The PGA is headed to Texas for the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth. A par 70, accuracy holds significance as the fairways are narrow with the course featuring Bentgrass greens.
Here are two players to bet in the top-20 market.
Rickie Fowler
Top 20: +125
Top 10: +280
Top 5: +600
To win: +2800
Fowler missed the cut on the number in last week’s PGA Championship. However, there’s some promising data to suggest he could bounce back. For one, Fowler had his best driving performance, gaining over three strokes off the tee, good for fourth best in the field. It was his first tournament winning as many strokes since The CJ Cup in October. The problem area was putting, with Fowler losing over 2.5 strokes — eighth worst in the field — in his worst putting performance in his last 11 tournaments. Putting is the most volatile part of a golfer’s game. But look at the big picture: In the last 32 rounds, Fowler is the fifth-best player in the field from tee to green.
Tommy Fleetwood
Top 20: +130
Top 10: +280
Top 5: +600
To win: +2800
Fleetwood is having a great sequence of tournaments with three straight top-20 finishes, including T18 in the PGA Championship. Fleetwood has gained strokes in every category in all three of those events. Fleetwood improved in the first three rounds at Oak Hill, scoring 72, 71 and 68 before closing with a 71. In his post-round interview, he mentioned making a couple of saves instead of giving himself more birdie opportunities. On a difficult course in really tough conditions in a strong field, to still come out in the green in every aspect of your game, that’s strong. Fleetwood could be peaking.