Following Kyle Stanley’s big win at the Quicken Loans National, the PGA Tour heads to West Virginia this week. The Greenbrier Classic returns to the schedule after it was canceled last year due to flooding. It was first played in 2010 to replace the Buick Open, and it has always been played at the Old White TPC course in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. In its debut year, Stuart Appleby shot a 59, which was the fifth time that had happened on the PGA Tour at that point, en route to the victory. The players will battle over a prize fund of $7.1 million.
Details
Event: Greenbrier Classic
Category: PGA
Date: July 6-9
Location: Old White TPC, White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia
Since Appleby’s winning mark of -22, the course has been a little tougher for the PGA Tour players. The winning scores have been between -10 and -16, and the largest margin of victory has been two strokes. In six years of the Greenbrier Classic, it has gone to a playoff three times, including Danny Lee in 2015.
Past Five Winners
2015: Danny Lee -13
2014: Angel Cabrera -16
2013: Jonas Blixt -12
2012: Ted Potter Jr. -16
2011: Scott Stallings -10
The Field
A number of the big names on the PGA Tour are not participating at this event. And we’ll see Rory McIlroy and Hideki Matsuyama – who is second in the FedEx Cup standings – play on the European Tour this week.
That leaves Patrick Reed as our favorite for this week. He has played fairly well of late but he still hasn’t registered a win this season. He has been buzzing near the top of the leaderboard, though, which gives him a good shot. He placed 17th at the Quicken Loans National, fifth at the Travelers Championship and 13th at the U.S. Open. He’s placed in the Top 20 in six of his last eight outings.
Bill Haas, Kevin Kisner, David Lingmerth and Webb Simpson round out the top five. Simpson has been on a bit of a roll of late – depending on how you look at tie. He placed eighth at the Travelers and fifth at the Dean & Deluca in his last four outings, but also placed outside of the Top 30 in his other two starts.
What To Know About The Course
The Old White TPC is a par-70 that stretches out to 7,286 yards. After last year’s floods that swept through West Virginia, the course had to be retooled a little, especially the bunkers. The rough has been toned down a little, which means players can be more aggressive off the tee. The greens should be pretty slow until Sunday, so good putters can really make up some strokes at the Old White TPC,
A Good Matchup To Bet: Bill Haas Over Patrick Reed
Reed has been playing great as of late as a T-17 at the Quicken Loans Nationalwas his third top-20 in a row. However, Haas finished T-13 at the Quicken Loans National and he now has three top-15s in his last four starts. He is also very good at the Greenbrier Classic, where he lost a playoff to Scott Stallings in a playoff in 2011 (Bob Estes also lost in that playoff). Haas also finished T-9 here in 2013, so he knows his way around the Old White TPC.
Top-Five Pick: David Lingmerth
Lingmerth couldn’t hold the lead at the Quicken Loans National and finished T-5, but he has finished T-26 or better for five straight tournaments now. He is second on the PGA Tour in putts per round, which bodes well for the Old White TPC. Lingmerth is also 64th in driving accuracy, which is pretty decent. He just needs to shore up his irons as he is 141st in greens-in-regulation. If he could get closer to the pin with his approaches, imagine how many more birdie chances he would get with his putting? Anyway, the Swede is rolling right now, so keep an eye on him, especially early in the round.
Odds To Win 2017 Greenbrier Classic
Patrick Reed +1250
Bill Haas +1550
Kevin Kisner +1550
David Lingmerth +1850
Webb Simpson +2050
Phil Mickelson +2050
Danny Lee +2250
Tony Finau +2250
Bubba Watson +3250
Keegan Bradley +2850
Russell Henley +2850
Kevin Streelman +3550
Charles Howell III +3550
J B Holmes +3550
Xander Schauffele +5050
Graham Delaet +5050
Si Woo Kim +4550
Jimmy Walker +4550
Jason Kokrak +5500
Gary Woodland +5050
James Hahn +5050
Harris English +5500
Sung Kang +5500
Ollie Schniederjans +6550
David Hearn +6550
Matt Jones +6550
Jamie Lovemark +6550
Sean OHair +7050
Nick Watney +7550
Ben Martin +6550
Zac Blair +18000
Scott Brown +12000
Brendon de Jonge +25000
Luke Donald +8000
Spencer Levin +12000
Patrick Rodgers +7550
Robert Streb +10000
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