FanHouse BrianGay

The best word to describe Brian Gay's week: methodical. Fairways, greens, and a lot of birdie looks. Not particularly exciting -- and CBS would confirm as much -- but a win is a win, and for Gay, he made it look effortless.

And while he'll never be mistaken for Tiger Woods, he played the role of Boring Robot Golfer perfectly. (And let's be honest, if Tiger wins like this, we're slobbering all over ourselves to extol his greatness. And, yeah, I'd be leading the charge.) And the way Gay played the 72nd hole was a microcosm of his week. Middle of the fairway, second shot to four feet -- CBS' David Feherty described it, mid-flight, as "unnecessarily good." That turned out to be an understatement -- and, predictably, a birdie to top off a splendid 72 holes of golf.

Every Monday during the PGA Tour season, Monday Pin Placement will run as a wrap-up of the weekend's action. Basically, we'll focus on what you missed while you were out grinding on the putting green.

Gay Crushes Field in Harbour Town -- One of the strange things about tournament golf is how people can navigate a golf course in totally different ways (big drives, short shots, putts, chips, bunker play), yet still finish 72 holes with a score that is nearly identical to others' rounds (see last week's Masters).

That was not the case on Sunday. Brian Gay, playing in his 330th event as a PGA Tour member, put a beat-down on the post-Masters field; a beat-down the likes of which had never managed done before at the Verizon Heritage.

The FanHouse Podcast: Because bloggers are much sexier on the phone.

The NBA Playoffs, where amazing happens (have you heard?!?), are here. And while there's no question that the NFL Draft will supplant them in importance next weekend, for now, they are indeed all-consuming. With that in mind, FanHouse's own Matt Watson joined myself and Ryan Wilson on the podcast machine in the middle of Sunday's action to talk about the scheduleFAIL that were Sunday's games, Kevin Garnett's status, LeBron James making a leap, not to mention why church and Bojangles are so popular in the South. Also, we discuss Brian Gay's big win, Brendon Todd's hole-outs and Watson's shocking height factor.

Brian Gay is a grinder. It's been that way his entire career. Gay turned pro in 1994 but didn't qualify for the PGA Tour until 1999. And although he's kept his card for a decade, Gay didn't win his first tournament until last year -- the Mayakoba Golf Classic in Mexico -- and even that didn't automatically qualify him for the Masters.

(It was opposite the World Golf Championships' Match Play and not full-field event. Another reason you may not remember it: Tiger won the Match Play, and, oddly, that got more play in the media. Weird.)

But after dominating the Verizon Heritage this weekend, Gay will not only enjoy his requisite two-year exemption on tour, his invite to Augusta National next April is now guaranteed.

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