The best golfers in the world will make the trip to Farmingdale, New York and the Bethpage State Park this week as the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup playoffs get underway with The Barclays. The field for this event will be as strong as it will be all year with 122 of the top 125 players in the standings set to compete for their share of the $8.5 million in prize money and the chance to advance to the next round. It has been a bit of a strange month on the PGA Tour as the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro created an odd detour. Only a handful of the big players went to Brazil but many of them also didn’t play in the PGA Tour events that were happening back in North America. That means they’ll be rested, but might some of them be rusty as we get back to action?
Event Details
Event: The Barclays
Category: PGA
Date: August 25-28
Location: Bethpage State Park, Farmingdale, New York
Only the top 100 in the standings will make the cut and move on to TPC Boston for the Deutsche Bank Championship next week. Sergio Garcia, Danny Willett and Shane Lowry will all sit out since all three of them have enough points to qualify for next week’s playoff round.
Past Five Winners
2015: Jason Day -19
2014: Hunter Mahan -14
2013: Adam Scott -11
2012: Nick Watney -10
2011: Dustin Johnson -19 (54 holes)
What To Know About The Course
Bethpage Black has been used for three tournaments this century but the 2012 edition is probably the best example off which to base what we know about what it will take to win at this course. The big hitters should benefit somewhat but their work off the tee isn’t as important as Greens in Regulation. GIR and Par 5 scoring appear to be the two key statistics to look out for this week and it will be very interesting to see how some of the best in the world fare after taking a couple of weeks off in preparation for the playoffs.
The Field
It’s been quite some time since we last saw Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth lined up together at the PGA Championship and the big four in particular will be worth looking out for. Day is the defending tournament champion and the outright betting favorite to win this event at +700 odds. D.J. is listed at +900 followed by McIlroy at +1100, Henrik Stenson at +1200 and Spieth at +1400. 2013 winner Adam Scott offers some intrigue as a +3300 long shot while players like Jim Furyk, Patrick Reed and Rickie Fowler offer some excellent value with all three players listed at +3500 or longer odds to win.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Patrick Reed over Jordan Spieth
Jordan Spieth might be listed among the favorites to win this event but he has been fairly inconsistent overall including just one top-10 finish in his last five starts. Reed hasn’t produced at the same level Spieth has throughout his career but he has finished inside the top-25 in four straight events including three finishes in the top-13. His excellent form combined with a game that is perfectly suited for success at this course could open the door for Reed to finish with a better score than Spieth this week and at long odds he represents excellent value in the head-to-head betting matchup.
Top-Five Pick: Jason Day
The world No. 1 and defending champion Day is listed as the outright betting favorite to win this event for a reason. Day is coming off a runner-up finish at the PGA Championship and he has placed in the top-10 in three of his last five starts including an eighth-place finish at the U.S. Open and a third-place finish at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. Day will have nearly a month off to rest and prepare for this event and he should be in fine form as the player to beat this week at The Barclays.
Top 10 Odds To Win The Barclays
Jason Day +705
Dustin Johnson +905
Rory McIlroy +1015
Henrik Stenson +1150
Jordan Spieth +1250
Justin Rose +2050
Brooks Koepka +2550
Phil Mickelson +2850
Adam Scott +3050
Hideki Matsuyama +3050
