Establishment (S. Garcia) vs. New Breed (M. Manassero)

text size

One of the themes for the 2011 PGA TOUR season is the competition involving the Establishment vs. the New Breed. How will the established players -- those with significant TOUR experience and long-standing championship pedigree -- fare against the young, hungry up-and-comers who are looking to nudge their way into the TOUR's elite?

Each week, PGATOUR.COM will select two players -- one from the New Breed and one for the Establishment -- and analyze their chances heading into the tournament. We'll then track which player has the better score for his team, and keep a running team tally throughout the year.

This week for the Transitions Championship, we've selected Spanish favorite Sergio Garcia for the Establishment and Matteo Manassero of Italy for the New Breed. Interestingly, both players won professional events as 17-year-olds -- Garcia was an amateur when he captured the Catalonian Open while Manassero had recently turned pro when he won the Castello Masters on the European Tour.

ESTABLISHMENT AGE: 31 YEARS ON TOUR: This is Garcia's 12th season on the PGA TOUR. He has seven victories, most recently at the 2008 PLAYERS Championship, and the Spaniard also has 11 international wins. OVERVIEW: As recently as February of 2009, Garcia stood second to Tiger Woods in the Official World Golf Ranking. He went on to post his 15th top-10 finish in a major later that year at the U.S. Open and finish 38th in the FedExCup. After a difficult parting of the ways with his long-time girlfriend, though, Garcia's golf took a dramatic downturn in 2010 -- so much so that he decided to take a two-month break after he missed the cut in the PGA Championship and only posted one top-10 all season. He did come out of hibernation to serve as a vice captain for the European Ryder Cup team in September. Maybe that helped him rekindle the joy he once felt as a player -- who knows? But Garcia has shown signs of coming out of the doldrums this year. While the Transitions Championship marks Garcia's 2011 PGA TOUR debut, he's played three times on the European Tour and hasn't finished lower than 30th, including a tie for ninth in Qatar. HISTORY IN THIS EVENT: Garcia has played in the Transitions Championship twice and has never finished higher than last year's tie for 41st. In eight rounds at the demanding Copperhead Course, Garcia has only broken 70 once. OUTLOOK THIS WEEK: Garcia appears to be close. He was one stroke off the lead through three rounds of the Dubai Desert Classic but fell back into a tie for 20th with a final-round 75. More tastes of contention like that and the ebullient Spaniard could be on the verge of ending that victory drought. Click here for a 2011 preview of Garcia   NEW BREED AGE: 17 YEARS ON TOUR: Manassero is in his first full season on the European Tour. He is playing in his fourth event on the PGA TOUR and his second in the United States as a pro. OVERVIEW: Manassero is the latest teen phenom, and he has the credentials to prove it. The Italian tied for 13th at the 2009 British Open when he was just 16 to become the youngest winner of the silver medal given to the low amateur. He played in the 2010 Masters just shy of his next birthday and became the youngest player to ever make the cut at Augusta National when he tied for 36th last year. Manassero turned pro a month later and wasted no time showing once again that age is just a number when he won the Castello Masters at 17 years, 188 days old -- the youngest winner in European Tour history. Manassero also had two runner-up finishes and a solo third last year. His best finish in 2011 came at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship were Manassero reached the third round. HISTORY IN THIS EVENT: This will be the teenager's debut at the Transitions Championship. He won't be the only teen in the field -- Ryo Ishikawa is 19 -- but he is the youngest. Even reigning U.S. Amateur champion Peter Uihlein, who is a junior at Oklahoma State, is older at 21. OUTLOOK THIS WEEK: Manassero, who is playing stroke play in the states for the first time this year, is too talented to be intimidated by the competition. He's had two weeks off to prepare but it will be interesting to see how he adapts to the Bermudagrass and Poa annua greens. Click here for a 2011 preview of Manassero

Tee times

First-round tee times for Garcia, Manassero

Sergio Garcia and Matteo Manassero will be playing with Zach Johnson in the first two rounds at Innisbrook. They will tee off No. 1 Thursday at 1:22 p.m. ET for Round 1, then Friday at 8:37 a.m ET in Round 2.

For all tee times, please click here

Establishment vs. New Breed: 2011 results

Here are the results of the previous matchups this year

ESTABLISHMENT Score/Finish Tournament NEW BREED Score/Finish   Steve Stricker 20 under (T-4th) Hyundai TOC Dustin Johnson 14 under (T-9th)   Ernie Els 4 under (T-42nd) Sony Open Jason Day 8 under (T-20th) Stewart Cink 5 under (MC) Bob Hope Classic Bubba Watson 7 under (MC) Davis Love III 5 over (MC) Farmers Insurance Open Rickie Fowler 5 under (T20) Angel Cabrera 7 under (T-49th) Waste Management Phoenix Jhonattan Vegas 2 under (MC)     Padraig Harrington 2 over (T63) AT&T Pebble Beach National Dustin Johnson Even (T55) Jim Furyk 1 under (T35) Northern Trust Open Louis Oosthuizen 3 over (T62)     Vijay Singh 9 over (MC) The Honda Classic Anthony Kim 7 over (MC) Luke Donald 11 under (T6) WGC-Cadillac Championship Jhonattan Vegas 2 under (T31)