2014 - Week 1 Predictions/Statistics Online

The predictions and statistics for this week, the Hyundai Tournament of Champions (US PGA Tour) are now available on Golf Predictor. It's the first week of the new GP season (the 2014 calendar year) and it's time for everyone to look forward to another full year of golf! I would like to wish all readers/users a Happy New Year and a prosperous 2014 using Golf Predictor!

Golf Predictor Back Up!

I am delighted to announce that Golf Predictor is back up and running, just in time for the resumption of the golfing season next week. As stated in the previous post, I took the opportunity to upgrade the technology behind Golf Predictor during the quiet (and short!) off season around Christmas. Unfortunately, this did not go as smoothly as it should have and Golf Predictor was down for four days or so. However, one ruined Christmas later, the site is finally back on-line and appears to be running quicker than ever.

The reason for the site problems turned out in the end to be a couple of web services, which apparently the upgraded technology did not like. Once these were disabled, the site roared back into life. One of these web services returned the currency conversions on the subscribe page, so the old page without these conversions has been reinstated for the time being. I would like to apologise once again for any inconvenience caused by this longer than expected outage. I have tested the site and all appears well once again. If you find an error, please contact me as soon as possible.

Golf Predictor Down - Upgrade in Progress

I have taken the opportunity during the quiet Christmas week to upgrade the technology underpinning Golf Predictor. I was informed via email that the process was complete, but on checking with my host's technical support, it appears that the upgrade is still ongoing.

As this upgrade involves switching servers, the site is currently down while the transfer is ongoing. I have been informed that this transfer may take 24-48 hours, so I ask for your patience during this time. As there are no tournaments this week or next, this should not be an issue. Hopefully, the site will be back up and running more efficiently in the next day or two. Keep an eye on the Golf Predictor Twitter/Facebook/Google+ accounts for more updates and I will add comments to this post as necessary.

Results Tables Updated on More Pages

 

Snapshot of the new look table showing position colour coding, round columns and amended pop-up text for all of Tiger Woods' results in 2013

Further to the results tables amended earlier this year on the Prediction page, the results tables on the Season Stats and Results by Player pages on Golf Predictor have been similarly updated. Using the new sortable round columns, you can easily find each golfer's best and worst rounds (rounds 1-4) for the tournaments in a given season.

This is shown above for Tiger Woods' results on his 2013 Season Stats page. As before, clicking on a round row column header allows you to sort the round scores in ascending or descending order. To make room for the round information, the "Made Cut" column has been removed from the relevant tables. The removed information has been moved into the pop-up text (see screenshot above) and also incorporated into the new colour coding for the finishing positions (missed cut). As before, round five has been left out of the results tables due to space constraints. There are currently no five round events on either tour and  there have been only two since 2003 (the 2003-11 Bob Hope and the 2003 Las Vegas Invitational), so this should not be an issue. In any event, round five information is now also provided in the pop-up (see screenshot above), should it be relevant.

As also shown in the screenshot above, the Position column on the results tables have been colour coded like before. This will allow you to identify wins (red), top tens (yellow), withdrawals (brown) and missed cuts (blue) much more easily. The colour code itself is shown over the first results table on the page. There is now also pop up text on the Position column in the Season Stats page to indicate a tie and the colour coding from the round columns on the Results by Player page has been removed for consistency with all the other results pages.

These updates should make these pages much more useful. However, all these results for all golfers are only visible to subscribers, so sign up today to get the most out of Golf Predictor, the premier US and European PGA Tour statistics site.

2014 Tournaments Added to Golf Predictor

In preparation for the new year of golf, the 2014 European and US PGA Tour season events have been added to Golf Predictor. This covers US events up to the Tour Championship and the European events up until the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.

There is very little change in the US schedule from last year, which makes my job of importing them somewhat easier! The European Tour, on the other hand, has its usual relatively large number of name changes and unconfirmed courses/tournaments. Note that I have left most of the changed European Tournaments with the same name as last year until their new names are confirmed.

Most/Least Consistent Golfers on the 2013 European/US PGA Tours

Using the standard deviation (SD) information in Golf Predictor, it is possible to see who were the most/least consistent performers in the 2013 season on the European/US PGA Tours*. It's almost all change from previous season, with only Matt Kuchar remaining in the list from last year (and improving his already good performance). The top five consistent golfers in 2013 were:

#	Name	St Dev	Ave. Pos.	Played
1	Matt Kuchar	14.58	19.60	25
2	Sergio Garcia	15.18	17.08	25
3	Jason Day	17.36	23.24	21
4	Adam Scott	18.54	20.56	16
5	Donald Constable	20.42	107.50	16

The top four golfers were consistently good, with very little between them. Unsurprisingly, none of them missed a cut, which explains why their results were so consistent! David Constable was consistently bad, unfortunately! At the other end of the scale, the top five most inconsistent golfers in 2013 were:

#	Name	St Dev	Ave. Pos.	Played
1	David Higgins	52.43	77.39	23
2	Oscar Floren	50.73	83.00	19
3	Daniel Gaunt	50.04	91.56	16
4	Scott Piercy	49.53	61.44	28
5	Richard McEvoy	48.93	88.90	20

Not many well known names there, with the exception of Scott Piercy. It is disappointing though to see a fellow Irishman as the most inconsistent golfer of the year! Click on the "Lists" category opposite to see more such lists.


*Only golfers who played at least 15 events are included in this analysis. This explains why Steve Stricker is missing, as he only played 13 events in 2013.

2013 - Top 5 Easiest Courses/Tournaments on the European PGA Tour

Based on the average score in relation to par in the tournaments hosted on them, these were the 5 easiest courses on the European PGA Tour in the 2013 GP Season (calendar year):

1. Oceanico Victoria Club de Golfe (Portugal Masters)
2. St. Andrews/Carnoustie/Kingsbarns (Alfred Dunhill Links Championship)
3. Montgomerie Maxx Royal (Turkish Airlines Open pres. By Ministry of Tourism and Culture)
4. Mount Edgecombe CC (The Nelson Mandela Championship pres. by ISPS Handa)
5. Durban CC (Volvo Golf Champions)

This is almost a completely different list from the same list in previous seasons. There was little between the top three or four and the Durban area seems to be the place to go for an easy tournament! however, it should be noted that the course was slightly shortened and there was lift and place in operation at the rain shortened Nelson Mandela Championship. Both of this factors together would have helped the scoring considerably. In addition, the Nelson Mandela Championship is on the 2014 European Tour, despite being held in 2013. Discounting this event. the next easiest tournament was the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai, a regular on this list. You can get more detailed information by looking at the 'Lowest Average Round vs Par' chart on the 'Other Stats/Tourn. Stats' page in the member section of Golf Predictor.

Click on the "Lists" category opposite to see more such lists.

2013 - Top 5 Easiest Courses/Tournaments on the US PGA Tour

Based on the average score in relation to par in the tournaments hosted on them, these were the 5 easiest courses/tournaments on the US PGA Tour in the 2013 GP Season (calendar year):

1. PGA West and sister courses (Humana Challenge in pship with the Clinton Foundation)
2. TPC Scottsdale (Waste Management Phoenix Open)
3. TPC Boston (Deutsche Bank Championship)
4. Trump International GC (Puerto Rico Open pres. by seepuertorico.com)
5. Annandale GC (Sanderson Farms Championship)

A couple of usual suspects in this list from the same list in previous years! You can get more detailed information by looking at the 'Lowest Average Round vs Par' chart on the 'Other Stats/Tourn. Stats' page in the member section of Golf Predictor.
Click on the "Lists" category opposite to see more such lists.

2013 - Top 5 Hardest Courses/Tournaments on the US PGA Tour

Based on the average score in relation to par in the tournaments hosted on them, these were the toughest courses/tournaments on the US PGA Tour in the 2013 GP Season (calendar year):

1. Merion GC (US Open)
2. Muirfield (Open Championship)
3. Congressional CC (AT&T National)
4. Oak Hill CC (US PGA Championship)
5. Augusta National GC (The Masters)

As usual, this year's list is top heavy with major tournaments, with another difficult major venue, Congressional CC, rounding out the top five. You can get more detailed information by looking at the 'Highest Average Round vs Par' chart on the 'Other Stats/Tourn. Stats' page in the member section of Golf Predictor.

Click on the "Lists" category opposite to see more such lists.

2013 - Top 5 Hardest Courses/Tournaments on the European PGA Tour

Based on the average score in relation to par in the tournaments hosted on them, these were the 5 toughest courses on the European PGA Tour in the 2013 GP Season (calendar year):

1. Merion GC (US Open)
2. Muirfield (Open Championship)
3. Celtic Manor (ISPS Handa Wales Open)
4. Saint Omer GC (Najete Hotels et Golfs Open pres by Neuflize OBC)
5. Le Golf National (Alstom Open de France)

Granted, the weather and relatively weak fields may have played a part in some of these events, but on the other hand, the list is similar to last year's one. You can get more detailed information by looking at the 'Highest Average Round vs Par' chart on the 'Other Stats/Tourn. Stats' page in the member section of Golf Predictor.

Click on the "Lists" category opposite to see more such lists.

2013 GP Season Stats Available

Following the conclusion of the last event of 2013 on both major tours in South Africa yesterday, the statistics for the 2013 GP season are now available on Golf Predictor (Other Stats menu, Season Stats options). The numbers have been crunched for all 529 golfers who played at least five tournaments (excluding non-finishes) on the European/US PGA Tour during the course of the GP season (2013 calendar year).

Somewhat surprisingly, Tiger Woods, Henrik Stenson or Adam Scott are in the top four when average finishing position for the season is used as the primary ranking statistic. Despite not winning, Steve Stricker's decision to curtail his season paid off, as he had both the lowest average and was the most consistent among the top performers, albeit from only 13 events. It's no wonder other top golfers are considering following suit! It should be noted though that Adam Scott only played 16 events and Tiger Woods played 18 on both major tours in 2013, so those schedules were not that different from Stricker's.

Tiger had the most wins (5) and Stenson pipped Rose for the most top tens (13) of any golfer in 2013. That corresponds to a leading winning percentage of 27.8% for Woods and a fourth best top ten percentage of 43.3% for Stenson. Because the Swede played 30 tournaments in 2013, Stricker, Woods and Rose all had a higher top ten percentage.

Other somewhat interesting statistics include Lee Westwood, Sergio Garcia and Matt Kuchar sharing the best missed cuts statistic. All three played 25 events without missing a single cut and an honourable mention to Jason Day, who played 21 events while always making the weekend. On the other extreme, Niclas Fasth (27 events) and Robert Allenby (30 events) had the unenviable record of most cuts missed (20) in 2013. Finally, Brendon de Jonge was the hardest working golfer in 2013, playing an impressive 35 weeks of the year (with 5 top tens to show for it). See these and many more interesting 2013 GP season statistics on Golf Predictor!


Note: The course for the Nelson Mandela Championship (2013 GP Season, 2014 European Tour) was shortened slightly and clean and place was in operation due to excessive rain. This skewed the round averages and other statistics slightly for all golfers who played that event and the two rounds of 59 scored there do not count as official records.

2013 - Week 49 Winner

Dawie van der Walt (ranked 53rd by Golf Predictor) won The Nelson Mandela Championship pres. by ISPS Handa on the European PGA Tour. The 30 year old South African won his second tour title at the rain shortened event in emotional circumstances in his home country. With the eponymous statesman sadly passing away last week and this event brought forward to avoid clashing with his state funeral, it was fitting that a South African came out on top. Our top ranked player, Branden Grace, finished in tied 6th and we had seven of the top eighteen plus ties (7/22) in the 54 hole event.

Thankfully, that's another GP season done and dusted. I'm looking forward to the off-season, even if it is shorter than normal! Thanks to all members/readers and looking forward to a great 2014 GP season already!

2013 - Week 49 Predictions/Statistics Online

The predictions and statistics for this week, The Nelson Mandela Championship pres. by ISPS Handa (European PGA Tour) are now available on Golf Predictor. It's finally the end of the 2013 golf year and I for one am looking forward to a few weeks off before it starts all over again in early January! As usual with late season European events, the field is not particularly strong again this week. The mood is bound to be sombre in Durban where the tournament has been brought forward by a day to avoid clashing with the state funeral of Nelson Mandela himself.

2013 - Week 48 Winners

Miguel Angel Jimenez (ranked 1st by Golf Predictor) won the Hong Kong Open on the European PGA Tour. The popular 49 year old Spaniard won the event for the fourth time, creating history again by improving his own record as the oldest ever winner on tour. Less than a month away from qualifying for the senior circuit, Jimenez beat Stuart Manley and Prom Meesawat with a birdie on the first extra hole. Including the winner, we had seven of the top eighteen plus ties (7/23) in total.

Thomas Bjorn (ranked 13th by Golf Predictor) won the Nedbank Golf Challenge on the European PGA Tour. The 42 year old Dane fired two eagles on the back nine Sunday to stun his opponents and take home the big prize. Our top ranked golfer, Henrik Stenson, finished in 4th place and we had thirty of the top thirty plus ties (30/30) in total!!

2013 - Week 48 Predictions/Statistics Online

 The predictions and statistics for this week, the Hong Kong Open and the Nedbank Golf Challenge (European PGA Tour) are now available on Golf Predictor. The former big money invitational event in Sun City is now co-sanctioned by the European PGA Tour and has a somewhat expanded field. Still, there will be only thirty players competing for a $6.5 million purse, which is nice work if you can get it! That explains why it has a pretty good (if European biased) field so deep into the silly season! That doesn't leave much for the far more modest Hong Kong Open, where Miguel Angel Jimenez will be defending his title and hoping to raise his own record of oldest winner on the European PGA Tour.

Note that the Nedbank Golf Challenge has been running for years, but because this is the first year that it has been co-sanctioned by the European PGA Tour, there is no course form on Golf Predictor. Keep this in mind when perusing the predictions.

Apologies for the late posting. It was supposed to have been published on Monday.

2013 - Week 47 Winner

Defending champion Charl Schwartzel (ranked 1st by Golf Predictor) won the Alfred Dunhill Championship on the European PGA Tour. The 29 year old South African continued his hot streak at Leopard Creek, taking his third title to go with his four runner up finishes there. Schwartzel finished went the last 64 holes without a bogey to win by "only" four shots this year (it was twelve shots last year!). Despite having the winner, we had only seven of the top sixteen plus ties (7/22) in total.