Mark Jeffreys’ Picks – Week 1
1 – Brent Chapman: 5 events into the season (3 Elites and 2 Opens) Chapman is simply the best this year. The Kansas Pro’s worst finish this year is 20th at the Table Rock Open. An Open win, 3 Sunday appearances on the Elite Series, almost $100,000 in earnings this year and his worst finish on the Elite Series is 5th. So far, this is the year of Brent Chapman.
2- Randy Howell: Howell jumps into the number 2 spot due to his performance on the Elite Series. His worst finish this year is 14th at Bull Shoals and the Big O. Howell started off the season with a Sunday appearance at the SJR. Forget about his performance at the Red River…….Howell is on a roll.
3- Skeet Reese: Reese drops from the number 2 spot to number 3 due to his performance at Bull Shoals. Reese just missed the cut at Bull Shoals and you can’t take away the fact his worst finish on the Elite Series prior to Bull Shoals was 5th at the SJR. Reese was leading the AOY and trails Chapman by 56 points. Reese, like many other pros, did not get the “BIG” bite at the Bull Shoals event. BS was not an indication of his game in 2012.
4- Jason Christie: No longer is this man on his way to being a superstar in the sport, he is a superstar on the FLW side. Christie finished 4th in the FLW AOY race in 2011 and now the Oklahoma Pro leads the FLW AOY race after 3 events. Christie’s worst finish this year is 25th at Lake Hartwell and he has earned almost $40,000 in 3 events. Christie has used his versatile style to adapt to all conditions thrown at him this year. Christie has surpassed the $500,000 mark in earnings in only 4 years on the FLW Tour.
5- David Walker: Quietly since Walker’s win at the final event of the 2011 Elite season, Walker has been rock solid. After finishing 13th at the Classic, Walker has put together 3 top 20 finishes on the Elite Series and 2 cashes on the Southern Open. Walkers earning for 2012 surpassed the $50K mark. Look for big things at Douglas Lake, stop number 4 on the Elite Series. It’s in his backyard.
6- Kevin VanDam – A solid year so far but…….just not KVD year. No wins and one Sunday appearance.
7-David Dudley – A huge win at Beaver Lake. Over $140K in earnings and a shot at repeating as FLW AOY.
8-Edwin Evers – 4th place finish at Bull Shoals and into the “Edwin” part of the schedule.
9 – Keith Combs – Survived Bull Shoals with at 38th place finish and has cashed in 8 consecutive events.
10 – Brent Ehrler – Stumbled at Table Rock but, has a win at Hartwell and remember this fact, Ehrler has not finished lower than 9th in the AOY standings since 2007.
11– Chris Lane – Is the momentum of the Classic and Florida swing gone?
12 – Tommy Biffle – He just keeps on ticking……
13 – Jacob Powroznik – Close to $750K in career earnings and poised for a run at the AOY.
14 – Todd Faircloth – Solid…….as always and getting better every tournament.
15 – Matt Herren – 3rd at Bull Shoals and with a new mental game, could be a breakout year.
16 – Brandon Card – The new Rookie Sensation?
17 – Troy Morrow – No sophomore slump for the Georgia pro.
18 – Gerald Swindle – G…….just being G. GRINDING away to a 6th place finish at Bull Shoals
19 – Bobby Lane – Who doesn’t like Bobby Lane? 3 for 3 and all top 20’s,
20 – Jay Yelas – Too many 6’s but still have a good year: 6th at Hartwell, 66th at Table Rock and 6th at Beaver.
