Turning Point for Chad Campbell?

Chad Campbell has been one of the up and coming American stars on the PGA Tour during the past few years, but he's had nearly as many lows as highs. That could be about to change.

Today, Campbell put on a gritty performance to eliminate Tiger Woods from the Accenture Match play by beating Woods 1up. With a victory earlier this year (his third since joining the Tour), he's positioned himself at number two on the money list. Now, his moral victory over Woods should give him the confidence to win more often and miss fewer cuts. Though he missed only five cuts in 2004 and five in 2005, they were disappointing years because of his poor performance in the majors. He missed the cut in the first three majors of 2004 and didn't contend in any of the majors in 2005 when he seemed poised for a major breakthrough after finishing second at Oak Hill at the PGA Championship in 2003.

After today, more people will be taking notice of this terrific wind player. My bet is that he'll use the victory over Woods as a launching pad to a banner year in '06. He might even grab his first major championship.