PGA Championship Preview
Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York
The coveted Wanamaker Trophy is on the line this week for the best golfers in the world. A full field of the top 50 in the world rankings that includes the LIV golfers and 106 additional golfers each paving their own road to qualifying to compete. The early reports from the course paint a treacherous framework of exceptionally firm greens and fairways, thick and sticky rough, and abundantly deep bunkers. We are looking forward to seeing the best golfers in the world being humbled by these elements.
The Field:
The best of the best will be battling it out in New York. Justin Thomas is the reigning champion with one of the best come from behind wins and maybe one of the most epic meltdowns by Mito Pereira. Just a riveting ending at Southern Hills last year. The LIV golfers will be in the field as well with Phil Mickelson leading the hot run from Augusta and his 2021 PGA Championship. Will Jordan Spieth be able with to complete the career grand slam this week after not playing last week with a left wrist injury? Jason Day will be looking to continue his great start to the season coming off a beautiful come from behind win at the Byron Nelson. Can Brooks Koepka shake off his Masters collapse and regain the Wanamaker Trophy after winning it back to back in 2018 and 2019. So many storylines will be in the mix this week, all while Jon Rahm and Scottie Scheffler the top two golfers in the world will be strolling around Oak Hill looking to trounce the dramatic storylines and once again prove they are the best right now. DDSN favorite West Texas Driving Range Pro JJ Killeen will be in the field this week and wish him the best of luck.
The Course:
Oak Hill CC has hosted six major championships the most recent being the 2013 PGA Championship won by Jason Dufner who is in the field this week. The course has seen major renovations since 2013 with alterations to holes 5, 6, and 15. Many trees have been removed from the course, but only to allow the rough and turf to grow thicker and tighter allowing additional sun to fuel the growth. The early videos from Oak Hill show the investment has paid dividends with balls being dropped and completely disappearing from view. Looking at the score card there is no easy scoring holes. A par 70 card with only two par 5s both boasting over 600yds, add two of the four par 3s being over 230yds will all play a factor in scoring chances. The only day where weather may be a factor is Saturday with a 70% chance of rain. It will be chilly for morning rounds so take that into account for lineups.
TexHoss Top 5:
Jon Rahm +800
Jason Day +2500
Brooks Koepka +1800
Cameron Young +2500
Collin Morikawa +2800
Tournament Wagers (via Draft Kings):
Tournament Matchup: Adam Scott OVER Wyndham Clark (+100)
Tournament Matchup: Brooks Koepka OVER Rory McIlroy (+115)
Tournament Matchup: Xander Schauffele OVER Patrick Cantlay (-120)
Tournament Matchup: Viktor Hovland OVER Justin Thomas (+100)
Tournament Group: Rickie Fowler OVER Gooch, W. Clark, Fleetwood & Niemann (+300) [*added 5/17 8:57pm]
Top South American: Joaquinn Niemann (+125)
Top Scandinavian: Viktor Hovland (+100)
Top 20: Rickie Fowler (+200) [*added 5/17 8:57pm]
DDSN Projected Top 25:
Hideki Matsuyama
Xander Schauffele
Viktor Hovland
Jon Rahm
Phil Mickelson
Tyrrell Hatton
Scottie Scheffler
Joaquin Niemann
Tony Finau
Matt Fitzpatrick
Tommy Fleetwood
Patrick Reed
Dustin Johnson
Jason Day
Brooks Koepka
Bryson DeChambeau
Russ Henley
Sungjae Im
Sahith Theegala
Collin Morikawa
Cam Smith
Si Woo Kim
Cameron Young
Justin Thomas
Sam Burns