Who will end up king at Kiawah?

OK, we realise our above piece basically says it’s tricky picking Major winners these days, but 7DAYS loves a challenge.

So we’ve studied the field to try and predict who will take the honours in the final Major championship of the 2012 season.

Greg Wilcox says Dustin Johnson

I was tempted to go for back-to-back Majors for Ernie Els but slapped myself in the face and decided to go for DJ. Johnson is a supremely talented golfer - when on song he’s got the lot, he hits a very long ball and has a short game to get him out of trouble when the Atlantic winds blow him off course. Add to this his current fine form and knowledge of the Kiawah Island course (he played college golf there) and it’s his to lose.

Expect G-Mac to challenge.

Barry King says Jason Dufner

Dufner should have won last year’s US PGA, but defeat in a play-off to Keegan Bradley clearly hasn’t affected him - if anything he’s learned from it. He’s won twice on the PGA Tour this season and has recorded three top ten finishes in his last four starts. Stats and form aren’t enough though, players will need to keep their cool round Kiawah Island and Dufner seems able to take everything in his stride.

He’s a Major winner in the making so why not this week?

Simon Pluckrose says Bubba Watson

Most players teeing it up today fail to meet one simple criteria - can they hit a long ball? The Ocean Course is a mammoth test and, with more than half the holes running along the coast, players will also need a dazzling array of shots to cope when blown off course.

Enter Bubba Watson, first in driving distance on the PGA Tour and greens in regulation. Bubba has the game and the form to win a second Major to go with his Masters win.