FanHouse HunterMahan

Anthony Kim has never scored better than Tiger Woods in any tournament in which they were both entered. That didn't change Sunday, when Tiger outlasted Kim, and held off Hunter Mahan, to win the AT&T National.

Kim began the final round tied with Woods atop the leaderboard. Tiger shot 67 and won, Kim signed for a 71, which was good for third place. Despite the outcome, though, Kim fared better than most of the young players slapped with the "next guy to challenge Tiger" label.

Off the top of my head, some (relatively) recent examples:

For 54 holes, Ricky Barnes was the best golfer on the planet. And then, in the few hours between his third and final round at the 109th U.S. Open, something happened. Maybe he finally realized that this was Bethpage Black and not some podunk Nationwide stop.

Or maybe his luck just ran out. It happens, especially to guys who have spent the previous six years trying to live up to expectations. After getting to 11-under early Sunday, and leading by as many as six strokes, Barnes came back to the field and begin his final 18 at 8-under, just one shot clear of Lucas Glover.

On No. 1, Barnes pull-hooked his tee shot into the junk, and bumbled his way to an ugly bogey. On the second tee, he hit his tee shot left again, this time a shank. And before he could make matters worse, the horn sounded, suspending play for the evening.

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When NBC came on the air at 10AM ET in the morning to begin its Saturday U.S. Open coverage, Al Roker told us that the rain would start around 1-2 PM, and the thunderstorms would follow a couple hours later. It never materialized, and not only did the field complete the second round (Thursday had been a wash, too), 36 of the 60 golfers to make the cut got a few holes into their third rounds.

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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.

Johnson Delivers Another Playoff Victory -- Before April of 2007, Zach Johnson was a relative nobody in the golf world. He'd won the BellSouth Classic back in 2004, but he hadn't been making noise before he headed to Augusta National last year.

Yet twelve strategic lay-ups and a bunch of well played golf had Johnson wearing his first green jacket. Johnson's 2007 Masters win made us believe that golf isn't just about booming tee shots and big names.

If you know anything about Tiger Woods, it's this -- when the top golfer in the world gets off to a hot start, it usually means doom for the rest of the field. Since 2005, Tiger has opened tournaments with rounds of 65 or better six times, winning four of those events.

On Thursday at Quail Hollow, Tiger's first tournament since a disappointing Masters, Woods was on fire, torching Quail Hollow Club for a 7-under 65 that included a 30 on his second nine. Woods started on the 10th hole, and was slow to get going, making just one birdie on his first nine holes, but the front nine was where he got a little crazy.

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Round 1 of the Masters was interesting. We saw a hefty 38 players break par at Augusta National, and Chad Campbell (65) and Hunter Mahan (66) both finished within striking distance of the course record. Now comes Friday ... the day where people make or miss the cut, and the day where people can start to make a move before Saturday, which is traditionally called "Moving Day."

What should you be watching for in Friday's Round 2? And is Tiger Woods still the man to beat after firing an opening-round 70 (leaving him tied for 20th)? Check it out after the jump.

Tiger Woods has a history of slow starts at the Masters. In 1997, his first trip to Augusta National as a professional, he fired an opening-round 70 that included a front-nine 40. He won by 12 shots.

The commercial campaign with Phil Mickelson from a few years ago that asked the open-ended question, "What will Phil do next?" is as spot-on today as it was when it came out. It seems that, thanks to his erratic play over the last two weeks, Lefty has been on a rampage to give anyone and everyone in his camp a heart attack.

After his all-over-the-place win at the Northern Trust Open last Sunday, Mickelson came to Marana, Ariz. as the second seed in the Ben Hogan bracket. Now, two days into Accenture Match Play, and many upsets later, Mickelson is the tournament's only hope of keeping the public's interest through the weekend.

Right as this story goes live, Ryo Ishikawa (pronounced "Yo") will be hitting his first tee shot on the PGA Tour at this weekend's Northern Trust Open (leaderboard). Why should you care?

Because the 17-year-old Japanese phenomenon is Tiger Woods meets Michelle Wie meets Yao Ming.

Every week, Monday Pin Placement will run as a wrap-up of the weekend's action, with a little commentary mixed in. This past weekend, FanHouse was out at the FBR Open, a tournament known more for its party atmosphere than its golf.

Kenny Perry Nearly Made Me Emotional -- On Friday, Kenny Perry walked in the press room after a smoldering 63 that got him back in a tournament that he nearly shot himself out of on Thursday with a 1-over 72. When he started chatting, it was the same old story you get from any golfer. "I made birdie here, I missed an eagle putt there, I felt I hit the ball solid, it was a good day for me around the greens." Yawn. We've heard all that before, Kenny.

What I wasn't ready for was this. Perry started talking about his ailing father and how he felt he needed to play good golf just keep his father alive.