Memorial Tournament champion Matt Kuchar's rate of progression has been very steady, both this season and throughout his recent career.
Spikes
Rory shoehorned in a trip to the Valero Texas Open ahead of the Masters and has decided to skip a tournament this week and get in some practice at Merion instead, with the help of coach Dave Stockton.
McIlroy's schedule will evolve over time and he will eventually get it just how he wants it - and the same applies to his golf game, which could quite easily fire again in Pennsylvania.
However, two-time US Open champion Lee Janzen won't play at Merion after being kicked out of a qualifying event at the Woodmont Country Club in Maryland for wearing metal spikes on his shoes.
Janzen apparently saw the e-mail telling him of this rule but didn't give it a thorough read so I suppose he is partly to blame, though I'm sure he might have been more angry had he shot 65 in the opening round and not the 75 that left him too much to do on day two.
Still, it's a joke that you can't qualify for the US Open in spikes but can lift the trophy wearing them a few days later - and you wonder whether the fate that befell Janzen would have befallen Woods or McIlroy...
ROB'S SKY BET TIPS
I think
Pablo Larrazabal will win the Lyoness Open in Austria; he is going to crack up a course up one of these weeks and I reckon he just might beat home favourite and defending champion Bernd Wiesberger. Meanwhile, at the FedEx St Jude Classic, I am going to go for
Ryan Palmer; he just missed out on a place in the US Open but he played very well at the Players Championship.
Don't forget to check out Rob's weekly tips at
Sky Bet.
