After a laughably short off-season, the opening event of the 2022-23 PGA Tour season takes place at Silverado Resort and Spa in Napa, California with Max Homa and Hideki Matsuyama taking center stage this week.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: September 14th, 8:00 A.M. (EST)
At 17.00 to win via the oddsmakers at bet365, the 2021 Fortinet champion, Max Homa, is jumping off the page. Homa is a complete player that excels with every club in his bag, but what makes him elite is his precision iron play. Homa is among the best approach players in the world.
The Californian last teed it up at the Tour Championship finishing T5 after starting the week eight shots back of the lead. Had the tournament been straight up stroke play, and not a glorified handicap system, Homa would have finished solo third.
Homa captured two wins last season, but only placed inside the top five two other times. So rather than betting Homa to land in the top five at 5.25, you are better off placing your money on him to take home the whole thing as it seems as though when the Twitter legend gets a sniff of frosting, he takes the whole cake.
Given his recent form, Taylor Pendrith is undervalued at 29.00. The Canadian bomber has been one of the best players in the world over the past three months finishing T13 or better in 6 of his last 7 events. His OGWR is 107, but he is easily a top 40 player in the world and his world ranking simply cannot keep up with his breakout form.
Pendrith finished T36 last year at this event, but at that time he was not the iron and wedge player he is today. Look for him to be battling alongside his fellow countryman in Corey Conners (19.00) on Sunday. Conners gets it done in a different manner than Pendrith as where Pendrith is one of the longest on tour, Conners is extremely accurate off the tee and on his approach into the greens.
Both players are showing excellent form as of late and are worthy of some attention, especially with the newfound bravado that comes with solidifying their spots for the Presidents Cup. Taylor Pendrith at 8.00 to place in the top five and Corey Conners at 5.00 to finish in the top 6 both feel like bets to watch. If they are indeed battling on Sunday, it will be a treat to watch the two go head-to-head.
This Weeks ‘Longshots’:
- Justin Suh, Outright Winner: 56.00
- Chris Gotterup, First Round Leader: 81.00
- Denny McCarthy, Leader After Round 3: 61.00
Justin Suh is coming off a massive win at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship. His 2022 summer proved that he is the real deal. Similar to Max Homa, Suh is a complete player, who excels with his irons. Knowing this, it would be no surprise to see the Korn Ferry champ step up and get in the mix come Sunday.
Chris Gotterup is another up and coming stud that can drive the ball a mile. Being in college just last year and coming off two missed cuts, I don’t see Gotterup necessarily putting together a complete week. With that said, when you are over +3.0 strokes gained driving distance, if you can just keep the ball in play and make putts, you can go extremely low. Watch for Gotterup to have a birdie fest Thursday but tail off for the remainder of the event.
Denny McCarthy might be the best putter on the planet. He spoke on the Fried Egg Podcast in length about his pursuit of more speed. As he has not played since August 21st, if he is able to pick up some speed with his putting, look for him to be a top 25-30 player in the world. He’s definitely one to watch come the weekend.
The first event of the season is always exciting with fresh blood and some veterans looking to get started on the right foot. Tune into all the action to see if a Canadian will come out on top or if any of the young gun Americans will take the lead on Sunday afternoon.
