Expert picks: FBR Open

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The PGA TOUR heads to Scottsdale, Ariz., for one of the biggest and loudest events on the PGA TOUR. Here's how the PGATOUR.COM experts sized up the top contenders:

EXPERT PICKS How it works: Our 10 experts from PGATOUR.COM select the player they think will win this week's event. By using a draft process, no two picks can be the same. SLEEPER PICKS Of the players who didn't make the cut for our top 10 picks, which have the best chance as sleepers? Here's how our experts see it. Click here

Expert picks: FBR Open

Expert   Pick order Player selected   Mike McAllister PHIL MICKELSON. Let's hope Mickelson isn't rusty in his '09 debut, but you gotta like his record at TPC Scottsdale: Two wins, seven other top 10s, and 22 of his last 25 rounds under par.   T.J. Auclair J.B. HOLMES. He's a two-time TOUR winner, and both wins came at the FBR Open. He's also the defending champ. That, along with the confidence he took from being on the victorious Ryder Cup team, makes him my easy choice to notch win No. 3. If Auclair had the top pick ... J.B. Holmes Helen Ross ANTHONY KIM. He took last week off to rest a balky shoulder so Kim should be raring to go. That tie for second at the Mercedes-Benz Championship was a very good start, and the ebullient Kim should thrive in the raucous atmosphere at TPC Scottsdale. If Ross had the top pick ... Mickelson John Swantek BUBBA WATSON. Ripping a page out of the JB Holmes playbook, it's bombs away for the TOUR's longest driver at TPC Scottsdale, the ideal track for Bubba's breakthrough. If Swantek had the top pick ... Mickelson Lauren Deason STEVE MARINO. Look at his results from last season and the start of '09. There's no doubt he will win soon. Plus, he makes a ton of birdies -- he was ninth in birdie average in 2008 -- and will need that par-breaking ability to win this week. If Deason had the top pick ... Mickelson Win McMurry DAVID TOMS. The 12-time winner opened with a T2 at the Sony, then backed it up last week with five rounds in the 60s for a T25. Toms enters the week looking for his eighth straight round in the 60s. Plus, he has three top-10s in his last six starts at the FBR Open. If McMurry had the top pick ... Mickelson Mark Spoor MIKE WEIR. Sure, he's been pedestrian at Scottsdale in recent years, but he tied for fifth there in 2004, plus he's coming off a confidence-building tied for third last week at the 50th Bob Hope Classic hosted by Arnold Palmer. If Spoor had the top pick ... Mickelson Brian Wacker CAMILO VILLEGAS. Last year's strong finish not withstanding, Villegas typically plays his best golf early (see: 2006, when when all of his top threes came in the first three months). He also has a good track record at the FBR, where he tied for second in 2006. If Wacker had the top pick ... Mickelson Ceri Mobley WEBB SIMPSON. It's probably too early to take Webb, but I can't ignore his two top 10s. Plus, he went to high school in the same town as me, so I'm showing some Carolina love. If Mobley had the top pick ... Mickelson Ryan Smithson STUART APPLEBY. I'd like to profusely thank my colleagues for leaving Stu unprotected in this week's draft. I need all the help I can get. I am getting torn apart faster than a Bloomin' Onion. If Smithson had the top pick ... Mickelson

LAST WEEK: Mike McAllister, who held the lead after the Mercedes-Benz Championship, lost it to Brian Wacker last week. When McAllister's expert pick Mike Weir tied for third at the 50th Bob Hope Classic, though, McAllister moved back to the top of our rankings. Each week, we'll update the standings based on the FedExCup points accumulated by the players selected by our experts. Here's how it stands after Week 3: