It’s that time of year again. The PGA Tour is headed to Kentucky, and this year’s PGA Championship will have several interesting storylines going into the event. Some fans will be focused on Tiger Woods’s hotly anticipated return to Valhalla, while others will be keeping a close eye on Scottie Scheffler, after he scored the biggest win of his career at Augusta last month. Plus, the likes of Rory McIlroy and defending champ Brooks Koepka can hardly be counted out.
If you’re looking to bet on the PGA Championship, we can help you make sense of the field. Back Scottie or take Rory? Can Brooks Koepka pull off a repeat? Who are the dark horses, and are there any Canadians to watch? Let’s get into the weeds and take a deeper look at the PGA Championship.
Scottie Scheffler to win the PGA Championship
+450
Canadians in the field
There will be a whopping six Canadians in the field at the PGA Championship. Some have a better shot at the crown than others, but this event will be important in determining who makes it to Paris and the Summer Olympics in a few months as well.
Corey Conners (+10000 at Sports Interaction): If there is anyone in the field that has an outside chance, it is Conners. He has been playing very well since the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March (T18). Over that time, he has four top-25 finishes – THE PLAYERS Championship (T13), Valero Texas Open (T25), Zurich Classic of New Orleans (T11), and Wells Fargo Championship (T13) – and is playing some of his best golf.
Adam Hadwin (+15000 at NorthStar Bets): Hadwin has been as boom-or-bust as it gets this season. He has missed three cuts and failed to crack the top 50 in three other events. Then again, he finished T6 at The American Express, T4 at The Genesis Invitational, and T5 at the Valspar Championship. Hadwin is inconsistent, but his best has proven to be pretty good so far this season.
Nick Taylor (+22500 at bet365): Taylor already has a win on Tour this season, taking the WM Phoenix Open in a playoff. He has a pair of top-10 finishes as well – Sony Open in Hawaii (T7) and Zurich Classic of New Orleans (10th) – but the rest of his finishes are all over the place. He’s also coming off a missed cut at the Masters, the most recent major event.
Mackenzie Hughes (+12500 at NorthStar Bets): It took some time for Hughes to get going, but he has been very good over the last six weeks. It started with a T3 finish at the Valspar Championship. Since then, he has a pair of top-15 finishes, including a T6 at the Wells Fargo Championship last weekend. If he can keep the momentum going and make the top 25, it would be a nice weekend.
Adam Svensson (+40000 at bet365): For Svensson, making the cut has to be the goal. To start the season, Svensson missed the cut in five of nine events. His best showing since finishing T10 at The Genesis Invitational in February is T44 at the RBC Heritage last month. Can he continue improving his game and crack the top 40?
Taylor Pendrith (+15000 at Sports Interaction): Pendrith is either near the top of the leaderboard or not making the cut. He has missed the cut six times this season but has five top-11 finishes and a win (The CJ Cup Byron Nelson). He finished T10 last week at the Wells Fargo and hasn’t finished worse than 11th in his last four events.
“O Canada” parlay – Conners, Pendrith, Hughes to all make the cut
+345
Best outright odds
| Golfer | Sports Interaction | NorthStar Bets | bet365 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scottie Scheffler | +450 | +450 | +400 |
| Rory McIlroy | +750 | +750 | +650 |
| Xander Schauffele | +1400 | +1200 | +1200 |
| Brooks Koepka | +1400 | +1600 | +1400 |
| Jon Rahm | +1800 | +1800 | +1600 |
| Ludvig Aberg | +1800 | +1600 | +1800 |
| Collin Morikawa | +2800 | +2800 | +2500 |
| Bryson DeChambeau | +2500 | +2800 | +2500 |
| Max Homa | +3300 | +3300 | +2500 |
| Joaquin Niemann | +3300 | +3300 | +3000 |
| Tommy Fleetwood | +4000 | +3300 | +3300 |
| Patrick Cantlay | +4000 | +4000 | +3500 |
| Wyndham Clark | +4000 | +4000 | +3500 |
| Cameron Smith | +4000 | +4000 | +4000 |
| Tiger Woods | +20000 | +20000 | +20000 |
Three golfers to back
Picking a winner in any tournament is tough. When you get to a major tournament, everyone is going above and beyond to bring their A-game. There are a handful of major contenders to keep an eye on, but these are three players who could be there at the end.
Xander Schauffele +1400 (Sports Interaction): Schauffele had a hot start at Quail Hollow before ultimately failing to close things out. That second-place finish behind Rory McIlroy had to be disappointing, especially because Schauffele has a pair of second-place finishes in majors and a whopping 14 runner-up finishes throughout the course of his career.
Then again, it shows that he is right there in contention at all times. He has 12 finishes in the top 10 in majors since 2017, illustrating how his game shines on the biggest stage. There are no clear weaknesses in his game at this point, he just needs to find a way to get over that last hump and close out a tournament when he gets the chance.
Brooks Koepka +1600 (NorthStar Bets): Being a repeat winner at any event is a tall task. Normally, that would mean you should pick anyone but the defending champion. Brooks Koepka, however, is different. For starters, he’s clearly got something to prove after a poor showing at Augusta last month.
He’s coming off a win at LIV Golf Singapore and clearly knows how to win given his status as champion. His ball-striking is starting to really round into form over the last few weeks as well, putting him in a position to contend. If you can get him in the top 5, that may be as safe a play as there is heading into this tournament.
Joaquin Niemann +3300 (Sports Interaction): If you’re looking for someone outside of the clear favourites – though Scheffler, Schauffele, and Koepka are certainly solid bets – then Niemann is the guy you should be backing. Just 25 years old, Niemann registered his best finish on the Tour at Southern Hills, finishing 23rd.
He has quickly proven himself to be one of the best golfers on the LIV Tour. He is exceptional off the tee, giving him the ability to shorten the course in no time. Backing him to get in the top 10 (around +300) may be the safer play, but don’t be surprised if he is right there with the leaders on Sunday.
