FanHouse Y.e.Yang

An inch. That was all that stood between Sergio Garcia and a playoff last week at the Wyndham Championship. Sitting in the greenside bunker on the 18th hole, the 29-year-old Spaniard found himself in need of a heroic hole-out to join Ryan Moore and Kevin Stadler in a playoff to decide the '09 champion.

The bunker shot looked perfect, coming out, biting perfectly and rolling like it was going to cash for the needed birdie. It was, as the golfing world has tended to say, too perfect of a shot, and the spin kept it from rolling that extra inch. Tap-in par, one shot out of the playoff, another hung-head for Garcia. Most times, Sergio lets these things affect him. Thursday at the Barclays, Garcia came out firing, posting a 6-under 65 to join Paul Goydos and Steve Marino as the leaders after day one.

---

---

Earlier this week, fellow FanHouser Ryan Wilson put together a great piece ranking what major championship was best. He picked the British Open, the correct call, and wrote the following line -- "I have no idea what the bylaws stipulate in terms of who qualifies for the PGA Tour Player of the Year, but if 59-year-old Tom Watson had won the British Open they should have given him the award on the spot." So, it got me thinking ... is there any player out there that has a chance at taking POTY honors away from Mr. Woods? Watson would have been a good story, but I still don't think he snags it. Here are your candidates, including Tiger, and their '09 resumes.

Two weeks ago, Tiger Woods was the clear favorite to win the PGA Championship. He headed to Hazeltine with back-to-back wins, his driving accuracy had gone from abysmal to passable, and his short game was impeccable.

But like the three previous majors, he couldn't put it together for four rounds, Y.E. Yang could, and in the days since we've been subjected to every variation of "It's clear that Tiger choked and his latest collapse signals the beginning of the end of his once-great reign." Or some such.

Never mind that Woods has five wins this year, or that after his Buick Open triumph in early August he told the media that his consistency this season, after taking eight months off to recover from reconstructive knee surgery, was "one of the things I'm probably most proud of."

Tiger Woods won five times in 2009, but for the fourth time in his 13-year career, he was shutout in the majors. That may not be cause for concern for Woods, but it gives fans and the media something to talk about. It also makes the "How would you rank the major championships?" question a lot more interesting.

With only one tournament left on the PGA Tour calender, now seems like as good a time as any to make my case. Obviously, this will be a scientifically rigorous endeavor, and I hope that you would treat the results accordingly. Or don't. Whatever, let's get to it.

In reverse order, the most exciting majors of 2009:

The list of players, both young and old, who would challenge Tiger Woods is a lengthy one. Thirteen years after Woods turned pro, we're still waiting.

Phil Mickelson has always been in the conversation, but names like Charles Howell and David Gossett were gone faster than they came. Sergio Garcia was the clear choice in the late '90s and early '00s, but 10 years after bursting on the scene at the '99 PGA Championship as a 19-year-old phenom, he's still searching for his first major victory. Real life sidetracked David Duval, also a legit threat to Tiger's legacy around the time of Garcia's emergence.

And now, Camilo Villegas, Anthony Kim and Andreas Romero are often mentioned as likely candidates to unseat the world's best player.

Tiger Woods led the first three days of the PGA Championship and halfway through the fourth. And then Y.E. Yang happened. But Yang's victory was so unexpected, so sudden, so ... not according to script, that by the time the reality of what happened washed over jaw-agaped onlookers it was too late.

In terms of ratings, anyway.

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 may have missed while you were out grinding on the putting green.

Yang Holds on in Florida -- Before Sunday, Y.E. Yang was a name most golf fans probably had never heard of. A star on the Japan Tour, Yang is known by American golf fans as the guy who beat Tiger Woods in the 2006 HSBC Championship in China.

It might be time to remember him for more than that.