PGA Tour Golf Betting Odds: Workday Charity Open Predictions
The originally scheduled PGA Tour event this week was to be the John Deere Classic from Silvis, Illinois, but that has been cancelled and replaced with a new tournament: The Workday Charity Open from Muirfield Village Golf Club outside Columbus, Ohio. Justin Thomas is favoured on the golf odds.
The John Deere had been held annually since 1972, but tournament organizers opted to cancel it in late May over concerns that no fans would be allowed to attend – i.e. it would lose money — and the fact it would have been tough for players to practice social distancing because of small facilities, etc.
The John Deere often struggled to lure a strong field because it’s held the week before the British Open, which also was canceled this year due to the coronavirus. The John Deere Classic should return next year, coronavirus-willing.
PGA Tour Golf Betting
So, it’s a very unusual situation at Jack Nicklaus’ Muirfield Village track because not only will it host the fill-in Workday Charity Open but also next week’s Memorial Tournament. There will be a stellar field for the latter, including the expected restart debut of Tiger Woods. Not so much this week. The course will be set up a bit differently this week than next, with slightly shorter rough and green speeds. Some tee boxes will be changed as well. Long story short: Muirfield Village should play easier this week than next.
Needless to say, it will be a challenge to handicap the Workday Charity Open considering it has never been played previously and course conditions are basically unknown. It’s expected to be a 157-player field barring withdrawals (one more than usual with Chase Koepka added late last week after he WD from the recent Travelers Championship out of coronavirus caution; he tested negative) with a $6.2 million purse that is one of the lowest on Tour.
Workday Charity Open Odds
Bryson DeChambeau, who won the Rocket Mortgage Classic on Sunday in Detroit, is taking the week off. No doubt at least a few guys are using this event as a glorified practice round for next week’s tournament.
Thomas is the +1100 favourite. He didn’t play in Detroit and missed the cut the previous week at the Travelers Championship. Brooks Koepka withdrew from the Travelers out of caution after his caddie tested positive for the coronavirus but is back this week and +1400.
For what it’s worth, Patrick Cantlay is the defending champion of the Memorial Tournament, but again the course is going to be quite a bit different this week. He’s +1200. Spain’s Jon Rahm and Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama are both +1400 with Koepka. Rahm took last week off, while Matsuyama was 21st.
Canadian Adam Hadwin is +4000. He finished T4 in Detroit, shooting all four rounds in the 60s. Corey Conners is +7000 after taking last week off. Mackenzie Hughes is +9000. He comes off a T3 two weeks ago at the Travelers Championship and shot a career-best 60 in Round 1. Nick Taylor is +15000, and Roger Sloan and David Hearn both +50000.
Workday Charity Open Golf Predictions
Bet Cantlay and former Memorial champion Matt Kuchar for Top 10s, but the winner is Rickie Fowler at +2800. He comes off a T12 in Detroit and has contended at the Memorial a few times.