Cadillac Championship 2012 Leaderboard: Players That Will Surge to Top in Day 2

While Adam Scott and Jason Dufner share the opening round lead after Day 1 at Doral, they will have to keep their guards up or these golfers that will fly past the leaders before they can even blink.

We're not looking at golfers like Rory McIlroy, Phil Mickelson, or Tiger Woods. While they are big names and obviously talented, I didn't see a lot from them today that inspires a lot of hope for Friday. They will have to figure some stuff out over the weekend. 

Keegan Bradley

He has been around the lead all year long, and Thursday was no different. Right now, this is maybe the last golfer in the world that you want to see looming three shots back with 54 holes to play—but that's precisely where he is. 

The thing to remember about Bradley is that he is still in his early years as a professional. This time last year, nobody knew who he was and Bradley was certainly not playing at WGC events. So, at least in the early going of the season, he's taking his first real look at a lot of these courses—at least in competitive professional tournaments. 

Every round Bradley plays is only going to increase his confidence. If he's starting at three-under par, the rest of the tournament is going to end up well. 

Bradley's power game will go a long way in shrinking some of Doral's longer holes. When you have to deal with a lot of water, attacking from short range is the exact strategy you want to follow.

Round 1 Score: 69 (-3)

Round 2 Prediction: 67 (-5)

Hunter Mahan

Mahan has had the undeniable ball-striking talent for years. He has often struggled around the greens, and been too streaky on them. That is no longer the case. As we saw in the WGC Accenture Matchplay two weeks ago, he has figured something out. Shots that used to be flubbed are now knocked stiff, or in. 

On top of that, he hits the ball a long way. No, not quite as long as Bradley, but Mahan never misses a chance to be aggressive because he didn't hit it far enough. 

A vastly improved short game, fantastic ball striking and the confidence that has to come with beating Rory McIlroy rather convincingly two weeks ago, is going to carry Mahan for a while. That is going to start tomorrow, as he needs a good round to be in true contention for the weekend. Mahan will achieve just that. 

Round 1 Score: 71 (-1)

Round 2 Prediction: 68 (-4)

Zach Johnson

Year in and year out, Johnson rolls the ball on the green better than anyone else. When you hit fairways, as he does, the ability to putt is going to lead to long scores on courses like this. 

Golfers like Bradley and Mahan shrink the course and can take chances because of that. Naturally, when done well, that saves shots. Johnson saves shots because he can play conservatively. 

Johnson putts it so well that he doesn't need to attack flags if it's too dangerous to do so. He can play a safe shot and salvage pars all day, rolling in the occasional birdie.  

At Doral, that's going to work extremely well. He can effectively take the water out of play, without having to sacrifice shots, as playing conservatively tends to require. 

Round 1 Score: 70 (-2)

Round 2 Prediction: 68 (-4)

Day 1 Leaderboard

Player	Score
T1. Adam Scott	66 (-6)
T1. Jason Dufner	66 (-6)
T3. Thomas Bjorn	68 (-4)
T3. Charl Schwartzel	68 (-4)
T5. Alvaro Quiros	69 (-3)
T5. Kyle Stanley	69 (-3)
T5. Keegan Bradley	69 (-3)
T5. Aaron Baddeley	69 (-3)
T5. Justin Rose	69 (-3)
T5. Juvic Pagunsan	69 (-3)
T5. Steve Stricker	69 (-3)
T5. Miguel Angel Jimenez	69 (-3)

Notables 

Player	Score
T25. Tiger Woods	72 (E)
T25. Phil Mickelson	72 (E)
T35. Rory McIlroy	73 (+1)
T54. Dustin Johnson	75 (+3)
T54. Sergio Garcia	75 (+3)

Full Leaderboard available at PGATour.com.

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