PGA Championship Favorites 2012: Notable Names with No Chance on Ocean Course

Some golf stars simply don't stand a chance this summer at the 2012 PGA Championship.

Kiawah Island's Ocean Course will present multiple challenges for each and every player this August, but for a handful of notables it will prove more difficult to navigate than most. 

So, who should you bet against in 2012?

Whether they've won a major tournament before or not, these notable names have no shot on Ocean Course this weekend. 

Adam Scott

The 32-year-old Australian was visibly shaken after what many would call a choke on the final holes at Royal Lytham & St. Annes last month. Scott was closing in on his first career major win at the British Open before he imploded on one of the sport's brightest stages, surrendering the Claret Jug to Ernie Els. 

Despite a seventh-place finish at the PGA Championship at Highlands last year, Scott has been more of a non-factor at the tournament over the last five years. He finished tied for 39th in 2010, and missed the cut two years in a row in 2008 and 2009.

For all of his talent, Scott has yet to cash in on a major tournament win, and that is why he has no chance at Ocean Club. He has never been one to chase down a leader in the final round, and we saw in July the devastating consequences that unfold when Scott faces the pressure of leading in the final round of a major. 

Ernie Els

Ernie Els has zero chance at winning the 2012 PGA Championship at Ocean Course this summer. After pulling off an improbable win at The Open Championship last month, Els has ended his lengthy major drought and will now fade away until he enters the conversation at next year's British Open.

Following the Open Championship at Royal Lytham, the South African missed the cut at the Canadian Open and finished 45th at Firestone last weekend. The cool $1.4 million he earned for winning the British last month has surely given him less incentive to prepare diligently. 

Els missed the cut at last year's PGA Championship, and he finished tied for 18th in 2010. He has never won the prestigious major tournament, and he certainly shouldn't be a favorite to do it this summer. Padraig Harrington in 2008 was the last golfer to win back-to-back major tournaments. 

Rory McIlroy

Rory McIlroy has looked utterly lost on major golf courses since winning the 2011 US Open by eight strokes. The 23-year-old hasn't placed better than 25th in any of the last five major tournaments. He even missed the cut at last June's US Open.

McIlroy has played the PGA Championship just three times in his career, but he is coming off his worst outing at the major. He finished tied for 64th at Highlands last summer, after finishing tied for third in 2009 and 2010. 2012 has been brutal for McIlroy though. He finished tied for 40th at the Masters, missed the cut at the US Open and finished tied for 60th at the British Open.

It would be foolish to bet on McIlroy this weekend at Kiawah. His body of work since winning his first career major indicates that Ocean Course will be the site of his latest major tournament collapse. 

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