Betting odds and picks for the TaylorMade Driving Relief skins match featuring Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson vs. Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff.
The PGA Tour will return, at least briefly, Sunday, May 17 for the TaylorMade Driving Relief skins match with Rory McIlroy and Dustin Johnson taking on Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff. The four golfers will compete in their teams of two at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Fla. in a charity match raising money and awareness for COVID-19 relief efforts.
Skins are a form of match play whereby the teams will be competing to win each hole and the prize money associated with it. If a hole is halved (tied) the prize money will carry over to the next hole. Multiple holes can be won or lost on a single stroke.
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On paper, the teams are incredibly lopsided. McIlroy and Johnson combine for 38 career PGA Tour victories and five majors. Fowler and Wolff combine for just six PGA Tour wins, with Wolff’s first and only win to date coming at last year’s 3M Open.
McIlroy sits second in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings with Johnson ranked 10th. Fowler is 31st and Wolff is 87th.
The skins format helps level the playing field as a single good or bad hole can drastically flip the match. Even still, the odds aren’t quite enticing enough for Fowler and Wolff with a $10 bet returning a profit of $16.50. It’s better to back McIlroy and Johnson as favorites, with the same bet fetching a return of $4.50.
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Driving Relief: How to watch
When is it? Sunday, May 17. Coverage will air from 2-6 p.m. ET.
Where is it? Seminole Golf Club, Juno Beach, Fla.
Television broadcast: NBC. GOLF Channel, NBCSN, Sky Sports
Digital streaming: PGA Tour Live, GOLFPASS, GolfChannel.com, GOLFTV
Pre-match coverage: Twitter
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Analyzing the golf betting odds to win the 2020 Masters, with PGA Tour betting odds, picks, predictions and best bets.
The 2020 Masters Tournament will take place Nov. 12-15 under the PGA Tour’s revised 2020 schedule. Below, we break down the 2020 Masters betting odds, with PGA Tour predictions, picks and best bets.
Augusta National Golf Club measures 7,475 yards and plays to a par of 72. The 2020 field has been set at 96 golfers. Anyone who wins an event between mid-June and the 2020 tournament will then qualify for the 2021 Masters to be played next April.
2020 Masters Betting Picks – Tier 1
Mar 12, 2020; Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA; Justin Thomas tees off on the 11th hole during the first round of the 2020 edition of The Players Championship golf tournament at TPC Sawgrass – Stadium Course. (Photo Credit: Adam Hagy – USA TODAY Sports)
Thomas, the 2017 PGA Championship winner, tied for 12th at last year’s Masters for his best result in four appearances. He made the cut in all four career tries at Augusta. Of his 12 career PGA Tour wins, eight have come between August and December. He won twice in 2019, at the BMW Championship and CJ Cup, and he won the 2020 Sentry Tournament of Champions.
Thomas is one of the best-rounded golfers on Tour, and he ranked fifth with 1.958 total strokes gained per round on the 2019-20 season before the season was put on hold.
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Tommy Fleetwood (+2800)
Fleetwood has runner-up results at both the US Open (2018) and Open Championship (2019), but a top showing of just T-17 at the 2018 Masters. A five-time winner on the European Tour, he ranks sixth in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings. His putter has often kept him out of the winner’s circle, but he has one of the best approach games in the world.
2020 Masters Betting Picks – Tier 2
Feb 29, 2020; Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA; Lee Westwood walks off of the eighth green during the third round of the 2020 Honda Classic golf tournament at PGA National (Champion). (Photo Credit: Reinhold Matay – USA TODAY Sports)
Lee Westwood (+8000)
The soon-to-be 47-year-old Westwood was becoming a popular pick for an April Masters before play was put on pause. The midseason stoppage has allowed for his odds to become more profitable again and will return $800 on a $10 bet.
He earned his 41st career victory at the European Tour’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship in January, and he tied for fourth at The Honda Classic in early March.
Sergio Garcia (+8000)
The 2017 Masters champ has missed the cut each of the last two years at Augusta and in seven of his last nine majors. He was returning to better form early in 2020, however, as he had two top 10s on the European Tour before a T-37 showing at The Genesis Invitational.
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2020 Masters Betting Picks – Long shots
Feb 22, 2020; Mexico City, MEX; Danny Willett plays his shot from the second tee during the third round of the WGC – Mexico Championship golf tournament at Club de Golf Chapultepec. (Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)
Danny Willett (+12500)
It was Willett who dressed Garcia in his green jacket as the 2016 Masters champion. Willett has missed the cut each of the past three years, but he tied for sixth at last year’s Open Championship. He won on the European Tour each of the last two years, most recently winning the BMW PGA Championship in September, besting a field including Jon Rahm and Patrick Reed.
Corey Conners (+17500)
Conners is my favorite long-shot bet due to his incredibly strong tee-to-green and approach games. Like Fleetwood, he struggles with the putter, but he’s able to give himself good looks and needs to get hot for only four days. He tied for 46th in his debut last year after gaining a late entry with his win at the Valero Texas Open.
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Analyzing the golf betting odds to win the 2020 US Open, with PGA Tour betting odds, picks, predictions and best bets.
The 2020 US Open is set to take place at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y. Sept. 17-20 under the PGA Tour’s revised 2020 schedule. Below, we look at the US Open betting odds, with PGA Tour predictions, picks and best bets.
Winged Foot has previously hosted the US Open on five occasions, most recently in 2006 when Geoff Ogilvy outlasted Jim Furyk, Colin Montgomerie and Phil Mickelson. The par-70 West Course measures 7,264 yards in length under major conditions.
2020 US Open Betting Picks – Tier 1
Mar 12, 2020; Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA; Bryson DeChambeau hits a shot on the 2nd hole during the first round of the 2020 edition of The Players Championship golf tournament at TPC Sawgrass – Stadium Course. (Photo Credit: Adam Hagy – USA TODAY Sports)
DeChambeau was in top form before the PGA Tour season came to a halt as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. He tied for fifth at The Genesis Invitational, was the runner-up at the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship and finished fourth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
If he can return to form when the golf season resumes in mid-June, these odds will quickly start to drop.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on DeChambeau to win the 2020 US Open returns a profit of $280.
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Webb Simpson (+3300)
Simpson currently holds top spot in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings. The 2012 US Open champ won the Waste Management Phoenix Open in February to cap a stretch of five straight top-10 results. He tied for 16th at the 2019 US Open, 10th at the 2018 US Open and fifth at last year’s Masters Tournament. Fifteen golfers currently have lower odds.
2020 US Open Betting Picks – Tier 2
Feb 29, 2020; Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA; Gary Woodland lines up his putt on the 8th hole during the third round of the 2020 Honda Classic golf tournament at PGA National (Champion). (Photo Credit: Reinhold Matay – USA TODAY Sports)
Gary Woodland (+5000)
The defending US Open champ has racked up five other top-10 results in 16 worldwide events since his breakout major victory. He tied for eighth at The Honda Classic in his last event before the season was put on pause.
He’s one of the longest hitters on Tour and he proved last year he can putt on the lightning-quick US Open greens.
Viktor Hovland (+8000)
Hovland was the low amateur at last year’s US Open with a T-12 finish in just his second career major appearance. He earned his first PGA Tour victory earlier this year at the Puerto Rico Open and sits 38th in the Golfweek rankings. He’s exceptionally strong off the tee and few match his success when going for the green.
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2020 US Open Betting Picks – Long shots
Jan 30, 2020; Scottsdale, Arizona, USA; Cameron Smith tees off on the tenth during the first round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open golf tournament at TPC Scottsdale. (Photo Credit: Joe Camporeale – USA TODAY Sports)
Cameron Smith (+10000)
Smith earned his first solo PGA Tour win at the Sony Open in Hawaii early in 2020. He tied for fourth in his US Open debut in 2015, but he has a missed cut and a top finish of just T-59 in three appearances since. He’s one of the Tour’s best putters and was gaining .775 strokes per round with the flat stick early in the 2019-20 season.
Kevin Na (+15000)
Na is a four-time PGA Tour winner, including two victories in 2019 and one in 2018. He finished seventh at the 2016 US Open but followed it up with a T-32 in 2017 and a missed cut last year (he didn’t play in 2018). Only six listed golfers have longer odds.
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Analyzing the golf betting odds to win the 2020 PGA Championship, with PGA Tour betting odds, picks, predictions and best bets.
The PGA Tour will attempt to resume play in mid-June under a revised schedule for the 2020 season. The 2020 PGA Championship is set to take place from Aug. 6-9 at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco. Below, we break down the PGA Championship betting odds, with predictions, picks and PGA Tour best bets.
TPC Harding Park will host a major tournament for the first time. The last PGA Tour event played there was the 2015 World Golf Championships-Cadillac Match Play, won by Rory McIlroy, who currently ranks No. 2 in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings. The course measures 7,169 yards and plays to a par of 72.
2020 PGA Championship Betting Picks – Tier 1
Aug 25, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; Brooks Koepka lines up his putt on the fifth green during the final round of the Tour Championship golf tournament at East Lake Golf Club. (Photo Credit: Butch Dill – USA TODAY Sports)
Koepka has slipped to No. 9 in Golfweek’s world rankings. He was off to a poor start to 2020 with a missed cut at The Honda Classic, a T-43 at The Genesis Invitational and T-47 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational before play was put on pause.
The four-time major winner, and back-to-back winner of the PGA Championship, finished inside the top five in all four majors in 2019. He’s only the No. 4 betting favorite.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet on Koepka to win the 2020 PGA Championship will return a profit of $140.
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Sungjae Im (+4000)
Contrary to Koepka, Im was playing the best golf of his career prior to the break. He earned his first PGA Tour victory at The Honda Classic and finished third at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He has missed the cut in three of four career major appearances, including the PGA Championship and Open Championship last year, but he’s just 22 years old. These odds are much higher than what he was getting early this season.
2020 PGA Championship Betting Picks – Tier 2
Jan 26, 2020; San Diego, California, USA; Marc Leishman kisses the winner’s trophy following the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open golf tournament at Torrey Pines Municipal Golf Course – South Co. (Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)
Marc Leishman (+5000)
Leishman earned a win at the Farmers Insurance Open early this year and finished as the runner-up at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He has never won a major, but he has five top-10 finishes in 33 events. He also made it to the Round of 16 at the 2015 match play at TPC Harding Park.
Francesco Molinari (+8000)
Few in golf needed a break as badly as Molinari. The former Open champion missed the cut in three straight events to begin his 2020 campaign, and he finished just T-53 at the WGC-Mexico Championship. Majors are a different story, and recent champs should always be backed at these odds.
He tied for second at the 2017 PGA Championship and tied for sixth in 2018 before finishing T-48 in 2019.
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2020 PGA Championship Betting Picks – Long shots
Feb 21, 2020; Mexico City, MEX; Bernd Wiesberger plays his shot from the eighth tee during the second round of the WGC – Mexico Championship golf tournament at Club de Golf Chapultepec. (Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)
Bernd Wiesberger (+10000)
The little-known Austrian won three times on the European Tour last year. He didn’t participate in either of the last two PGA Championships, but he is a bargain at these odds based on his success in Europe as he seeks his first PGA Tour win.
Joaquin Niemann (+15000)
Niemann claimed his first professional victory at A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier to open the 2019-20 PGA Tour season before missing the cut in five of his next 11 events before the break. The 21-year-old has made the cut in just one of three majors in his career, but he’s a value as a winner with only 10 golfers holding longer odds.
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Analyzing the betting props around the 2020 Players Championship, with PGA Tour betting odds, picks, tips and best bets.
The 2020 Players Championship will see a stacked field of 144 of the world’s best golfers tee off Thursday morning at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Below, I look at my favorite tournament props for the 2020 Players Championship, with PGA Tour betting picks, tips and best bets.
Tiger Woods is the top-ranked golfer from the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings not in attendance, as world No. 1 Rory McIlroy prepares to defend his 2019 title.
Scheffler is making his Players Championship debut, but the 2019 Korn Ferry Tour Player of the Year has made a seamless transition to the PGA Tour. He has missed the cut in just two of 13 events since A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier, and he has four top 10s in that time, along with a T-15 finish last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
He’s third on Tour in the 2019-20 season in Round 1 scoring average at 68.15. His 13 measured rounds are more than anyone else in the top five. The rookie scores low on short courses and he doesn’t have any glaring weaknesses right now.
Nick Taylor (+12500)
Taylor tied for 16th here last year for his best result at The Players, and he’ll make his first appearance as a PGA Tour champion following his breakout win at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
The Canadian ranks 12th on Tour this year in Round 1 scoring average, and he finished 2019 ranked 16th. He opened with a first-round 73 last year, but he scored in the 60s each of the final three rounds.
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2020 Players Championship: 3-ball match
Tyrrell Hatton/Paul Casey (+160)/Max Homa
Casey is the first-round bet to back in this trio. Hatton is coming off a win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational but missed the cut at this event each of the last two years. Homa will be making his TPC Sawgrass debut. Casey missed the cut last year, but the veteran had a T-22 in 2017 and a T-23 in 2016. He’s the safest bet in this trio with the second-best odds.
Viktor Hovland/Collin Morikawa (+125)/Matthew Wolff
All three youngsters are making their professional debuts at TPC Sawgrass, but all three already have a win in their young PGA Tour careers. Wolff finished outside the top 50 in each of his last two events, and Hovland has an MC and a T-42 in two events since winning the Puerto Rico Open. Morikawa hasn’t missed a cut in 21 events as a pro.
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Johnson has slipped to No. 9 in the Golfweek world rankings, while Fleetwood enters the week sixth following a third-place finish at The Honda Classic, though he missed the cut last week. No one in the field with a minimum of 10 rounds played at TPC Sawgrass has gained more strokes per round than Fleetwood’s 2.34, according to Data Golf.
Xander Schauffele vs. Webb Simpson (-112)
Simpson, the 2018 Players champion, gets paired up against Schauffele for the tournament head-to-head. Schauffele debuted with a T-2 in 2018, but he missed the cut in his follow-up attempt last year. Simpson hasn’t played since a disappointing T-61 finish at the WGC-Mexico Championship, but he already has a win in 2020 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open to cap a stretch of five straight top 10s.
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Analyzing the outright odds to win the 2020 Players Championship, and looking at some sleepers and long shots worth backing.
The 2020 Players Championship will see a field of 144 of the world’s highest-ranked golfers compete for a share of a $15 million prize purse beginning Thursday at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Here at SportsbookWire, we’ve been covering the various betting angles around The Players Championship all week, and below we’ll look at three more longshots from varying price ranges worthy of a dart throw in hopes of a big payday.
2020 Players Championship: Sleepers and long shots
Poulter’s 58 career rounds played at TPC Sawgrass rank fifth in this week’s field. He ranks fourth in that group and 17th among everyone with at least 10 rounds played with an average of 1.33 strokes gained per round, according to Data Golf.
He enters the week ranked 67th in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings and is coming off finishes of T-27 at The Honda Classic and T-32 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He was a co-runner-up in 2017, and he hasn’t missed the cut since 2013 while playing every year.
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Bernd Wiesberger (+15000)
A star on the European Tour, Wiesberger won three times in 2019, most recently at the Italian Open in mid-October. He didn’t play here either of the last two years, but he tied for 12th in 2017 and 49th in 2016. He has gained 1.22 strokes per round across 10 career rounds at TPC Sawgrass.
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Mackenzie Hughes (+25000)
Hughes didn’t play here last year, but he went 2-for-2 in 2017 and 2018 with finishes of T-16 and T-57, respectively. He nearly picked up his second career win at The Honda Classic two weeks ago, finishing second to Sungjae Im.
His odds haven’t been adjusted for the recent top finish, and there’s value to be had while using a little recency bias and trusting the current form. Only 39 members of the field have longer odds.
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Analyzing the outright odds to win the 2020 Players Championship, and looking at some risky bets to avoid at TPC Sawgrass.
TPC Sawgrass once again welcomes the strongest field in golf for the 2020 Players Championship. Tiger Woods is one of just four members of the top 50 in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings taking this week off, as he makes his final preparations for next month’s Masters Tournament. Here at SportsbookWire, we’ve been analyzing the odds to win The Players Championship, and here we look at five popular bets to fade this week.
Cantlay makes his return to competitive play this week following surgery for a deviated septum. While it’s not a knee, elbow or wrist injury likely to hinder his play going forward, jumping right back into competitive play against a strong field will be tough.
Cantlay is No. 4 in the world by the Golfweek rankings, but he’s eighth by BetMGM’s odds. This is typically a good indication of value as the odds don’t reflect a golfer’s pedigree, but I’m willing to trust the books here. Cantlay missed the cut last year and hasn’t finished better than T-22 (2017) at TPC Sawgrass.
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Rickie Fowler (+3500)
The 2015 Players champion is always a popular betting pick, especially at these inflated odds. Since his marquee win here, he has missed the cut twice with finishes of T-47 last year and T-60 in 2017. He has just one top-10 finish in a full-field event since the 2019 Open Championship.
Tyrrell Hatton (+4500)
Hatton broke through with his first PGA Tour win last week. He’ll now attempt the rare back-to-back win at an event in which he missed the cut each of the last two years. He’s in top form, but he’ll face a stronger field and he’ll have little confidence on TPC Sawgrass.
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Jordan Spieth (+8000)
Spieth, a former world No. 1, enters the week 46th in the Golfweek rankings. He had just five top-10 finishes in 2019 but claimed his first of 2020 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, but he has followed it up with a T-59 at The Genesis Invitational and a T-58 at the WGC-Mexico Championship. He has four missed cuts in his last five appearances at The Players, with a lone four-round finish of T-41.
Phil Mickelson (+10000)
Much like several of the names here, Mickelson would typically be an attractive bet at his posted odds, but certainly not at TPC Sawgrass and in this strong of a field. Lefty won here in 2007, but has four missed cuts in his last five visits and has also missed the cut in four of his six events to open 2020.
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Looking at Rory McIlroy’s chances of success at the 2020 Players Championship, including PGA Tour betting options within the tournament.
Rory McIlroy looks to defend his title at the 2020 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass as the No. 1 golfer in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings. McIlroy is the No. 1 betting favorite among the 144-man field at BetMGM this week. Below, we look at McIlroy’s outright and prop betting odds and look for the best value plays for the world’s top golfer at The Players Championship.
Rory McIlroy’s history at TPC Sawgrass
McIlroy ranks 11th in this week’s field in average strokes gained per round at TPC Sawgrass among those with at least 10 rounds played, according to Data Golf. He has gained 1.68 strokes per round across 32 career rounds on the Stadium Course. Last year, he led the field with 3.32 Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green per round while ranking third in SG: Off the Tee.
Last year’s victory followed a missed cut at the 2018 Players Championship. He previously finished T-8 in 2015, T-12 in 2016 and T-35 in 2017. His finishing score of 16-under par last year matched the second-lowest four-round score of the last decade.
Rory McIlroy’s key stats for The Players Championship
Based on historical tournament data from Fantasy National, my key stats for the week are:
Strokes Gained: Ball Striking
Strokes Gained: Around the Green
Opportunities Gained
Greens in Regulation Gained
Proximity from 125-150 Yards
McIlroy leads my stat model, which measures the last 36 rounds for each golfer in the field on courses shorter than 7,200 yards. While he’s one of the longest hitters on Tour, much of his career success has come on these shorter tracks.
He’s second in the field in SG: Ball Striking, third in Opportunities Gained and fourth in SG: Around the Green. Each of the last 11 champions at TPC Sawgrass finished 10-under par or below, and nine of his 16 PGA Tour rounds in 2020 have been scored in the 60s.
Rory has been struggling with his putter of late, preventing him from reaching the winner’s circle, but he gained a total of just 0.7 strokes putting last year and needs to be little more than average with the flat stick at this venue. He putts best on the Bermuda greens featured here.
As noted above, McIlroy is the No. 1 favorite to win the 2020 Players Championship at +700. He enters this week with seven consecutive top-five finishes with his first win of the 2019-20 PGA Tour season coming at the WGC-HSBC Champions in November. He has racked up three straight fifth-place results, nearly mirroring his form entering last year’s tournament:
EVENT
2019
2020
Farmers Insurance Open
T-5
T-3
Genesis Open/Invitational
T-4
T-5
WGC-Mexico Championship
2
5
Arnold Palmer Invitational
T-6
T-5
The Players
1
?
Rory is a very chalky golf bet as the No. 1 favorite in the field and the only player priced lower than +1200, but he has enjoyed a similar build-up as last year, and he already has his first win of the season under his belt. He’s worth a multi-unit wager in his quest to repeat.
Best Props on Rory McIlroy to win The Players Championship
Even money for a top-10 result is an easy choice, as the odds for a top-5 finish are just +190. McIlroy hasn’t finished outside the top-10 in a PGA Tour event since his T-19 showing at last year’s BMW PGA Championship one week prior to his victory at the Tour Championship.
Lowest Score Over 72 Holes – Group A (+160)
PASS on this prop bet. If Rory is not going to win this week, it’s likely the winner will come from this group including Jon Rahm (+300), Justin Thomas (+400), Tommy Fleetwood (+700) and Bryson DeChambeau (+600). Take his more profitable outright odds, instead.
Top European Player (+225)
While Rory faces tough competition from Rahm (+350) and Fleetwood (+700) in this group, it does weed out the strong American contingent playing this week. It’s a good hedge against the outright bet.
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Analyzing the best fantasy golf options for the 2020 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass. Can world No. 1 Rory McIlroy defend his title?
TPC Sawgrass welcomes the world’s best golfers for the 2020 Players Championship. The 144-man field is annually the strongest of the PGA Tour season, and Tiger Woods is one of just four golfers from the top 50 of the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings not in attendance this week. Here, we look at the top 30 fantasy golf options for The Players Championship.
TPC Sawgrass measures 7,189 yards and plays to a par of 72. Each of the last 11 winners finished 10-under par or better.
The Players Championship: Fantasy Golf Top 30
Mar 17, 2019; Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, USA; Rory McIlroy lines up his putt on the 18th green during the final round of THE PLAYERS Championship golf tournament at TPC Sawgrass – Stadium Course. (Photo Credit: John David Mercer – USA TODAY Sports)
Here are my top-30 fantasy golf rankings for the 2020 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass.
30. Viktor Hovland
The Puerto Rico Open winner has struggled since what was expected to be an ice-breaking victory in the alternate event. He missed the cut at the difficult Honda Classic and tied for 42nd last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Poulter ranks fifth in this field with 58 career rounds played at TPC Sawgrass, according to Data Golf. He has gained an average of 1.33 strokes per round in that time. He was a co-runner-up in 2017 but finished just T-56 last year.
28. Tyrrell Hatton
Hatton picked up his first career PGA Tour win last week while surviving difficult conditions at Bay Hill Club & Lodge, but he missed the cut at Sawgrass each of the last two years.
27. Shane Lowry
The reigning Open champion missed the cut here three of the past five years but will enter as a major champ for the first time. He’s among the best in the field in Strokes Gained: Around the Green.
26. Marc Leishman
The winner of the 2020 Farmers Insurance Open popped back up on the leaderboard last week and finished as the lone runner-up to Hatton. His putter is the only thing that can hold him back, and when it’s been on, he’s been a top finisher.
Mar 6, 2020; Orlando, Florida, USA; Scottie Scheffler hits his tee shot on the 18th hole during the second round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational golf tournament at Bay Hill Club & Lodge. (Photo Credit: Reinhold Matay – USA TODAY Sports)
25. Scottie Scheffler
The PGA Tour rookie debuts at TPC Sawgrass ranked No. 27 in the Golfweek rankings. He tied for 15th last week amid a horrible putting performance while his tee-to-green and approach games were nearly perfect.
24. Abraham Ancer
Ancer’s top finish of 2020 thus far was a runner-up result at The American Express, but he also tied for sixth in a strong field at the European Tour’s Saudi International. He ranks near the top of the field in Proximity from 125-150 Yards, a key distance for second shots at TPC Sawgrass.
23. Collin Morikawa
Morikawa had a disappointing weekend at Bay Hill, but he still finished inside the top 10 for the first time in a full-field event in 2020. He’s now up to 21 consecutively made cuts for the longest active streak on the PGA Tour.
22. Matt Kuchar
Kuch, the 2020 Players champ more recently tied for third in 2016. He hasn’t finished higher than T-17 in the three years since, but he has 50 career rounds played here to rank among the most experienced in the field.
21. Henrik Stenson
Stenson missed the cut last year and in 2016, but he has finishes of T-17 in 2015, T-16 in 2017 and T-23 in 2018. He ranks second in my stat model at Fantasy National in Greens in Regulation Gained over the last 36 rounds played by everyone in the field on courses shorter than 7,200 yards.
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20. Justin Rose
Rose missed the cut at Bay Hill and PGA National in each of his last two events to slip to No. 28 in the Golfweek rankings. He struggled with the flat stick last week and would have at least made it to the weekend with an average putting performance.
19. Tony Finau
Finau missed the cut back-to-back in 2016 and 2017, but he has responded with a T-57 finish in 2018 and a T-22 result in 2019. He missed the cut last week at Bay Hill, but he hasn’t missed the cut in back-to-back weeks since missing three straight from last year’s Memorial Tournament through the Travelers Championship.
18. Gary Woodland
Woodland has strung together consecutive strong results. He tied for 12th at the WGC-Mexico Championship before a T-8 result at the Honda Classic. The US Open winner tied for 30th here last year.
17. Jason Day
Day would be higher in these rankings if not for the back injury which forced his withdrawal at Bay Hill last week. The Aussie won in 2016 and has a T-8 and T-5 finish the last two years. He remains among the best in any field in SG: Around the Green.
16. Sungjae Im
Yet another recent first-time winner in this year’s field, Im missed the cut in his TPC Sawgrass debut last year. His best putting performances have come on Bermuda greens over his career, and he has been extremely strong off the tee the last two weeks.
Mar 7, 2020; Orlando, Florida, USA; Rickie Fowler hits his tee shot on the second hole during the third round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational golf tournament at Bay Hill Club & Lodge. (Photo Credit: Reinhold Matay – USA TODAY Sports)
15. Rickie Fowler
Fowler bounced back from a missed cut at PGA National to finish T-18 last week. He won here in 2015, but he missed the cut two of the last four years.
14. Brooks Koepka
Betting Koepka right now means banking solely on pedigree, which is never a bad idea. His best finish in the last five years was a T-11 in 2018, and he finished just T-56 last year. He hasn’t finished inside the top 10 in any global event since the Tour Championship, but he is Brooks Koepka.
13. Xander Schauffele
Schauffele debuted with a T-2 in 2018 but missed the cut last year. He has made the cut in four of five events to open 2020, but he has a top finish of just T-14 in Mexico.
12. Paul Casey
Casey is one of the top statistical fits by my stat model, but the veteran Englishman has struggled at TPC Sawgrass over his career. He has gained just 0.39 strokes per round across 29 rounds, and he missed the cut last year.
11. Patrick Cantlay
Cantlay returns from an injury absence to play for the first time since a T-17 result at the Genesis Invitational. He missed the cut last year following T-22 and T-23 finishes in 2017 and 2018, respectively.
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10. Patrick Reed
Reed has had a pedestrian run at TPC Sawgrass. While he has made the cut four of the last five years, his top finish was a T-22 in 2017. He’s the most recent winner of a WGC event in a comparable strength of field.
9. Bryson DeChambeau
DeChambeau has strung together three straight top-five finishes in 2020. He’s played here each of the last two years with a T-37 in 2018 and a T-20 last year.
8. Webb Simpson
The 2018 champ has 15 top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour since, including his 2020 win at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
7. Adam Scott
Scott won here in 2004. He already claimed victory at the Genesis Invitational to start his 2020 campaign, after closing out his 2019 season with a win in the Australian PGA Championship.
6. Hideki Matsuyama
Matsuyama does well in the stadium setting of TPC Sawgrass and TPC Scottsdale. He has a T-7 and T-8 finish in the last four years.
Mar 5, 2020; Orlando, Florida, USA; Tommy Fleetwood hits his drive on the 15th hole during the first round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational golf tournament at Bay Hill Club & Lodge. (Photo Credit: Reinhold Matay – USA TODAY Sports)
5. Tommy Fleetwood
Fleetwood has gained more strokes per round at TPC Sawgrass than anyone else in the field with at least 10 rounds played at 2.34 strokes per round. He tied for fifth last year after a T-7 in 2018 and needs his breakthrough win.
4. Jon Rahm
Rahm tied for 12th last year for his best result in three trips to TPC Sawgrass. He took the last two weeks off for rest following a T-3 in Mexico and T-17 at the Genesis Invitational.
3. Dustin Johnson
Johnson picked up his best result in The Players Championship last year with a T-5. He has been largely unimpressive early in 2020, but he remains an elite scorer on these shorter courses.
2. Justin Thomas
Since finishing T-3 in 2016, Thomas has finished T-75, T-11 and T-35 the last three years. His putter has been shaky early in the year, though he’s a contender anytime it doesn’t cost him strokes.
1. Rory McIlroy
The defending champ has seven straight top-five results in global events and five straight fifth-place finishes on the PGA Tour. His putter cost him again last week; however, he gained 0.7 strokes on these greens last year and he only needs to be average with the flat stick.
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Analyzing the golf betting odds to win the 2020 Players Championship, with PGA Tour betting odds, picks, predictions and best bets.
The top names in golf are in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., this week for the 2020 Players Championship. Below, we break down the 2020 Players Championship outright odds to win, with betting picks, tips and best bets.
Tiger Woods is one of just four players from the top 50 of the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings not part of the 144-man field. He’ll finalize his preparations for his Masters defense next month, while world No. 1 Rory McIlroy attempts to hold off the strongest field in golf for the second straight year at TPC Sawgrass.
The key stats for the 7,189-yard, par-72 TPC Sawgrass:
Strokes Gained: Ball Striking
Strokes Gained: Around the Green
Opportunities Gained
Greens in Regulation Gained
Proximity from 120-150 Yards
My model at Fantasy National looks at the most recent 36 rounds for each golfer in the field on courses shorter than 7,200 yards.
The Players Championship Betting Picks – Tier 1
(Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)
One of many former world No. 1’s in the field, Johnson enters the week ranked ninth by the Golfweek rankings, but he shares the sixth-best odds at BetMGM. He tied for fifth last year, following a T-17 in 2018 and a T-12 in 2017.
Johnson leads the field in Opportunities Gained while ranking fourth in SG: Ball Striking and eighth in Greens in Regulation Gained. He won at least twice internationally in each of the last four years and won’t often carry these lofty odds.
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Adam Scott (+3300)
Scott hasn’t finished worse than T-12 in any of the last four years at TPC Sawgrass. His 1.95 strokes gained per round across 66 career rounds on the Stadium Course ranks third in the field, according to Data Golf. He has two worldwide wins since late December after not winning since 2016.
The Players Championship Betting Picks – Tier 2
(Photo Credit: Reinhold Matay – USA TODAY Sports)
Jason Day (+6000)
Day withdrew from the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week due to a back injury, but he remains in the field for an event he has won and dominated in recent years. The 2016 Players champ tied for fifth in 2018 and tied for eighth last year.
He’s one of the best in the field/world around the greens and his odds are inflated solely by last week’s injury. If he’s healthy, he’s an incredible bargain.
Scottie Scheffler (+9000)
Scheffler has climbed all the way to No. 27 early in his rookie season on the PGA Tour. He finished T-15 in a strong field at the API last week and has shown he can be a regular contender. He ranks 18th in the field in Opportunities Gained and has the ability to score low on these shorter courses.
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The Players Championship Betting Picks – Longshots
(Photo Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA TODAY Sports)
Corey Conners (+15000)
Conners tied for 41st last year ahead of his breakout win at the Valero Texas Open. He missed the cut in three of his last four events and each of his past two, but he’s an expert ball striker and low scorer. He gained 7.8 strokes tee-to-green and 4.4 strokes on approach here last year and just needs a decent putting week.
Jim Furyk (+15000)
Furyk will be eligible for the PGA Tour Champions circuit in May, but will give it another go at TPC Sawgrass following his runner-up finish last year. It was his second second-place result since 2014, losing both times by just a single stroke. He entered in better form last year, but he’s well-versed on a course designed by Pete Dye to level the playing field.
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