Establishment (P. Mickelson) vs. New Breed (B. Watson)

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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 Wells Fargo Championship, we've selected the game's two pre-eminent lefthanders -- Bubba Watson, who leads the FedExCup standings, and Phil Mickelson, who stands fourth. Watson won his second PGA TOUR event of the season last week in New Orleans while Mickelson picked up the 39th of his career in Houston last month.

ESTABLISHMENT AGE: 40 YEARS ON TOUR: Mickelson is in his 19th season on the PGA TOUR. He has won 39 times, including three Masters and one PGA Championship. OVERVIEW: Mickelson signaled his promise when he won the 1991 Northern Telecom Open, beating Tom Purtzer by a stroke, while still a student at Arizona State -- about five months after he won the U.S. Amateur. His first two wins as a professional came in 1993 and Mickelson has been prolific winner ever since. In 19 full seasons on TOUR, he has only gone winless in two. Granted, his first major championship proved elusive, but Mickelson finally broke through in his 42nd start when he won the 2004 Masters. Few players are as beloved as Mickelson, who revealed that he now suffers from psoriatic arthritis at last year's PGA. That came a little more than a year after his wife Amy and mother Mary were diagnosed with breast cancer. All three are doing well now, though, and Amy was waiting by the 18th hole on Sunday to see Mickelson win his third Masters last year. HISTORY IN THIS EVENT: Mickelson has a bit of a score to settle at Quail Hollow after taking the lead into the final round a year ago only to be bypassed by Rory McIlroy and his sizzling 62 on Sunday. This is Mickelson's eighth appearance in the tournament, and he has never missed a cut. He has five top-10 finishes and only once has he finished lower than 12th on a course that will host the 2017 PGA Championship. OUTLOOK THIS WEEK: Obviously, Mickelson's track record at Quail Hollow, where he is a cumulative 45 under, is impressive. The 2011 season has been a mixed bag for Mickelson, though. He finished second in San Diego in his debut and won the Shell Houston Open. But he's only had one top-10 finish in his other nine starts, so he'll be looking for Quail Hollow to rekindle the spark.   NEW BREED AGE: 32 YEARS ON TOUR: Watson is in his sixth full season on the PGA TOUR. His last 10 months, though, have signaled his transformation from journeyman to world-class player as he's picked up all three of his TOUR victories. OVERVIEW: Watson is a self-taught player who grew up in Bagdad, Fla., and attended the same high school as PGA TOUR vets Heath Slocum and Boo Weekley. Watson would draw a 5-foot circle in the dirt in his driveway and hit wiffle balls toward the target. He'd practice hitting the wiffle ball over tree limbs and under them. Watson spent three years on the Nationwide Tour before earning his card by finishing 21st on the money list. Watson really came into his own last season when he won his first PGA TOUR event -- dedicating the victory to his wife Angie and his father Gerry, who was battling lung cancer and died later in the year. Two months later, he lost to Martin Kaymer in a playoff at the PGA Championship and then played on his first Ryder Cup. But the 2011 campaign has been even better as Watson has won two of his first 10 starts to shoot to the top of the FedExCup standings. HISTORY IN THIS EVENT: Watson didn't play Quail Hollow well early in his career -- missing the cut in 2006 and '08 while having to withdraw after three rounds in 2007. He turned things around in 2009, though, when Watson tied for second with Lucas Glover, one stroke behind Sean O'Hair. Watson followed that with a tie for 22nd last year. OUTLOOK THIS WEEK: Watson should certainly come to Quail Hollow with confidence after his playoff win last week in New Orleans, and the course is a big-hitter's dream. But Watson, who ranks second in driving distance with an average of 311 years, is hardly a one-dimensional player -- he also leads the TOUR in greens in regulation, hitting 74.07 percent.

Tee times

Round 1 Tee Time for Mickelson, Watson

Bubba Watson will be paired with Jim Furyk and defending champion Rory McIlroy off Quail Hollow's 10th tee Thursday at 7:30 a.m. ET. Phil Mickelson will tee off on No. 1 at 12:10 p.m. ET Thursday with Gary Woodland and Nick Watney.

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)   Sergio Garcia 7 under (T15) Transitions Championship Matteo Manassero 6 under (T20)   Phil Mickelson 1 under (T24) Arnold Palmer Invitational Graeme McDowell 9 over (MC)     Fred Couples Even (T60) Shell Houston Open Gary Woodland 10 under (T13) Tiger Woods 10 under (T4) The Masters Martin Kaymer 6 over (MC)   Justin Leonard 2 under (T30) Valero Texas Open Anthony Kim 7 over (MC)     Jim Furyk 5 under (T21) The Heritage Jason Day 7 under (T9) David Toms 7 under (T18) Zurich Classic of New Orleans Brandt Snedeker 2 over (MC)