Opinion & Analysis

Bryson DeChambeau, the next American golf superstar

Published

8 years ago

Apr 22, 2016

Working with competitive junior golfers has been a cornerstone of my business for a quarter century. Consequently, I’ve been fortunate to have either coached or been exposed to innumerable great young golfers over the years. Many of them have ultimately gone on to play collegiately and professionally.

Part of that exposure comes from the fact that for two decades, my club has hosted one of the premier junior golf tournaments in Northern California, with players coming from around the region to test their mettle against some of the best. With so many good, young players coming through our facility over the years, I like to think I’ve developed a pretty keen insight into the differences between those who ultimately become the great ones and those who don’t. And while I’ve seen a lot of really good kids come and go, there are a handful who left an impression that still stands.

The first time I saw this one particular kid was about a decade ago. I was out checking on a few students who were playing in that big junior tournament when I came upon a group of younger kids approaching our 15th hole, a tough par-4 with an incredibly difficult green that might be appropriately described as an escapee from Pinehurst No. 2. For some strange reason, I decided to wait just behind the green for their approach despite the fact that the group was more than 150 yards away and they were kids from the boys 10 and 11 division, a group unlikely to hit the green from that distance even if they had it teed up with a driver. The last kid to hit was easily a gimme putt short of 5-feet tall, but the longest off the tee. When he played his approach, I remember thinking, “Great swing.” “Wow,” I said a few moments later as the ball dropped softly on the green and rolled up to within 3 feet. That kid went on to win the event comfortably that day. His name was Bryson DeChambeau.

A decade later, DeChambeau has stormed onto the golf public’s consciousness in a way that few promising young golfers have in recent memory. Armed with ample personality and an NCAA Individual Championship — as well as a U.S. Amateur Championship in 2015 — the kid from Clovis, California, plays unconventional irons cut all to the same length, wears a throwback Hogan-style cap and models his swing after theories put forth in “The Golfing Machine” (an out-of-print book from the 1960s written by a Boeing engineer who didn’t even play the sport), DeChambeau hopes to impact the game in a way similar to a couple of guys named Arnie and Jack.

Now some roll their eyes at comments like that, but DeChambeau is backing it up. In just a couple of weeks, he’s gone from the quirky reigning U.S. Amateur Champ to one of the most talked-about players in the game thanks to an impressive finish in the Masters. And if not for a couple of successive head-scratching drives on No. 18 on Friday, he might have found himself playing in the final group on the weekend and threatening to be the first amateur to ever win The Masters.

And what did he do for an encore? Well, just turn professional, sign mega endorsement deals with Cobra/Puma and Bridgestone, and make his professional debut in the RBC Heritage Classic at Hilton Head, finishing in fourth place despite putting poorly throughout the event. It was an impressive debut to say the least, but if he made as many putts inside 15 feet as eventual winner Branden Grace did, he could have won his first career start as a professional outright by five shots.

A lot has been said already about DeChambeau’s mad scientist approach to the game (he majored in physics at SMU), his big personality (have you seen his Carl Spackler from Caddyshack impression?) and his old-school sense of style, but somewhat lost in all of that is the fact that there is at least as much substance to the kid as style, and at the moment, he’s navigating near-uncharted waters competitively.

Only four players have previously won an NCAA Championship and the U.S. Amateur in the same year: Ryan Moore, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus. That’s walking in tall cotton. And how did each fare in their first Masters? Only Moore bested DeChambeau’s tie for 21st, finishing in 13th place, but he was never in contention. Mickelson and Woods finished 47th and 41st, respectively, and the esteemed Mr. Nicklaus actually missed the cut.

What about their professional debuts? Moore tied for 51st in the 2005 Westchester Classic and took more than a year to crack the top-5 in any event. Mickelson debuted with a 68 in the ’92 U.S. Open, but followed that up with an 81 and missed the cut. Tiger, while earning a win fairly quickly (his fifth start in Las Vegas), finished an uninspiring 60th at the Greater Milwaukee Open in his first event as a pro. And Jack? Nicklaus finished in a tie for last place out of all 50 players making the cut at Rancho Park in the 1962 Tour opener, making a whopping $33.33.

If you’re paying attention, this means DeChambeau has done nothing less than kick off his professional career in a fashion that didn’t just eclipse the only other four to have accomplished what he did last year by winning the NCAA and U.S. Amateur in the same season, but in a far better fashion than Mickelson (one of golf’s biggest superstars of he past two decades), as well as Woods and Nicklaus, the two players who are arguably the best the professional game has ever seen.

Now with those competitive credentials, DeChambeau arrives on the scene with plenty of credibility, but it is really his story, his personal style and his ample personality that sets him apart from the hordes of good young automatons who come along in our sport each day. And whether or not the golf-consuming public realizes it, we crave creativity, personality, individuality, and story, especially when it is backed up with substance, but often even when it isn’t.

We admired Jack, with his nerves of steel and incredible record, but we loved Arnie and his wild lash at the ball and swash-buckling style. We marveled at Woods and mostly cheered his dominance, but never warmed up to him the same way that we did (and still do) to Mickelson with his bewildered smile, amazing short game and ever-present potential for a train wreck. We love (and hate) Bubba, with his name, his pink driver, his home-made swing, prodigious drives and penchant for putting his foot in his mouth now and then, too. And now and then we even still cheer for John Daly, maybe not as loud, but far more than we would for any other player with a similar playing record because of his colorful persona.

Now if you need one last bit of proof, then look no further than another young player who arrived on the scene a few years ago with plenty of personality and style — DeChambeau’s Cobra/Puma stablemate Rickie Fowler, who garnered far more of the spotlight and far bigger galleries at every Tour stop than you could argue his playing credentials merited until his win at The Player’s Championship just last year.

Now of course, all this doesn’t mean young Bryson won’t have his ups and downs, and this is only the beginning of his young story. We’ve seen time and again that the golf world often dubs someone the next Jordan, the next Nicklaus, or the next Tiger, and the pressure becomes an unwelcome burden that stunts, stalls or even kills a career. So I caution us all to temper our enthusiasm and not only enjoy what he’s doing at the moment, but to let him enjoy it as well without being hyper-critical.

Most 22-year-old kids aren’t in a position to charter a private jet home after their first week on the job (DeChambeau did), and he’s bound to make a few missteps here and there. And since he hasn’t even won his first event yet, predicting that he is going to be the next this or that may sound a bit premature… but consider the following. If you’re not sold yet, and I think you just might start to agree with why I think we are witnessing the the next big chapter in professional golf.

You see, I forgot to mention it to this point, but there’s one more thing we like in players: humility.

About half dozen years ago, I was posting scores on the scoreboard during that same premier junior event when I was handed Bryson DeChambeau’s scorecard. An 81. I was more than a little surprised. And so was he. He was a much more accomplished player by that point, fresh off playing in the Junior World Championships, and it wasn’t the type of score he was used to shooting.

Now, my club is an extremely challenging golf course, and I’ve been witness to more than a few accomplished young players coming through here and shooting rounds that didn’t quite meet their expectations. These are the kind of rounds we call “trunk slammers,” where players turn their scorecard in with a perfunctory thanks, throw the clubs in the trunk and storm off in a huff not waiting around to even see who won.

What did the kid from Clovis do?

While obviously a bit disappointed in his performance, he hung around and chatted with all the other players, sympathizing with them on how tough the course had played that day, and was nothing short of polite and approachable to everyone. It may have been just a little thing, but it sticks out when you’ve been around as many good young players as I have in the past quarter century.

All of that is why I think when people look on these past couple of weeks in pro golf, they’re not just going to remember them as the downfall of American golf’s current superstar, Jordan Spieth, when he gave away the Masters. I think they’re going to look back and remember the birth of the next American superstar, a kid from Clovis, California, named Bryson DeChambeau.

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Mike Dowd

Mike Dowd is the author of the new novel COMING HOME and the Lessons from the Golf Guru: Wit, Wisdom, Mind-Tricks & Mysticism for Golf and Life series. He has been Head PGA Professional at Oakdale Golf & CC in Oakdale, California since 2001, and is serving his third term on the NCPGA Board of Directors and Chairs the Growth of the Game Committee. Mike has introduced thousands of people to the game and has coached players that have played golf collegiately at the University of Hawaii, San Francisco, U.C. Berkeley, U.C. Davis, University of the Pacific, C.S.U. Sacramento, C.S.U. Stanislaus, C.S.U. Chico, and Missouri Valley State, as men and women on the professional tours. Mike currently lives in Turlock, California with his wife and their two aspiring LPGA stars, where he serves on the Turlock Community Theatre Board, is the past Chairman of the Parks & Recreation Commission and is a member of the Kiwanis Club of Greater Turlock. In his spare time (what's that?) he enjoys playing golf with his girls, writing, music, fishing and following the foibles of the Sacramento Kings, the San Francisco 49ers, the San Francisco Giants, and, of course, the PGA Tour. You can find Mike at mikedowdgolf.com.

35 Comments

BrentF

Apr 23, 2016 at 10:18 pm

Comments on this site are ridiculous. BD has a great game…he’s better than everyone that posts here…the article was interesting…go to the range and practice and stop being so judgemental and snide.

Reply Report comment
scot

Apr 23, 2016 at 8:36 pm

seems the author is more concerned about making a case for his greatness than the potential of BD

Reply Report comment
Dj

Apr 23, 2016 at 2:57 pm

Dechambeau is a cocky kid, thinks he’s better than everyone else and just wants to be different for the spot light. It’s working, but not for long.

Reply Report comment
Matthew Bacon

Apr 23, 2016 at 10:07 am

He seems like a nice guy but no.

Reply Report comment
Christosterone

Apr 23, 2016 at 9:11 am

Remember when Hal Sutton was the next Nicklaus? Yeah, me neither….but he was…not
The only next Jack is Tiger….Phil is Tom Watson….Vijay is Johnny Miller….Dustin Johnson is Tom Weiskopf…..Zach Johnson is Larry Nelson….nobody is the Next Palmer because he was the coolest man to ever hit the links
-Christosterone

Reply Report comment
Mark

Apr 23, 2016 at 5:28 am

Ah yes this year’s model. Our Pro is convinced his swing will destroy his back. He comes across as a great bloke and is waaaay more intelligent than a lot of his peers (apologies to Jimmy Walker). But, and it is a huge but, is there are so many brilliant non Americans arriving on the scene every year that Bryson is not guaranteed success.

Reply Report comment
- Scott
  
  Apr 25, 2016 at 11:12 am
  
  Your “pro” should really look at what is happening in his swing before making such a ridiculous statement. Bryson has removed all of the torque on his lower back. His swing and back should last a long time. You should probably just look for a “pro” that pays attention.
  
  Reply Report comment
RG

Apr 23, 2016 at 1:49 am

Way to go out on a limb. If I had not read this article I wouldn’t even know who Bryson DeChambeau is. So he’s pretty good huh? Unconventional you say. I didn’t know. Well way to make a call, I had not heard that we should expect great things from him or that he was anything special. Very informative.

Reply Report comment
Jordan Speeth

Apr 22, 2016 at 7:44 pm

Seems like I’ve heard this somewhere before….oh yeah, about Bryson deChambeau, by every golf writer on earth. Can’t we wait until he actually accomplishes something? I know his amateur record well, but that means not much right now unless he adds to that with a professional record. He is the same age as Jordan Spieth, and without doing a thing other than place well in some professional tournaments, he’s already the greatest thing that ever came along. I hope he does well. I hope all of them do well, but to hear this over and over when nothing’s happened yet is a joke. I also find his swagger to be annoying without anything to rest on. You hardly see Rory, Jordan, or Ricky behaving this way. I think it was Einstein who said that the truly brilliant minds are the ones that are able to explain complicated things in simple terms that everyone can understand. Bryson seems to want to complicate everything about his playing/swing philosophy to make himself appear smarter than everyone around him….kind of like his mentor, Homer Kelly. BTW, he’s about to miss his first cut. Can we at least please hold off on the coronation until he wins a Tour event…anything?…. I’m not even asking for a major.

Reply Report comment
Mike

Apr 22, 2016 at 6:02 pm

Nice article. Stat on Ryan Moore is incorrect. He finished T2 in his 5th PGA Tour start as a pro in the Canadian Open, not a year like the article states.

Reply Report comment
Mike Dowd

Apr 22, 2016 at 4:48 pm

I definitely appreciate (and agree with) the sentiment of those who think we should see a little more from the “Prince” of pro golf (as Tom W. called him) before we crown him the “King” of anything. One of the biggest points I was actually making was how we too often tend to fall in love with players with “style” before they show us much “substance” and Rickie was a prime example of that. Now I do think the fact that he’s done something that only 4 players have done previously (even if that was as an amateur), does give him just a bit more credibility than most as he arrives on the professional scene, but, as Ty said, we definitely need to see how this plays out. I like his chances, though, and if he’s getting more eyeballs (like Bryan’s) who weren’t terribly interested or inclined to tune in then he’ll be good for golf, and it’s been just about 20 years since we’ve been able to say that about anyone.

Reply Report comment
Chuck D

Apr 22, 2016 at 3:24 pm

And anoth’a thing, cut that driver down to 6 iron length and THEN I might show some interest!

Reply Report comment
Chuck D

Apr 22, 2016 at 3:20 pm

Really?! Can this next “Nicklaus” please win a significant amount of tournaments before we induct
him into the “unqualified” status of potential Hall of Flames, Urrrr, I mean Fame?! This premature
anointing of unproven talent is about to drive me from being interested as a fan to this sport. This obsession of immediately awarding these clowns elevated status because they finished 16th at major,
or simply because they were amateur champions is flat out ridiculous! Media….please stop the nonsense and hype machine at once! I know, I know, it’ll never happen.

Reply Report comment
snowman

Apr 22, 2016 at 2:45 pm

He could be great for the game if he can balance his unconventional/flamboyant style/personality and sincerely project some humility and not come off as cocky. Gotta win more than Rickie has so far or it will be just another marketing sideshow.

Reply Report comment
Mbwa Kali Sana

Apr 22, 2016 at 2:21 pm

Why turn youngsters into superstars ,when they haven’t acheived anything valuable yet!
BRYSON DECHAMBEAU is good looking , Plays a good golf game ,but nothing extraordinary .
Hé certainly has a very good public relations Man working for him .
Now ,it’s. Not with his single plane swing and évén length irons That hé will come to the top .
Nô GREAT champion ,except eccentric MOE NORMAN has won a major with a single plane swing and same shaft irons ..

Reply Report comment
- Tom
  
  Apr 23, 2016 at 6:30 am
  
  Better question is can you even name another pro who played SL irons other than Moe Norman?
  
  Reply Report comment
- Sam
  
  Apr 24, 2016 at 1:14 pm
  
  Ummmmm……Moe Norman never played in the US Open, Open Championship or the PGA Championship and got cut from the Masters the one time he played.
  
  Reply Report comment
Blake

Apr 22, 2016 at 2:19 pm

Please please stop talking about this guy. His whole persona is tiring and the media constantly shoving him down our throats does little for him.

Reply Report comment
birdy

Apr 22, 2016 at 1:40 pm

bryson played in several pro events leading up to his first ‘official’ pro event. comparing his finish to others in their true first round little misleading. other than that good article and have no doubt he’s the real deal.

Reply Report comment
Joe

Apr 22, 2016 at 1:36 pm

I like the kid, he has a really good game. As far as humility, he doesn’t have much. However, very few outstanding players in any sport have much humility. When you think you are one of the elite thinking you can leap tall buildings in a single bound is normal.

We will see how it goes.

Reply Report comment
Moo

Apr 22, 2016 at 1:30 pm

Or the next ‘Tommy Two Gloves’.

Reply Report comment
- Jay
  
  Apr 22, 2016 at 11:48 pm
  
  Hasn’t he at least won on tour?
  
  Reply Report comment
Ty Tryon

Apr 22, 2016 at 12:35 pm

Someone said this about me one time.
Golf is a sport where things are earned not guaranteed. Let’s all just see how this plays out

Reply Report comment
- Forsbrand
  
  Apr 22, 2016 at 2:47 pm
  
  No way! Ty I wa only checking out your swing from the US Open a couple of years ago. Amazing swing!
  
  You will have your chance Ty don’t you worry you are too good not to succeed. Perhaps you don’t realise that enough yet?!
  
  You are right let Bryson develop on his own, the media is too keen to promote with one hand and then smash you the following day with the other.
  
  All the best Ty
  
  Reply Report comment
- Forsbrand
  
  Apr 23, 2016 at 7:58 am
  
  Hey M Sizzle what’s the M short for? Mug?!!
  
  Reply Report comment
Emb

Apr 22, 2016 at 12:05 pm

Humility? Clearly you haven’t been paying much attention to the kid if you think he has anything approaching humility. DeChambeau is right up there with Mickelson as King of the phonies.

Reply Report comment
- MarkB A
  
  Apr 22, 2016 at 12:14 pm
  
  Well you may not like him the kid has game and plays the modern game of golf. Phil can still play it at times. Tiger can no longer play with the modern players. Golf has passed him by. The future belongs to young plays like DeChambeau
  
  Reply Report comment
- Mike Dowd
  
  Apr 22, 2016 at 12:55 pm
  
  Well I think there can be a fine line between projecting confidence and arrogance and it is most often in the eye of the beholder. Confidence is paramount in golf and things a player says, especially to the press following a round, are often as much to protect their own sense of belief and self-confidence as anything and can come off to the casual observer at times as arrogant. Additionally, we are so used to so many players that are so milk toast and bereft of personality that when someone comes along who has a little it invariably rubs some people the wrong way. Ultimately, we are in an entertainment business and, love him or hate him, this kid is an entertainer. And finally, actions speak louder than words, and for now at least, I can only go on the actions I’ve seen firsthand, rather than a few comments I may hear second-hand to the contrary. At least until, as Ty says, the kid’s got a bigger body of work to draw from. Thanks for your views!
  
  Reply Report comment
  - Johny Thunder
    
    Apr 22, 2016 at 5:15 pm
    
    “milquetoast”
    
    Reply Report comment
- Al Czervik
  
  Apr 22, 2016 at 3:11 pm
  
  Thank you… This is the exact impression I got from watching him during the post round press conferences. Give him a few years and I have a feeling he’ll dethrone Mickelson as “King”.
  
  Reply Report comment
McLovin

Apr 22, 2016 at 11:08 am

i like that he copied Vicki Hurst’s choice in golf caps

Reply Report comment
Bryan

Apr 22, 2016 at 11:03 am

Not saying he is the next Tiger Woods of golf…but he might be…His use of SL irons might spark an industry change in iron design and we may actually start seeing major OEM manufactures putting out SL irons. Of course a lot of this rides on how well he does as a pro.

However; to compare him to three of the greatest golfers of all time, one being Tiger, I don’t think it is far fetched to say, he could be the next Tiger Woods of golf…

Reply Report comment
Tom W.

Apr 22, 2016 at 10:48 am

I like DeChambeau’s flair he’s the “Prince” of pro golf.

Reply Report comment
- Bryan
  
  Apr 22, 2016 at 11:05 am
  
  As of right now I’ve never had interest in following pro golf, not even Tiger when he came out. However; this kids use of SL irons has sparked my interest to follow pro golf, much like millions of people did when Tiger came on scene. His style of hat may become the next fad lol…
  
  Reply Report comment
  - Double Mocha Man
    
    Apr 22, 2016 at 2:48 pm
    
    I’m off to buy a Kangol cap right now…
    
    Reply Report comment

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s 2024 Wells Fargo Championship betting preview: Tommy Fleetwood ready to finally land maiden PGA Tour title

Published

21 hours ago

May 6, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

The PGA Tour season ramps back up this week for another “signature event,” as golf fans look forward to the year’s second major championship next week.

After two weaker-field events in the Zurich Classic and the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, most of the best players in the world will head to historic Quail Hollow for one of the best non-major tournaments of the year.

Last season, Wyndham Clark won the event by four shots.

Quail Hollow is a par-71 measuring 7,521 yards that features Bermudagrass greens. The tree-lined, parkland style course can play quite difficult and features one of the most difficult three-hole stretches in golf known as “The Green Mile,” which makes up holes 16-18: two mammoth par 4s and a 221-yard par 3. All three holes have an average score over par, and water is in play in each of the last five holes on the course.

The field is excellent this week with 68 golfers teeing it up without a cut. All of the golfers who’ve qualified are set to tee it up, with the exception of Scottie Scheffler, who is expecting the birth of his first child.

Past Winners at Quail Hollow

2023: Wyndham Clark (-19)
2022: Max Homa (-8)
2021: Rory McIlroy (-10)
2019: Max Homa (-15)
2018: Jason Day (-12)
2017: Justin Thomas (-8) (PGA Championship)
2016: James Hahn (-9)
2015: Rory McIlroy (-21)

Key Stats For Quail Hollow

Strokes Gained: Approach

Strokes gained: Approach will be extremely important this week as second shots at Quail Hollow can be very difficult.

Total SG: Approach Over Past 24 Rounds

Akshay Bhatia (+1.16)
Tom Hoge (+1.12)
Corey Conners (+1.01)
Shane Lowry (+0.93)
Austin Eckroat (+0.82)

Strokes Gained: Off the Tee

Quail Hollow is a long course on which it is important to play from the fairway. Both distance and accuracy are important, as shorter tee shots will result in approach shots from 200 or more yards. With most of the holes heavily tree lined, errant drives will create some real trouble for the players.

Strokes Gained: Off the Tee Past 24 Rounds:

Ludvig Aberg (+0.73)
Rory McIlroy (+0.69)
Xander Schauffele (+0.62)
Viktor Hovland (+0.58)
Chris Kirk (+0.52)

Proximity: 175-200

The 175-200 range is key at Quail Hollow. Players who can hit their long irons well will rise to the top of the leaderboard.

Proximity: 175-200+ over past 24 rounds:

Cameron Young (28’2″)
Akshay Bhatia (29’6″)
Ludvig Aberg (+30’6″)
Sam Burns (+30’6″)
Collin Morikawa (+30’9″)

SG: Total on Tom Fazio Designs

Players who thrive on Tom Fazio designs get a bump for me at Quail Hollow this week.

SG: Total on Tom Fazio Designs over past 36 rounds:

Patrick Cantlay (+2.10)
Rory McIlroy (+1.95)
Tommy Fleetwood (+1.68)
Austin Eckroat (+1.60)
Will Zalatoris (+1.57)

Strokes Gained: Putting (Bermudagrass)

Strokes Gained: Putting has historically graded out as the most important statistic at Quail Hollow. While it isn’t always predictable, I do want to have it in the model to bump up golfers who prefer to putt on Bermudagrass.

Strokes Gained: Putting (Bermudagrass) Over Past 24 Rounds:

Taylor Moore (+0.82)
Nick Dunlap (+.76)
Wyndham Clark (+.69)
Emiliano Grillo (+.64)
Cam Davis (+.61)

Course History

This stat will incorporate players that have played well in the past at Quail Hollow.

Course History over past 36 rounds (per round):

Rory McIlroy (+2.50)
Justin Thomas (+1.96)
Jason Day (+1.92)
Rickie Fowler (+1.83)
Viktor Hovland (+1.78)

Wells Fargo Championship Model Rankings

Below, I’ve compiled overall model rankings using a combination of the five key statistical categories previously discussed — SG: Approach (27%), SG: Off the Tee (23%), SG: Total on Fazio designs (12%), Proximity: 175-200 (12%), SG: Putting Bermuda grass (12%), and Course History (14%).

Wyndham Clark
Rory McIlroy
Xander Schauffele
Shane Lowry
Hideki Matsuyama
Viktor Hovland
Cameron Young
Austin Eckroat
Byeong Hun An
Justin Thomas

2024 Wells Fargo Championship Picks

Tommy Fleetwood +2500 (DraftKings)

I know many out there have Tommy fatigue when it comes to betting, which is completely understandable given his lack of ability to win on the PGA Tour thus far in his career. However, history has shown us that players with Fleetwood’s talent eventually break though, and I believe for Tommy, it’s just a matter of time.

Fleetwood has been excellent on Tom Fazio designs. Over his past 36 rounds, he ranks 3rd in the field in Strokes Gained: Total on Fazio tracks. He’s also been incredibly reliable off the tee this season. He’s gained strokes in the category in eight of his past nine starts, including at The Masters, the PLAYERS and the three “signature events” of the season. Tommy is a golfer built for tougher courses and can grind it out in difficult conditions.

Last year, Fleetwood was the first-round leader at this event, firing a Thursday 65. He finished the event in a tie for 5th place.

For those worried about Fleetwood’s disappointing start his last time out at Harbour Town, he’s bounced back nicely after plenty of poor outings this season. His T7 at the Valero Texas Open was after a MC and T35 in his prior two starts and his win at the Dubai Invitational came after a T47 at the Sentry.

I expect Tommy to bounce back this week and contend at Quail Hollow.

Justin Thomas +3000 (DraftKings)

It’s been a rough couple of years for Justin Thomas, but I don’t believe things are quite as bad as they seem for JT. He got caught in the bad side of the draw at Augusta for last month’s Masters and has gained strokes on approach in seven of his nine starts in 2024.

Thomas may have found something in his most recent start at the RBC Heritage. He finished T5 at a course that he isn’t the best fit for on paper. He also finally got the putter working and ranked 15th in Strokes Gained: Putting for the week.

The two-time PGA champion captured the first of his two major championships at Quail Hollow back in 2017, and some good vibes from the course may be enough to get JT out of his slump.

Thomas hasn’t won an event in just about two years. However, I still believe that will change soon as he’s been one of the most prolific winners throughout his PGA Tour career. Since 2015, he has 15 PGA Tour wins.

Course history is pretty sticky at Quail Hollow, with players who like the course playing well there on a regular basis. In addition to JT’s PGA Championship win in 2017, he went 4-1 at the 2022 Presidents Cup and finished T14 at the event last year despite being in poor form. Thomas can return as one of the top players on the PGA Tour with a win at a “signature event” this week.

Cameron Young +3500 (DraftKings)

For many golf bettors, it’s been frustrating backing Cam Young this season. His talent is undeniable, and one of the best and most consistent performers on the PGA Tour. He just hasn’t broken through with a victory yet. Quail Hollow has been a great place for elite players to get their first victory. Rory McIlroy, Anthony Kim, Rickie Fowler and Wyndham Clark all notched their first PGA Tour win at Quail.

Throughout Cam Young’s career, he has thrived at tougher courses with strong fields. This season, he finished T16 at Riviera and T9 at Augusta National, demonstrating his preference of a tough test. His ability to hit the ball long and straight off the tee make him an ideal fit for Quail Hollow, despite playing pretty poorly his first time out in 2023 (T59). Young should be comfortable playing in the region as he played his college golf at Wake Forest, which is about an hour’s drive from Quail Hollow.

The 26-year-old has played well at Tom Fazio designs in the past and ranks 8th in the field in Strokes Gained: Total on those courses in his last 36 rounds. Perhaps most importantly, this season, Young is the best player on the PGA Tour in terms of proximity from 175-200 in the fairway, which is where a plurality and many crucial shots will come from this week.

Young is an elite talent and Quail Hollow has been kind to players of his ilk who’ve yet to win on Tour.

Byeong Hun An +5000 (FanDuel)

Byeong Hun An missed some opportunities last weekend at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. He finished T4 and played some outstanding golf, but a couple of missed short putts prevented him from getting to the winning score of -23. Despite not getting the win, it’s hard to view An’s performance as anything other than an overwhelming success. It was An’s fourth top-ten finish of the season.

Last week, An gained 6.5 strokes ball striking, which was 7th in the field. He also ranked 12th for Strokes Gained: Approach and 13th for Strokes Gained: Off the Tee. The South Korean has been hitting the ball so well from tee to green all season long and he now heads to a golf course that should reward his precision.

An’s driver and long irons are absolute weapons. At Quail Hollow, players will see plenty of approach shots from the 175-200 range as well as some from 200+. In his past 24 rounds, Ben ranks 3rd in the field in proximity from 175-200 and 12th in proximity from 200+. Playing in an event that will not end up being a “birdie” fest should help An, who can separate from the field with his strong tee to green play. The putter may not always cooperate but getting to -15 is much easier than getting to -23 for elite ball strikers who tend to struggle on the greens.

Winning a “signature event” feels like a tall task for An this week with so many elite players in the field. However, he’s finished T16 at the Genesis Invitational, T16 at The Masters and T8 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The 32-year-old’s game has improved drastically this season and I believe he’s ready to get the biggest win of his career.

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19th Hole

Vincenzi’s LIV Golf Singapore betting preview: Course specialist ready to thrive once again

Published

1 week ago

Apr 30, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

After another strong showing in Australia, LIV Golf will head to Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore looking to build off of what was undoubtedly their best event to date.

Sentosa Golf Club sits on the southern tip of Singapore and is one of the most beautiful courses in the world. The course is more than just incredible scenically; it was also rated 55th in Golf Digest’s top-100 courses in 2022-2023 and has been consistently regarded as one of the best courses in Asia. Prior to being part of the LIV rotation, the course hosted the Singapore Open every year since 2005.

Sentosa Golf Club is a par 71 measuring 7,406 yards. The course will require precise ball striking and some length off the tee. It’s possible to go low due to the pristine conditions, but there are also plenty of hazards and difficult spots on the course that can bring double bogey into play in a hurry. The Bermudagrass greens are perfectly manicured, and the course has spent millions on the sub-air system to keep the greens rolling fast. I spoke to Asian Tour player, Travis Smyth, who described the greens as “the best [he’s] ever played.”

Davis Love III, who competed in a Singapore Open in 2019, also gushed over the condition of the golf course.

“I love the greens. They are fabulous,” the 21-time PGA Tour winner said.

Love III also spoke about other aspects of the golf course.

“The greens are great; the fairways are perfect. It is a wonderful course, and it’s tricky off the tee.”

“It’s a long golf course, and you get some long iron shots. It takes somebody hitting it great to hit every green even though they are big.”

As Love III said, the course can be difficult off the tee due to the length of the course and the trouble looming around every corner. It will take a terrific ball striking week to win at Sentosa Golf Club.

In his pre-tournament press conference last season, Phil Mickelson echoed many of the same sentiments.

“To play Sentosa effectively, you’re going to have a lot of shots from 160 to 210, a lot of full 6-, 7-, 8-iron shots, and you need to hit those really well and you need to drive the ball well.”

Golfers who excel from tee to green and can dial in their longer irons will have a massive advantage this week.

Stat Leaders at LIV Golf Adelaide:

Fairways Hit

1.) Louis Oosthuizen

2.) Anirban Lahiri

3.) Jon Rahm

4.) Brendan Steele

5.) Cameron Tringale

Greens in Regulation

1.) Brooks Koepka

2.) Brendan Steele

3.) Dean Burmester

4.) Cameron Tringale

5.) Anirban Lahiri

Birdies Made

1.) Brendan Steele

2.) Dean Burmester

3.) Thomas Pieters

4.) Patrick Reed

5.) Carlos Ortiz

LIV Golf Individual Standings:

1.) Joaquin Niemann

2.) Jon Rahm

3.) Dean Burmester

4.) Louis Oosthuizen

5.) Abraham Ancer

LIV Golf Team Standings:

1.) Crushers

2.) Legion XIII

3.) Torque

4.) Stinger GC

5.) Ripper GC

LIV Golf Singapore Picks

Sergio Garcia +3000 (DraftKings)

Sergio Garcia is no stranger to Sentosa Golf Club. The Spaniard won the Singapore Open in 2018 by five strokes and lost in a playoff at LIV Singapore last year to scorching hot Talor Gooch. Looking at the course setup, it’s no surprise that a player like Sergio has played incredible golf here. He’s long off the tee and is one of the better long iron players in the world when he’s in form. Garcia is also statistically a much better putter on Bermudagrass than he is on other putting surfaces. He’s putt extremely well on Sentosa’s incredibly pure green complexes.

This season, Garcia has two runner-up finishes, both of them being playoff losses. Both El Camaleon and Doral are courses he’s had success at in his career. The Spaniard is a player who plays well at his tracks, and Sentosa is one of them. I believe Sergio will get himself in the mix this week. Hopefully the third time is a charm in Singapore.

Paul Casey +3300 (FanDuel)

Paul Casey is in the midst of one of his best seasons in the five years or so. The results recently have been up and down, but he’s shown that when he’s on a golf course that suits his game, he’s amongst the contenders.

This season, Casey has finishes of T5 (LIV Las Vegas), T2 (LIV Hong Kong), and a 6th at the Singapore Classic on the DP World Tour. At his best, the Englishman is one of the best long iron players in the world, which makes him a strong fit for Sentosa. Despite being in poor form last season, he was able to fire a Sunday 63, which shows he can low here at the course.

It’s been three years since Casey has won a tournament (Omega Dubai Desert Classic in 2021), but he’s been one of the top players on LIV this season and I think he can get it done at some point this season.

Mito Pereira +5000 (Bet365)

Since Mito Pereira’s unfortunate demise at the 2022 PGA Championship, he’s been extremely inconsistent. However, over the past few months, the Chilean has played well on the International Series as well as his most recent LIV start. Mito finished 8th at LIV Adelaide, which was his best LIV finish this season.

Last year, Pereira finished 5th at LIV Singapore, shooting fantastic rounds of 67-66-66. It makes sense why Mito would like Sentosa, as preeminent ball strikers tend to rise to the challenge of the golf course. He’s a great long iron player who is long and straight off the tee.

Mito has some experience playing in Asia and is one of the most talented players on LIV who’s yet to get in the winner’s circle. I have questions about whether or not he can come through once in contention, but if he gets there, I’m happy to roll the dice.

Andy Ogletree +15000 (DraftKings)

Andy Ogletree is a player I expected to have a strong 2024 but struggled early in his first full season on LIV. After failing to crack the top-25 in any LIV event this year, the former U.S. Amateur champion finally figured things out, finished in a tie for 3rd at LIV Adelaide.

Ogletree should be incredible comfortable playing in Singapore. He won the International Series Qatar last year and finished T3 at the International Series Singapore. The 26-year-old was arguably the best player on the Asian Tour in 2023 and has been fantastic in the continent over the past 18 months.

If Ogletree has indeed found form, he looks to be an amazing value at triple-digit odds.

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Opinion & Analysis

Ryan: Lessons from the worst golf instructor in America

Published

1 week ago

Apr 30, 2024

Brendan Ryan

In Tampa, there is a golf course that boasts carts that do not work, a water range, and a group of players none of which have any chance to break 80. The course is overseen by a staff of crusty men who have succeeded at nothing in life but ending up at the worst-run course in America. However, this place is no failure. With several other local courses going out of business — and boasting outstanding greens — the place is booked full.

While I came for the great greens, I stayed to watch our resident instructor; a poor-tempered, method teacher who caters to the hopeless. At first, it was simply hilarious. However, after months of listening and watching, something clicked. I realized I had a front-row seat to the worst golf instructor in America.

Here are some of my key takeaways.

Method Teacher

It is widely accepted that there are three types of golf instructors: system teachers, non-system teachers, and method teachers. Method teachers prescribe the same antidote for each student based on a preamble which teachers can learn in a couple day certification.

Method teaching allows anyone to be certified. This process caters to the lowest caliber instructor, creating the illusion of competency. This empowers these underqualified instructors with the moniker of “certified” to prey on the innocent and uninformed.

The Cult of Stack and Jilt

The Stack and Tilt website proudly boasts, “A golfer swings his hands inward in the backswing as opposed to straight back to 1) create power, similar to a field goal kicker moving his leg in an arc and 2) to promote a swing that is in-to-out, which produces a draw (and eliminates a slice).”

Now, let me tell you something, there is this law of the universe which says “energy can either be created or destroyed,” so either these guys are defying physics or they have no idea what they are taking about. Further, the idea that the first move of the backswing determines impact is conjecture with a splash of utter fantasy.

These are the pontifications of a method — a set of prescriptions applied to everyone with the hope of some success through the placebo effect. It is one thing for a naive student to believe, for a golf instructor to drink and then dispel this Kool-Aid is malpractice.

Fooled by Randomness

In flipping a coin, or even a March Madness bet, there is a 50-50 chance of success. In golf, especially for new players, results are asymmetric. Simply put: Anything can happen. The problem is that when bad instructors work with high handicappers, each and every shot gets its own diagnosis and prescription. Soon the student is overwhelmed.

Now here’s the sinister thing: The overwhelming information is by design. In this case, the coach is not trying to make you better, they are trying to make you reliant on them for information. A quasi Stockholm syndrome of codependency.

Practice

One of the most important scientists of the 20th century was Ivan Pavlov. As you might recall, he found that animals, including humans, could be conditioned into biological responses. In golf, the idea of practice has made millions of hackers salivate that they are one lesson or practice session from “the secret.”

Sunk Cost

The idea for the worst golf instructor is to create control and dependency so that clients ignore the sunk cost of not getting better. Instead, they are held hostage by the idea that they are one lesson or tip away from unlocking their potential.

Cliches

Cliches have the effect of terminating thoughts. However, they are the weapon of choice for this instructor. Add some hyperbole and students actually get no information. As a result, these players couldn’t play golf. When they did, they had no real scheme. With no idea what they are doing, they would descend into a spiral of no idea what to do, bad results, lower confidence, and running back to the lesson tee from more cliches.

The fact is that poor instruction is about conditioning players to become reliant members of your cult. To take away autonomy. To use practice as a form of control. To sell more golf lessons not by making people better but through the guise that without the teacher, the student can never reach their full potential. All under the umbrella of being “certified” (in a 2-day course!) and a melee of cliches.

This of course is not just happening at my muni but is a systemic problem around the country and around the world, the consequences of which are giving people a great reason to stop playing golf. But hey, at least it’s selling a lot of golf balls…

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