Chris Kirk keen to secure McGladrey Classic repeat success

The 29-year-old has plenty of local knowledge, having lived on nearby St Simons Island for six years, and became the first course member to finish on top of the leaderboard here 12 months ago.

Kirk's one-shot defeat of Briny Baird, who bogeyed the final hole, continued the sequence of close contests at this tournament.

The reigning champion, who had previously only claimed the 2011 Viking Classic, will return in good spirits following a third PGA Tour triumph at last month's Deutsche Bank Championship, while he also went on to finish fourth in the Tour Championship.

US Ryder Cup duo Matt Kuchar and Zach Johnson are other local favourites based on St Simons Island, along with tournament host Davis Love III, former US Open champion Lucas Glover and five-time tour winner Jonathan Byrd.

Webb Simpson has been picked out by several pundits as the form pick to take the title this time, having finished 12th, second and seventh in three previous visits here.

Last week's tie for fourth when defending the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas also showed his well-being.

"The game is there," he declared after that competition. "It's really fun to get in contention and hit good shots, and that's what we were able to do the last few holes. That's always a huge positive."

Tony Finau will be another strong contender following ties for 12th and seventh in the first two tournaments of the new season.

The PGA Tour rookie commented: "That's two solid finishes. I'm pretty happy with where I'm at, where my game is at, and starting to get my feet wet on the highest level of golf.

"That's great for me. A couple of nice finishes are going to be huge for my confidence."

The 7,005 yards, par-70 set-up favours those with shrewd course management over the big hitters, with breezy conditions often hampering hopes of low scores at the ocean-side venue, although taking advantage of the two par-fives at seven and 15 always helps.