PGA Tour – The Players Championship: Our Expert Selections & Staking Plan

5 years ago - Sportingbase

The PGA Tour heads to Sawgrass for the fifth major – The Players Championship

Course form

This tournament was one of the first to be cancelled due to COVID last year so Rory McIlroy will finally get to defend the title he won in 2019. He has a decent record at a tough Sawgrass course.

It is a place where experience tends to pay off. There have been just two debutants that have won the event and there has not been one for 19 years. That doesn’t mean it is a place where favourites are always going to win – just that it is good to have some sort of experience of the famous layout.

While being long can help on any course, it is not the sort of place that somebody like Bryson DeChambeau can come and just blast his driver on every hole. You need to plot your way around so that could open up the field a little.

Players in good touch

Tony Finau has once again started the season very well. But once again he can’t find that win. He has three runner up finishes already this year and he is too good of a player for this drought to continue.

DeChambeau won last week but he just isn’t a winner of this tournament for me. Is he capable of winning any event he tees it up at? Of course. But at the price I am staying away.

Patrick Cantlay leads the tour in strokes gained this year and he really has the game for this course. I really like his prospects here.

A long shot

Sungjae Im put himself in position for a very good finish when I tipped him last week but a woeful final day really cost him. But he is a really nice price here and we can feel confident he will be there or thereabouts again. He showed he is in good touch last week, he just couldn’t put it all together.

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