PGA Championship betting tips: Who to back at Bellerive
We’re only a month away from the Ryder Cup, and players from both Europe and the USA will most definitely have that playing on their minds. That’s all the more true in the case of Henrik Stenson (40/1, 10 places), who has some serious work to do if he is to make the European side.
The Swede hasn’t been at his best this year, and playing under a limited schedule, he comes to Bellerive firmly under the radar. In fact, the 2016 Open champion has played just 13 events this year and has only missed one cut, which came at the Valspar Championship at the beginning of March.
Stenson ranks fourth in strokes gained: tee-to-green, and even though he enters the week off the back of two mediocre top-40 finishes, he is still playing some really nice golf. To me, he’s being underrated in the betting markets and surely there will be some added motivation to finish well here and show Captain Bjorn that he needs to be on that European side in Paris.
To continue the theme of superb ball-strikers, Patrick Cantlay (50/1, 8 places) and Tony Finau (40/1, 8 places) have to be included in the week’s best bets.
Both surely are future major champions, and there’s no reason why either can’t get off the mark here at Bellerive.
Finau already has three top-10 finishes in the majors this year and he could complete the Top 10 Slam – is that a thing? – this week. The huge-hitting American should love this lengthy layout and he’s proven that he’s at his best under tough major conditions.
As for Cantlay, he enters the week having finished inside of the top-45 in each of his last five events, with a sixth place finish last week at Firestone – which should act as a good barometer for performance at Bellerive.
The 26-year-old had his best major finish at The Open a few weeks ago, and he ranks eighth on the PGA Tour in performance from tee-to-green.
I guess the only negative is that you may think your stream is buffering when he’s midway through his pre-shot routine.
Finally, Keegan Bradley (FRL 80/1, 8 places) can offer us some interest in the first round leader market.
The former winner of this event comes into the week ranked first in strokes gained: approach and he’ll be itching to go after missing out on last week’s WGC.
Bradley is a temperamental sort who is susceptible to shoot a 63 and back it up with an 80 to miss the cut, so he’s preferred in the first round leader market so we don’t have to endure four rounds of three-putts from inside of 10ft.
The 32-year-old American stormed through the field at the RBC Canadian Open with a final round 64 to finish tied for fourth, so his game is clearly in nice shape and he has every chance of getting off to a hot start.
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Tom Irwin
Tom is a lifetime golfer, now over 30 years playing the game. 2023 marks 10 years in golf publishing and he is still holding down a + handicap at Alwoodley in Leeds. He has played over 600 golf courses, and has been a member of at least four including his first love Louth, in Lincolnshire. Tom likes unbranded clothing, natural fibres, and pencil bags. Seacroft in Lincolnshire is where it starts and ends.
