The dust has settled from the U.S. Women’s Open with Sung Hyun Park celebrating her first win on the LPGA Tour and her first major championship victory. Park shot a final round 67 to edge out amateur Hye-Jin Choi by two strokes and come out on top. With Park still celebrating her win, the LPGA Tour shifts to Sylvania, Ohio and the Highland Meadows Golf Club for the Marathon Classic this week. Lydia Ko will put her title on the line as the defending champion at this event after she survived a thrilling playoff to pick up the victory here in 2016.
Details
Event: Marathon Classic
Category: LPGA
Date: July 20-23
Location: Highland Meadows Golf Club, Sylvania, Ohio
Ko held off Ariya Jutanugarn and Mirim Lee to win last year’s Marathon Classic in a playoff. It was Ko’s second win at this event in the last three years after she won here in 2014. It also happens to be Ko’s last victory on the LPGA Tour. The former World No .1 will be looking to regain her edge here this week as she continues to search for her first win of the 2017 season.
Past Five Winners
2016: Lydia Ko -14 (Playoff)
2015: Chella Choi -14 (Playoff)
2014: Lydia Ko -15
2013: Beatriz Recari -17
2012: So Yeon Ryu -20
What To Know About The Course
The last two editions of this tournament have ended in playoffs so it won’t be a surprise if we see another tight finish this year. Scrambling and Putting numbers will once again be the key to victory this week. Driving Distance isn’t necessarily the most important factor at the Highland Meadows Golf Club and while Driving Accuracy is a little more important it won’t matter nearly as much as what the golfers in this week’s field do with their irons and putter. Experience should count for something this week with three previous winners in the field for the 2017 Marathon Classic.
The Field
Na Yeon Choi, Beatriz Recari and Chella Choi will all be looking to join Ko as two-time winners at this event this week. However, none of them will be among the sports betting favorites. In fact, Ko isn’t even considered a top-five pick in this week’s field despite her success at this tournament. The fact that she is listed at +1600 odds according to some sites might make her a stronger value pick this week. Meanwhile, Lexi Thompson and Sung Hyun Park are the co-sports betting favorites to win this event outright at +600 odds. Amy Yang, In Gee Chun and Brooke Henderson round out the list of the top-five favorites according to the sports betting odds for the Marathon Classic.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Lexi Thompson over Sung Hyun Park
Park is coming off her first-career victory but that could hurt her this week if she isn’t focused. Park has the skill set to succeed here but the competition will be tough and if there is any drop-off following her first-career win then she could struggle to contend. Meanwhile, Thompson is the top player in this week’s field and she should be motivated to bounce back following a disappoint performance in last week’s U.S. Women’s Open. Look for Thompson to bounce back and contend for the win while edging out Park in the head-to-head sports betting matchup.
Top-Five Pick: Lydia Ko
At +1600 odds to win this event outright, it’s almost impossible to pass on Ko. There is no denying that she has struggled this season but Ko has dominated this event over the past three years so it’s the ideal time for her to get her 2017 season back on track. Ko has 13-career LPGA Tour victories under her belt in her young career and she has the veteran poise and experience needed to succeed this week. Look for Ko to finally break through at one of her favorite tournaments and record a top-five finish at the Marathon Classic this week.
Odds To Win The 2017 Marathon Classic
Sung Hyun Park +605
Lexi Thompson +705
Stacy Lewis +1015
Amy Yang +1050
In Gee Chun +1150
Brooke M Henderson +1250
Lydia Ko +1250
Mirim Lee +2550
Chella Choi +2850
Lizette Salas +3050
Gerina Piller +3250
In Kyung Kim +3250
Hyo Joo Kim +3550
Eun Hee Ji +3550
Emily K Pedersen +4050
Marina Alex +4550
Angela Stanford +4550
Jenny Shin +5050
Angel Yin +5050
Jane Park +6550
Brittany Lincicome +6550
Alena Sharp +7550
Leona Maguire +7550
Megan Khang +7550
Brittany Altomare +8550
Click here to get all of the latest golf betting lines at BetDSI including head-to-head matchups, props and odds to win each tournament!
