HP Byron Nelson Championship 2012: Tee Times, Date and TV Schedule

The Byron Nelson is where the next big things come to make names for themselves on the PGA Tour. 

Right on the heels of an exciting win for Matt Kuchar at the Players Championship, the action turns to Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, for the HP Byron Nelson Championship, where only the strongest survive the wind's fury. 

The course tends to be a tough one where, last year, the wind blew consistently at 20-25 mph in the last three rounds, according to USGolfTV.com. Those pesky gusts wreaked havoc on last year's tournament, where Keegan Bradley emerged victorious with a meager three-under par. 

As a result, it's easy to see why this course polled at No. 49 of all 52 courses in semi-regular use on the PGA Tour, according to CBSSports.com's Steve Elling. 

But as Kelly Clarkson would say, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger—and it doesn't matter how old you are or how much experience you have, as evidenced by last year's winner. After Bradley won the Byron Nelson in 2011, he quickly went on to capture the PGA Championship. 

Among the field at this year's tournament will be four players from the world top 15 and nine in the top 50.

Where: TPC Four Seasons Resort in Irving, Texas

When: Thursday, May 17 to Sunday, May 20

Golfers to Watch

Matt Kuchar

Coming off a big win at the Players Championship on Mother's Day, he'd doubtlessly love to follow it up with another at the Byron Nelson. Kuchar tends to be at his best on tougher courses, so this is precisely the type of tournament in which he can rise above while everyone else struggles against Mother Nature. 

Kuchar finished the Players Championship 13-under par, winning by two shots, and he sits in sixth place in the points race. The biggest challenge for him this week could have nothing to do with the tournament itself; he'll have to deal with the aftermath of being last week's tournament winner. 

He told Cybergolf.com:

"

The challenges are the extra distractions. They're great distractions, they're all the congratulatory stuff. … So what I can generally do, get to a tournament Tuesday afternoon and takes me three or four hours to accomplish is probably closer to seven or eight hours on a Tuesday now, so there is a lot more time constraints.

"

Ernie Els

Els is making his first appearance at the Byron Nelson since 2006, and he's not entering the tournament with a ton of momentum on his side. He missed the cut in two of his last three starts, but still, his track record at the tournament is among the best: He won it in 1995 and finished T13 or better in his last four attempts. 

Els' putting of late has been especially suspect and inconsistent; he's been lights-out at times from 10 feet or less, but then has come back and inexplicably missed the simplest putts. If he can get his short game under control, he has a great shot at righting the ship and regaining some momentum. 

Keegan Bradley

Of course, it would be impossible to ignore the winner of last year's outing. Since defeating Ryan Palmer in a playoff at TPC Four Seasons in 2011 and then winning the PGA Championship, Bradley hasn't been able to capture a win, but has still registered eight top-20 finishes this year. 

Keegan has made 11 cuts in 13 starts, and seeing as he's ranked 10th in total driving and 32nd in strokes gained from putting, according to Yahoo! Sports, he's proven to be a complete package who could jump-start his momentum at the Byron Nelson all over again in 2012. 

Tee Times

Notable Groupings for Opening Rounds (All Times ET)

Thursday		Golfer	Golfer	Golfer
7:30 a.m.		Phil Mickelson	Adam Scott	Ernie Els
7:40 a.m.		Jason Dufner	Jhonnatan Vegas	Louis Oosthuizen
12:30 p.m.		Matt Kuchar	Vijay Signh	Padraig Harrington
12:40 p.m.		Keegan Bradley	Rory Sabbatini	Jason Day

A full listing of the first two rounds' tee times is available at PGATour.com. 


 

Television Schedule

	Date	Time (ET)	TV
Round 1	May 17	3-6 p.m.	GOLF
Round 2	May 18	3-6 p.m.	GOLF
Round 3	May 19	3-6 p.m.	CBS
Round 4	May 20	3-6 p.m.	CBS

Prediction: Keegan Bradley Wins

As he proved last year, he's capable of conquering the demons that tend to crop up at TPC Four Seasons, especially wind and weather-wise. The PGA Championship win proved his victory last year wasn't a fluke, and the completeness of his game lends itself perfectly to a tough course like this.