The PLAYERS Betting
The PGA pros head to TPC Sawgrass this week to play the unofficial fifth Major. Once again, the field will be missing its defending champion Tiger Woods whose absence from the TOUR continues to act as a black hole as far as competition and coverage goes.
2014 The PLAYERS Championship
Location: Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, United States
Course: TPC at Sawgrass
Date: May 8-11, 2014
Total Purse: US $ 10,000,000
Winner’s Share: US $ 1,710,000 (17% of total purse)
Golf Odds from Bovada
Defending Champion: Tiger Woods ($1,710,000)
The famed island green at the par-3 17th hole will loom large once again this week on the Pete Dye designed course. Target golfers seem to have an advantage here on a track that fits the eye of few.
Rough greens after a harsh winter will greet the 144 participants – Ball-Striking, Strokes Gained-Putting, Par 3 Scoring Average, Par 5 Scoring Average and Bogey Avoidance are all stats to keep an eye on this week – staying away from the water that surrounds the course is essential.
So who should we keep an eye on this week – let’s take a look.
The Favorites:
Adam Scott 14/1
Scott enters having played just six times this year and recording top 25s every time out with a win, two other top 10s and has top 20s in his last two visits. There simply isn’t a better player in the game right now – Scott is a deserved favorite this week.
Rory McIlroy 14/1
Has quietly put together a nice season – five top 10s including a T8 last week at Quail Hollow. His track record here isn’t great – he missed the cut every time he’s played except for a T8 last year. McIlroy has been remarkably consistent this year but his history here scares me off just a tad.
Matt Kuchar 18/1
Is absolutely on fire right now – four straight top 5s including a win last time out at the RBC Heritage. To add to the intrigue is the fact that he won this tournament in 2012 which serves as his only top 10 finish in nine starts on this course. Still, he is the hottest player on TOUR and should be in the mix this week.
The Contenders:
Sergio Garcia 20/1
Loves this track – ten straight cuts made, four career top 10s including win in 2008 and he did finish T8 last year. Garcia is an elite ball striker that had six straight top 16s before missing the cut at the Masters. He will be looking to start a new streak this week on arguably his favorite track.
Justin Rose 22/1
Hasn’t played that well at TPC Sawgrass – just five of 10 cuts made – no top 20 finishes. He has been ramping up his play lately however – a T14 Masters, T8 Zurich, 5th at Wells Fargo in his last three starts. Rose is always dangerous and could finally breakthrough in this event this week.
Henrik Stenson 25/1
Won this event in 2009 and has three top 5s, four top 10s and another two top 25s here but he hasn’t been great this year for some reason. He isn’t quite up to the form I need to see against a top field, although sketchy greens may help him out this week.
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Luke Donald 25/1
Was last seen finishing second at Harbour Town and has three top 10s in his last six starts overall. He has three top 20s in his last seven starts on this track and has the accuracy off the tee to make it interesting this week. His game is well suited for this track – I expect to see Donald challenge!
Phil Mickelson 25/1
Surprisingly has six top 20s this season but hasn’t seemed all that great. He won here in 2007 and is coming off a T11 at Quail Hollow.
Bubba Watson 28/1
TPC Sawgrass is not Bubba’s type of track at all but the reigning Masters champ is still worthy of mention. He has made six of 10 cuts here but a little rust and the unfavorable design has Bubba off my radar this week.
Jordan Spieth 28/1
Followed up at terrific T2 at the Masters with a T12 at Hilton Head – nothing seems to rattle this rookie! He hasn’t played here before – but that hasn’t slowed him at any of the other tracks he’s debuted at. Spieth will always be in the hunt – it’s just a matter of where!
Jim Furyk 33/1
Finished second at the Wells Fargo and has not been worse that T20 in his last six starts. He has eight top 25s with three top 10s in this event and says he “found something” in his game last time out. Could that be a sign that Furyk is ready to claim victory?
Lee Westwood 33/1
I picked him last week and he went on to miss the cut – one week after a dominant win in Malaysia. He was T4 here in 2010 and finished T8 here last year.
Zach Johnson 40/1
TPC Sawgrass is exactly the type of track that Zach can thrive – he has made 8/9 cuts with six top 25s and a pair of top 10s. He has seven top 25s on TOUR this year and is coming off a T14 at Quail Hollow. His game fits this track very well – Johnson is a very enticing 40/1!
The Sleepers (50/1 or higher):
J.B. Holmes 50/1
Coming off a win at the Wells Fargo and now has five top 20s in his last six starts. He also has four top 20s on this track. I love the way he’s playing right now but caution you against going with a guy that won the week before.
Keegan Bradley 50/1
Tough guy to figure out – hard to believe he’s 50/1! He has three top 10s and another five top 25s this season and is coming off a T8 in his last start – at New Orleans. If Bradley puts it all together he could be a very nice payday for someone.
Jason Dufner 66/1
Wow – Duf at 66/1! He does have four top 15s on the season, including three in last four starts. He finished T6 here in 2011 but his game certainly isn’t quite at that level right now. Duf has the game to emerge here and he could reward his backers handsomely.
Kevin Na 66/1
Another interesting sleeper had a T3 here in 2009 and a T7 on this track in 2012. He has gone for six top 20s in his last eight starts overall and has missed the cut in the other two – but course history here has me taking a long look.
The Pick:
I was awfully temped to go with Matt Kuchar this week but I settled on Luke Donald at 25/1. He is coming off a nice T2 at Harbour Town and now gets to play a track in which course management is more crucial than distance off the tee.
My sleeper is Jason Dufner at 66/1. Come on – 66/1? I couldn’t resist – he could finally snap his funk and emerge victorious this week.
