The best on the Champions Tour will make their way to Des Moine, Iowa and the Wakonda Club for this week’s Principal Charity Classic. The tournament, which raises money for children’s charities, donated nearly $4 million last year and should at least come close to that mark again this year. Bernhard Langer, Jerry Kelly, Scott McCarron and more will all be on hand to represent while also looking to add to their resumes for this season. We broke down the field for this week’s tournament to come up with a list of the top favorites and sleepers that might be worth sprinkling some money on from a betting perspective. Here is a look at the best bets for the Principal Charity Classic this week with odds are courtesy of BetDSI.
Event Details
Event: Principal Charity Classic
Category: Champions
Date: June 7th-10th
Location: Wakonda Club, Des Moines, Iowa
Past Five Winners
2017: Brandt Jobe -14
2016: Scott McCarron -15
2015: Mark Calcavecchia -12
2014: Tom Pernice Jr. -12
2013: Russ Cochran -11
The Favorite
Bernhard Langer +500
The fact that Langer has never won this event is somewhat surprising. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the skill set or the drive to contend this week. Langer is one of the most dominant golfers on the Champions Tour and if he is focused and motivated this week he should represent. The value isn’t really there at +500 odds. However, if you simply feel like Langer is overdue you might be willing to take him at that price tag.
Next In Line
Jerry Kelly +800
Kelly hasn’t won since he opened the season with a victory in the Mitsubishi Electric Championship. However, he does have six top-10 finishes to his name this season including a third place finish in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship in his most recent start. Kelly has been incredibly consistent so it’s only a matter of time before he breaks through. Perhaps this is the week he puts it all together and earns his second win of the Champions Tour season.
Scott McCarron +800
McCarron hasn’t teed off since finishing third in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, which was his second top-five finish in a row. A rested McCarron should be motivated this week as he cases his first win of the season after falling just short a number of times. McCarron’s 2018 resume includes three top-five finishes and six top-10 finishes so it definitely feels like he is overdue. McCarron should be a popular pick this week at +800 odds to win the Principal Charity Classic outright.
Kevin Sutherland +1300
Sutherland has strung together three straight top-10 finishes including a 10th-place finish in the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship. He doesn’t have a win to his name yet this season but he has been incredibly consistent overall and might be overdue. At +1300 odds, Sutherland should be on every bettors radar this week as a potential contender.
Sleeper Picks
Brandt Jobe +3300
Jobe put together a pair of top-10 finishes at the Legends of Golf tournament and the Insperity Invitational before finished T-16th in the Regions Tradition his last time out. The 2017 winner is in decent form and should be motivated to defend his title this week. At +3300 odds, Jobe makes for a strong sleeper pick to contend this week.
Mark Calcavecchia +12500
Speaking of recent tournament champions, Calcavecchia is three years removed from winning this event in 2015 and yet he is listed at a ridiculous +12500 price tag. He has shown flashes this season and at that kind of price he is going to command some attention. Can he shock the world and win here again? Maybe. Maybe, he won’t. However, at that price tag it might be worth sprinkling a small amount of money down on Calcavecchia with the hope that he can shock the world again and win the Principal Charity Classic this week.
