The short-lived golf offseason is over, and our staff is already prepared for the 2022 Fortinet Championship to begin the swing season.
While it’s not the most talented field we’ll see this year, top players such as betting favorite Max Homa, Hideki Matsuyama and Corey Conners are among those heading to Silverado Resort in Napa, California.
Five members of the OddsShopper and Stokastic staff are here to give you their favorite picks of the week, ranging from outright winners to top-20 placements.
And if DFS is more your thing, head over to our PGA page on Stokastic for projections, ownership and best-in-class simulation tools for all your golf needs.
Ben Rasa’s Pick: Corey Conners +1600 (BetMGM)
Conners looks to get started quickly this year teeing it up in the first event of the season. He is a pure ball striker who relies on the irons to do the heavy lifting in the majority of his events. The tee-to-green game should allow him ample birdie opportunities at this course and this is a much weaker field than he normally sees during the thick of the PGA season. We still can find him 16-1 in the outright market, and although that’s not where we are used to seeing his price I believe its warranted given the field strength. Look for Conners to be in the hunt come Sunday and he is my favorite top end target in the outright market.
Geoff Ulrich’s Pick: Davis Riley +3500 (DraftKings)
The American is coming off his first full season on the PGA TOUR, one where he posted five top-10s and a playoff loss. The talent is evident with Riley who gained over 2.5 strokes off the tee on six different occasions last season and sets up well for Silverado. There are a handful of great young players on the PGA TOUR who will be getting their second look at most of the fall venues this year and it should lead to lots of great betting opportunities over the next couple of months. For me, that opportunity starts this week with Riley who looks like solid value at anything over 30-1 in the outright market.
Alex Hunter’s Pick: Trey Mullinax +6000 (DraftKings)
Mullinax just closed out his 2022 campaign making five straight cuts, including three finishes inside the top-12, most notably with the first PGA victory of his career at the Barbasol Championship. Mullinax notably shot under par in 18 of these 20 rounds and moved himself up an eye-popping 255 spots in the official world rankings with this impressive stretch of golf. The 30-year-old now sits at a career-best 115th in the world. Plus, despite his uninspiring 1-4 record in terms of made cuts at the North Course of Silverado CC, Mullinax is a terrific fit for this short par-72 that has been dominated by bombers. Five of the last six winners at the North Course ranked inside the top-15 in driving distance during their victories and Mullinax finished ninth in the metric last season. The Alabama graduate is playing the best golf of his career right now and is worth rolling the dice on at this price.
Eric Lindquist’s Pick: Austin Eckroat +13000, +450 Top 20 (DraftKings)
This comes down to talent plus far too high of a number for his upside. For those who don’t know, I bring Eckroat up often as an up-and-comer to keep an eye on. And after securing his card for the 2022-23 season by way of a 2nd-place finish at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship, the bandwagon has a lot more room for those who would like to join. The former Oklahoma State standout absolutely bombs it off the tee with a near 315-yard average last season, but combines it with a well-rounded approach/short game, making him well-equipped to compete with the best in the world right from the jump.
Eytan Shander’s Pick: Gary Woodland +6000 (DraftKings)
With the emphasis on driving distance, iron-striking and putting, Woodland is a perfect middle in this Venn diagram of metrics. It’s also important to note that without bigger names in this tournament someone who normally has strong stats gets an even bigger boost to the field. Woodland finished the year with some notable numbers that immediately help him at Silverado. He finished 23rd on tour in driving distance, which is a necessary stat for recent winners at this course. Getting to the green on any second shot is also imperative. Woodland can do that, as he finished 34th in Strokes Gained: Tee to Green. Finally, while there isn’t as strong of a play on good putters, it’s certainly something that helps any long hitter like Woodland, as he ranked 60th in putting. This is as close to a complete player in these three metrics in this thin of a field. Woodland has won four times on tour and stands as good a chance as anyone 60-1 or longer to win.
