It is a surprise to see Rory McIlroy teeing it up for the third week in a row at this week’s Travelers Championship after his grouchy, sub-standard performance at the US Open.
But after barely making the cut – and announcing he would not have been too upset if head missed out – McIlroy’s final round 67 seemed to lift the gloom.
It also earned him a top twenty finish. And he probably felt that after skipping the last two $20million Signature events on the PGA Tour, missing the final one as well would not go down too well.
The fact that McIlroy did opt out of the Travelers last year suggests this is not one of his favourite events, even though he has not finished outside the top twenty at TPC River Highlands in five starts.
That probably explains why he is a 12-1 shot this week. I tend to agree with the bookmakers’ view that we are unlikely to see the best of him until he is back on European soil, in the build-up to next month’s Open.
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Travelers Championship betting tips
Scottie Scheffler is the defending champion, and a short-priced favourite at 11-4. But he was well below his best at Oakmont, and had to dig really deep for a share of seventh.
Grinding is not the name of the game at the River Highlands. It is an easy par 70 at well short of 7,000 yards, and it tends to be a birdie-fest – Jim Furyk shot a PGA Tour record 58 here a few years ago, and Cameron Young shot 59 last year.
Scheffler finished 22 under par a year ago, just a shot adrift of Keegan Bradley’s tournament record. But if the world No 1 putts the way he did at Oakmont, he is not going to get near that number.
But Xander Schauffele might. The world No 3 began to look like the player who captured two Majors last year with an improved showing at Oakmont. He has a great record in this event, including a victory in 2022.
At 16-1 he represents the best value at the top end of the market, and I think previous form here should count for plenty when trying to identify the other likely contenders.
Keegan Bradley is another former champion, and is the leading all-time prize money winner here. He did not get beaten up as badly as some at Oakmont, and at 35-1 he has to come into the equation.
Young’s sub-60 score a year ago came in the third round – but he was so far off the pace that he could only just sneak into the top ten, despite following up with a closing 66.
Young also looked like a player returning to form when he finished tied fourth in the US Open, closing with a level par 70. He is still chasing a first PGA Tour win, but 45-1 still seems fairly generous.
Brian Harman is also a course specialist – sort of. He is third in the all-time money list here, although he has yet to win the event. He battled hard at Oakmont – a course totally unsuited to his game – and is worth a small interest at 66-1.
The duo who fought out the finish at Oakmont, JJ Spaun and Robert MacIntyre, both tee it up again in an event that features 45 of the top fifty players in the world.
They could both be forgiven a bit of a comedown after their US Open exertions. So I would prefer small stakes on a couple of other long priced contenders.
Akshay Bhatia was fifth here last year and is available at 70-1, while there is more to come from 90-1 chance Andrew Novak.
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The other big event taking place this week is the Women’s PGA Championship, at PGA Frisco in Texas – a new venue for this Major.
It may come as another shock not to see Nelly Korda’s name at the top of the market. But 8-1 favourite Jeeno Thitikul of Thailand is proving ultra-consistent this year, and is threatening to knock the American off the top of the world rankings.
Korda is 9-1 second best, but I’m reluctant to take single figures at a course that is an unknown factor.
So the players who stand out are 20-1 shot Haeran Ryu – the best tee to green player on the LPGA Tour – and Rio Takeda, already a Major winner this year despite being a relative rookie at this level.
Takeda can be backed at 33-1. Angel Yin and Mao Saigo are around the same price, and both are in good form.
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