Fantasy Picks - Top Five LPGA Tour Professionals to Watch Out For in 2011

~ The Pink Panther Strikes Again - With her four-stroke victory in last year's U.S. Women's Open, Paula Creamer finally achieved her lifelong goal of winning a major championship. This year she hopes to obtain further major championship success. ~

As the LPGA Tour's brightest stars prepare for this season's upcoming major championships, strive to obtain consistency week in and week out, and focus on improving their resumes and increasing their trophy collections, five female golfers will likely rise above the rest of the competition throughout the coming months.

The following five golfers - Yani Tseng, Karrie Webb, Ai Miyazato, Christie Kerr, and Paula Creamer - are among the most accomplished female athletes throughout the world. During their careers, they have enjoyed numerous tournament successes, maintained consistent track records, and have rewritten sports history books.

Therefore, as you prepare for your LPGA Tour fantasy league this spring and summer, you ought to keep the following ladies in mind. You will likely not be dissapointed by their consistently high levels of play.

1.) Yani Tseng

Ms. Tseng is currently the number one ranked women's golfer in the world...and for good reasons. By earning three major championship victories before her 22nd birthday, she became the youngest golfer in LPGA Tour history to accomplish such a feat.

In addition, she has acquired three other LPGA wins in her short career, including this season's Honda LPGA Thailand. She defeated Michelle Wie by five strokes on her way to obtaining the sixth LPGA Tour victory of her career back in February.

She has claimed eight other tournament victories in all four corners of the globe - many by ridiculous margins, ranging from 14 to 17 strokes.

What will Tseng accomplish throughout the remaining 2011 season? Will she successfully defend her Kraft Nabisco Championship and Women's British Open titles? Simply sit back, relax, and watch Ms. Tseng as she continues to change the history of women's golf.

2.) Karrie Webb

Ms. Webb is arguably the most accomplished active golfer on the LPGA Tour. With 38 LPGA Tour victories, including seven major championships, the 36-year-old Webb is already a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. In addition, she has obtained 52 professional victories around the world.

So what motivates her to continue to compete while many of her former counterparts, including Lorena Ochoa and Annika Sorenstam, have already retired? Quite simply, she desires to earn more tournament victories and to acquire further major championships.

Ms. Webb believes that she still has the skills required to compete on a weekly basis on the LPGA Tour and she has surely proven this very fact already in 2011. With victories at the HSBC Women's Champions and the RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup, she certainly appears to be prepared for future tournament success.

Undoubtedly, the word "retirement" does not exist in Ms. Webb's dictionary and will likely be nonexistent for many years to come.

3.) Ai Miyazato

As hard as it may be to believe, Japan's Ai Miyazato is only 25-years-old. Yet, throughout her short life and career, she has already accomplished more than most of her colleagues have.

With six LPGA Tour victories, 25 Japan LPGA Tour wins, and prior attainment of the status as the world's number one female golfer, Ms. Miyazato is, without a doubt, one of golf's most promising talents.

Although she has yet to win in 2011, she has become of the Tour's most popular - and feared - golfers. As she continues to gain experience and confidence, she will likely be one of the Tour's most successful and well-known members during the next two to three decades.

One question remains in regards to Ms. Miyazato - when will she collect her first major championship victory? With eight top-ten finishes in major championships since 2006, one cannot help but wonder if 2011 will be her breakthrough season in the LPGA Tour's four most exclusive events.

4.) Christie Kerr

Much like her fellow colleague Karrie Webb, Ms. Kerr has enjoyed a very successful career on the LPGA Tour. With 14 LPGA Tour victories, including the 2007 U.S. Women's Open and the 2010 LPGA Championship, she has obtained at least one LPGA Tour win every season since 2002 except for the 2003 season.

With such consistency, she has become one of the Tour's most respected members. Although she is still relatively young, at 33-years-old, she has already accomplished most of her career goals.

How does she stay motivated? Is she mainly focused on winning the Kraft Nabisco Championship and the Women's British Open - two titles that have alluded her thus far? Is she hoping to eventually become a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame?

Whatever the reason, Ms. Kerr remains one of the Tour's greatest competitors and hardest workers. With such incessant work ethic, LPGA Tour golfers and fans alike should not be surprised if Ms. Kerr will need to expand her trophy case upon the conclusion of the 2011 season. But, which trophies will she collect this season? And, in what type of quantity? Fantasy league members should defnitely remember her as the Tour competes for major championships this spring and summer, especially as Ms. Kerr focuses on winning the Tour's career grand slam.

5.) Paula Creamer

Paula Creamer, who is often referred to as "The Pink Panther" is well-known for her good looks and personality. However, she is also regarded for her natural golfing talents, fierce competitiveness, and successful track record, which includes nine LPGA Tour victories and three Solheim Cup appearances.

With her victory in last year's U.S. Women's Open, Creamer proved that she is not just another overrated member of the Tour with a "pretty face." She can compete against the world's best - and often.

As she prepares to defend her title this year, and also collect more tournament trophies, anticipate Ms. Creamer to compete each and every week she tees it up. She is young, at 24 years of age, determined, and skillful in all aspects of the game, from driving to putting. Ms. Creamer's name will likely appear on the top of LPGA leaderboards throughout the entire duration of the 2011 season...and for many years to come.

With their successful past track records, consistency, and determination to be the best female golfer in the world, each one of these five LPGA Tour members ought to obtain numerous tournament victories during the next eight months of the Tour's 2011 schedule.

Back on Top! - Nick Watney and Nick Price Regain Their Forms

~ The Third Time's a Charm - Last Sunday, Nick Watney rediscovered his winner's touch, while also obtaining the first World Golf Championship of his career ~

Although two years may not seem like that long of a time period between the obtainment of two seperate PGA TOUR victories, for fans and family members of Nick Watney, the past two years have, at times, progressed rather slowly.

Back in February 2009, Watney had earned the second PGA TOUR victory of his career at the Buick Invitational, which was contested at the ever-challenging Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California. Following his one-stroke victory over three-time PGA TOUR winner John Rollins, Watney was perceived as one of America's most talented young professionals - an indvidual who would not only claim further tournament victories during the coming years, but would also contend for major championships...and soon.

Fast forward to March 2011. Prior to his most recent victory at the Doral Golf Resort and Spa, Watney had become more familiar with close calls and top-ten finishes than with tournament victories. Last season, he played consistently well while obtaining two top-tens in major championships, at both The Masters and The Open Championship. However, golf analysts and fans alike were certainly surprised that such a promising talent like Watney had not acquired more tournament success during his career.

With his two-stroke over Dustin Johnson in last week's WGC-Cadillac Championship, Watney will likely regain the level of confidence that he will need throughout the coming months as he prepares to capture more PGA TOUR tournaments and to become a regular contender in each of one of golf's four major championships, both this season and well into the future.

In the meantime, Nick Price will always be remembered for the extraordinary career he had as a member of the PGA TOUR. With 18 PGA TOUR victories, including three major championships (1992 PGA Championship, 1994 The Open Championship, and 1994 PGA Championship), as well as the attainment of the number-one world golf ranking in the mid 1990s, Price was undoubtedly one of the most talented and successful golfers of the 1990s.

Even though Price rarely plays in PGA TOUR and European Tour events now, he is a full-time member of the Champions Tour. Since joining the tour in 2007, Price has enjoyed his fair share of tournament success, with victories in three regular events prior to his win at Sunday's Toshiba Classic.

But, considering Price's natural golfing capabilities and past record on the PGA TOUR, he has been unable to become one of the Tour's leading golfers, much like he was expected to become prior to attaining full-time membership on the Tour.

While winless in his first two seasons on the Champions Tour, Price was frustrated by his lack of tournament success, as well as his inability to capture one of the Tour's major championships.

So, will Price's frustation finally end this season? Will his one-stroke victory over Mark Wiebe at the 2011 Toshiba Classic initiate the self-confidence and consistency that he has been searching for throughout the past four seasons? Will 2011 be the season that Price proves once again that he is one of golf's brightest stars?

It will be interesting to watch both Nick Watney and Nick Price continue to strive towards their goals of becoming one of the most elite members of each of their tours. As each golfer possesses natural golfing talents, past tournament success stories, and unwavering confidence, Watney and Price should both be expected to further expand their trophy collections during the next eight months of the 2011 PGA TOUR and Champions Tour seasons.

Undoubtedly, Nick Watney and Nick Price appear to be "back on top" and ready to prove that their talents can be utilized fully on the golf course, through the continuous attainment of tournament victories.

Nick Watney PGA TOUR Victories

~ 2007 Zurich Classic of New Orleans
~ 2009 Buick Invitational
~ 2011 WGC-Cadillac Championship

Nick Price Champions Tour Victories

~ 2009 Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am
~ 2010 Liberty Mutual Champions of Golf (with Mark O'Meara)
~ 2010 Principal Charity Classic
~ 2011 Toshiba Classic

Nick Price's Career Accolades

~ Three-time Major Champion (1992 & 1994 PGA Championship, 1994 The Open Championship)
~ World Golf Hall of Fame Member
~ Eighteen-time PGA TOUR Winner
~ Five-time European Tour Winner
~ 1993 and 1994 PGA TOUR Player of the Year
~ 1993 and 1997 Vardon Trophy Winner