johnson bringing home the win, Justin Leonard finishing T-5, and Charlie Hoffman coming in T-9. I scored 176 points in my fantasy golf league, which was good enough for first out of nearly 3,000 players in my Yahoo league. Hopefully we can keep the ball rolling this week as the tour heads to Dallas for the HP Byron Nelson Championship.

I recommend starting Phil Mickelson this week. Phil is a previous winner here and he finished T-3 in his last start here in 2007. He is ranked in the top 25 in driving distance, putting average and birdie conversion percentage in 2009, which has led to success thus far. I think Phil will have a good week in Dallas.

Ian Poulter is another player who should be in your fantasy golf lineup. He tied Lefty for 3rd here in 2007 and he has been on fire lately. He finished 2nd at The Players, T-5 at Quail Hollow, T-9 at The Accenture Match Play Championship, and T-13 at both the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and the WGC CA Championship. His putter has been on fire, and Poulter has been on the leaderboard a lot recently. Look for him to have a good week at the Byron Nelson.

Finally, I recommend starting Charlie Hoffman this week. Hoffman posted a strong finish last week (T-9) and he has not missed a cut in his past 21 starts. He has played this tournament 3 times, finishing in the top-10 twice. He has three top-10s on tour this year, and he is playing well right now. I think he could have a good week.

If you want a sleeper pick, look at the 2007 Byron Nelson Champion, Scott Verplank. Verplank has eight top-25 finishes this year, and we know he can play well at the Byron Nelson. He might suprise this week and finish near the top.

Good luck this week and lets keep moving to the top of the fantasy golf rankings!