PGA Fans we are 1 day away from The American Express, in what some could call the Wild Wild West of the tour event schedule. We have a small group of some of the world's top players, a ton of young up-and-comers trying to put their names in the ring, and a good group of veterans.
What also throws this even a wrench is it is a Pro-Am so pros will be paired with amateurs for the first 3 rounds, then they have the cut for the final round, hence Wild West, including changing courses!
This event is played over 3 different courses, which will no doubt test these players. This can also level the playing field, especially depending on tee time, and starting position. This is going to be an amazing event so let's get right into it!
The field returns to California for their west coast swing, after the last 2 weeks in beautiful Hawaii. Three courses are featured in this event, PGA West/Pete Dye (The Stadium Course), La Quinta Country Club, and PGA West (Nicklaus Course).
Each course is a par 72, and all 3 are slightly different in terms of the style of play it warrants. In the past, one thing is true in this event, the players like to go low!
These courses are gettable, and they demand accuracy off the tee, a great approach game, and the ability to hit the ball with some proximity to the hole. Players that leave themselves birdie opportunity after birdie opportunity will be in contention.
Cole has finishes of T21 and T36 L2 here, coming off 5th last week and 52, T15 and T6. Last time they played a course where they switched courses during the event he finished T15 and T3. In those last 2 events here he gained 7.6 and 5.8 total strokes on field
He has also gained 8.7, 9.4 and 7.5 in 3/L4 events and is playing strong. Gauging Strokes Gained, two of these courses Cole plays 3rd and 4th best at on tour. Cole ranks 38th in birdie average and is one of the best putters on tour ranking 25th in putting average.
Griffin has T9 and T32 finishes here doing a ton with the putter. And what I love is he's in fantastic form in every other area of his bag, gaining positive strokes in the last 7 events in almost every category.
Also looking at Strokes Gained on all courses Griffin has played on tour, 2 of these courses are Griffin's 2nd and 3rd highest-rated courses to play. With Griffin's success here mainly due to his putter, and the fact that every other area has been crisp leading into this event, I believe he can put it all together for a fantastic finish.
He doesn't rank the highest in a ton of categories, but he is solid at scoring
average, birdie average, and what usually keeps him in position is his game off the tee.
Hall has been a staple of ours since last year and while this is a hesitant spot, it's just too hard to pass up. He has been on fire and made us some nice profits since last season. Finishes of T10, T8, T14, T13, 9, T35, T18, Cut, T12, Cut, T24, 1, T12, T31, he made Top 40 in 12/L14 events.
The one hesitation is he has never performed well here but on the flip side, he's never been this locked in heading into this tourney either. His struggles in the past here have seen him give back strokes off the tee, approach, and T2G, most of that has been cleaned up in this stretch, especially his T2G and TOT which he has gained strokes 7 straight events.
Hall ranks 14th in strokes gained total, 14th in scoring average, and 13th in birdie average. Hall's official world golf ranking is criminal!
My Best Bets (Top 40)
Eric Cole (-105)
Ben Griffin (-105)
Harry Hall (-120)
Bonus + Money Bets:
Davis Thompson Top 30 (+100)
Max Greyserman Top 30 (+100)