Bamford
-
Posts
233 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Posts posted by Bamford
-
-
-
Quail Hollow is very much a classical golf course with Carolina connotations. When I say Carolina think traditionally tree-lined, with narrow sight lines from the tee and plenty of dog-legs. It's also a beat at +7,500 yards and a Par 71. The key to winning at Quail Hollow has always been to score heavily on the par-5s and play the other holes at around -3 to -4 or slightly better. So to contend this week a player will need to master the 7th, 10th and 15th holes. Greens are Champion Bermudagrass overseeded with Poa Trivialis. The course undoubtedly suits those with power off the tee.
I'm backing Thomas at 11/1, Zalatoris at 28/1, Homa at 35/1, Bubba at 55/1 and Wallace at 66/1.
-
Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas and Patrick Reed head the field as this week's Valspar Championship, played on the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort, Palm Harbor, Florida. This is the last Florida tournament of 2021 on the PGA Tour, but Copperhead certainly isn't your typical exposed Florida golf course. As a 7,340 yard Par 71, the course is tight off the tee but, unlike other typical Florida courses, the Larry Packard design has tree-lined fairways, plenty of elevation changes and dog-leg holes. Copperhead achieves this fairly unique layout as it contains 4 par-5s and 5 par-3s, which is highly unusual for a Par 71 course. It's the kind of course which could undoubtedly host a US Open. Tough and technical, featuring TifEagle Bermudagrass greens overseeded with Poa Trvialis, champions here since 2010 include Jim Furyk, Gary Woodland, Jordan Spieth, Charl Schwartzel and Paul Casey, who this week goes for a hat-trick of victories.
My selections are Corey Conners 25/1, Sungjae Im 30/1, Justin Rose 40/1, Keith Mitchell 160/1 and Chase Seiffert 250/1.
-
Harbour Town Golf Links is no typical coastal course, instead I categorise it as a Carolina track - i.e. sharing features with Quail Hollow, Sedgefield and Pinehurst No.2. Carolina courses are traditionally tree-lined, feature doglegs and narrow sight lines from the tee. Harbour Town itself is a Pete Dye design that also features tiny dome-shaped Bermuda TifEagle greens, Being on the Atlantic coast, the course plays as difficult as the wind. It's very much a golf course where ball-striking and creative shot-shaping are required to get close to tricky pin positions, put ultimately the winner has to putt very positively. Indeed over the past 5 renewals winners here ranked 2nd, 5th, 16th, 11th and 10th.
I have gone for the following: Harman 33/1, Na 50/1, English 50/1, Kisner 66/1 and Thompson 125/1.
-
-
The old 1-2 forecast
-
Valero Texas Open the week before the 2021 Masters Tournament. I always find week's before a Major a tricky task.
The Oaks Course layout is undoubtedly stretching, although 2018 and 2019 renewals of the Valero have seen scoring become more than possible. I think that the Oaks Course makes you earn your rewards, with accurate driving and stellar approach play. A mixture of course length intimidating tee shots, all manner of off-fairway hazards, plus undulating green complexes, make the course a challenge. Greens are also perched up with fairway cut around them, taking errant approaches into collection areas. At 7,494 yards and a Par 72, this track is pretty long, but the likes of Landry and Conners have won here - so it's no bombers paradise.
My selections are Spieth 16/1, Hoffman 30/1, Si Woo Kim 40/1, Higgs 100/1 and McDowell 160/1.
-
Austin Country Club is a Pete Dye-designed, 7127 yard, par-71 - it's a perfect course for a Match Play event where risk and reward is definitely in-play, but where strategic accurate play both off the tee and with wedges can work equally as well. Pete Dye courses are generally no pushover think Harbour Town, TPC Sawgrass and Whistling Straits.
Trends-wise going back to 2014, the last 6 winners of this had reached the quarter-finals at least once in the past prior to picking up the trophy. None of the winners going back to 2010 were making their debut in this event.
Also a number of bookmakers are offering 8 places each way at 1/5 odds. That effectively means you get a return if your selection makes Saturday's QFs.
4 selections for me
Justin Thomas 12/1
Tyrrell Hatton 28/1
Tommy Fleetwood 40/1
Jason Day 40/1
-
The Honda Classic is played at the Champions Course, PGA National in Florida. A Jack Nicklaus golf course, it's a beast of a Florida-style golf course. Exposed and with water hazards everywhere. The Champions Course is best summarised by the fact that it has been the toughest non-Major Par 70 course on the PGA Tour across 5 of the past 8 seasons. Bunkering on the Champions Course is difficult and on this golf course you can add you can add 26 individual water hazards. PGA National is an exposed property allowing direct access to tee boxes, fairways and green complexes for any wind. And 15-20mph looks in-play across Thursday and Friday. A single-digit winning score will be the order of the day.
Niemann 22/1
Lowry 28/1
Steele 40/1
Bradley 45/1
Furyk 125/1
-
Squeezed by the Genesis Invitational and the WGC on one side and the Players Championship on the other, the 2021 Arnold Palmer Invitational isn't as stellar as it has been in the past, but boy - it's still a strong tournament - as it should be. We have defending champion Tyrrell Hatton teeing it up with Rory McIlroy, Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed, Viktor Hovland, Tommy Fleetwood, Sungjae Im, Justin Rose, Marc Leishman, Jason Day, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Hideki Matsuyama, Jordan Spieth, Francesco Molinari, and Rickie Fowler.
And lifting the Arnold Palme Invitational still means something for the elite in world golf - it's a title they want to win. Looking back to the winners list here American's don't dominate. Yes Tiger Woods is an 8-time winner, but since 2010 Ernie Els, Martin Laird, Jason Day, Marc Leishman, Rory McIlroy, Francesco Molinari and Tyrrell Hatton have won this. 2 wins for Tiger Woods and another 2 from Matt Every are the US victories in the past 11 renewals.
Bay Hill is a stretching 7,454 yard, Par 72 features a set of tough par-4s, plus 3 of the par-5s measure over 550 yards. To score around here every facet of a player’s game is tested to the maximum. Not many PGA Tour events these days feature 4″ of rough plus green complexes that can run as firm as 12 on the stimpmeter if the elements allow. Oh yes and water hazards on 9 of the 18 holes.
My selections
Matthew Fitzpatrick 25/1
Francesco Molinari 33/1
Sam Burns 45/1
Jason Kokrak 45/1
Wyndham Clark 110/1
-
The alternate event at the Puerto Rico Open always takes place the same week as the WGC. Whilst the top table have 4 guaranteed rounds in Florida, some of the rank and file, go to the Grand Reserve Country Club, looking for a career changing win, which comes with a rather nice 2 year PGA Tour exemption. It's worth a few $ undoubtedly.
You also get a few European Tour guys who missed out on the WGC. So 2021 sees Pieters, Thomas and Poulter heading to Rio Grande Puerto Rico, whilst Branden Grace also looks to keep his momentum moving forward. A long, Par 72, coastal golf course, we are dealing with Paspalum greens and humid, 25 degree conditions. This renewal will also see 20+ mph winds.
I'm going for
Lewis 28/1
Gordon 50/1
Burgoon 60/1
Brown 75/1
-
Riviera Country Club is a classical, tree-lined affair which has received some Tom Fazio updates over the years. The 10th hole is known globally, with the par-4 18th one of the iconic holes of world golf. At 7,300 yards it doesn't seem long, but the par-4s can be stretching and the two par-5s on the backside both play at a snidge below 600 yards. A shot-makers course where strategy and patience are key - even the winners here miss a minimum of 20 greens across the 4 days. So we need players who miss on the right-side and who can scramble well. Add fast poa annua greens to the mix, and you can see why the likes of Webb Simpson stay away from Riviera.
Johnson 6/1
Cantlay 18/1
Watson 45/1
Leishman 60/1
Garcia 66/1
-
No Pro-Am this year and 2 courses in the rotation with Host Course Pebble Beach needing no introduction. This tournament can throw-up some huge winning prices, but 54 holes on the classical US Open-venue, cold conditions and wind for the final 54 holes leads me to some better names. I managed to get on prior to the odds collapsing through DJ WD.
Spieth 25/1
Molinari 28/1
Norlander 60/1
Kirk 90/1
Best of luck to all.
-
He's like Tiger at the moment is DJ
-
Has to be Adam Scott at 45/1
-
The annual trip to Bay Hill and the Arnold Palmer Invitational.Mr Palmer may no longer be with us, but his tournament on his course is still in fine fettle. A strong field are in-attendance and this is always a title that the very elite want to capture, if they are playing well enough. A longish traditional par-72, the course is a classical, in the main tree-lined affair, but as it's in Florida, there is plenty of water in-play, A hard set of par-3s and par-4s are hard to score on, so taking advantage of the par-5s is essential. Power is advantage, but the course always ranks short in-terms of All Driving Distances, highlighting that plenty of the holes, are about driving into particular areas of the fairways, which are extremely wide. The TifEagle Bermudagrass greens will be firm, and repel approach shots, and the wind looks set to be a real factor this year - over and above previous years.
Watson 50/1, Hatton 50/1, Ancer 60/1, Kisner 80/1, JB Holmes 100/1
-
Wide open Par 72 by the coast in Puerto Rico. This is an alternate event alongside the WGC Mexico Championship and provides a good opportunity for motivated players in-attendance who can effectively guarantee 2 and a half years on the PGA Tour, with winner status. Greens are large and feature Paspalum. Previous winners here include Michael Bradley (x2), Scott Brown Chesson Hadley, Alex Cejka, Tony Finau, D.A. Points, Martin Trainer. Power off the tee has to be an advantage here, where high Greens in Regulation tends to get it done.
I'm going for Patrick Rodgers (33/1), Maverick McNealy (33/1), Tyler McCumber (66/1) and Xinjun Zhang (66/1).
-
-
The Genesis Invitational is Tiger Woods' own tournament on the PGA Tour. With a short 120-man field, it's loaded with the very best players in the squad. Riviera is a stretching 7,322 yard, 35-36, Par 71 old-style golf course. Nicknamed ‘Hogan’s Alley’, it’s a classical course which features tight, tree-lined uneven fairways, plus fast green complexes that average 5,000 square feet and feature plenty of surrounding run-off areas for overly aggressive or wayward approach shots. Greens are a mix of Poa Annua / Bentgrass. I'm expecting firm conditions this week, which should see the course play tough.
My selections are Cantlay 20/1, Watson 22/1, Finau 25/1 and Garcia 66/1.
-
The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am is a full-field event played over 3 different courses to allow such a large field including amateur partners. The iconic Pebble Beach Golf Links is the host course and all competitors play the track once before the 54-hole cut is made. At this point, the best 25 Pro-Am teams play Sunday with the top 65 professionals also playing the final round.Spyglass Hill Golf Club and the Shore Course at Monterey Peninsula Country Club host the other 2 rounds of play. All courses are sub-7,000 yards in length, with the Shore Course playing as a rather unique Par 71 with three par-5s on the inward half making for a lopsided 34-37 course split. All greens are pure Poa Annua.
My selections all each-way are Snedeker - 22/1; Hoge 66/1, Na 70/1 and Ted Potter Jnr 250/1.
-
-
Love this tournament. TPC Scottsdale, a great golf course in the desert, with huge crowds, a unique atmosphere, tight finishes and the famous 16th Stadium Hole. This really is ball-striking heaven, where putting has little consequence and hitting greens in regulation is critical. Short players who hit metronomic GIR can go very, very close, but eventually a longer hitter, with aggressive tendancies wins here. The par-5s are gettable - especially as this is at altitude - and there are a number of short par-4s including the driveable par-4 17th.
I'm with Woodland 30/1, DeChambeau 33/1, Watson 33/1 and Hadwin 125/1.
-
Freshly titled tournament on the PGA Tour, which to older readers was known as the Bob Hope Classic, latterly as the CareerBuilder Challenge
Played at PGA West in California, around 3 courses this is a Pro-Am. Host course is the TPC Stadium course which is a Pete Dye design. Tournament Course and La Quinta are the other tracks. All courses are more than gettable and with no wind forecast expect -22 to -25 winning score. Birdies really are the currency. Big prices can win this with 5 of the last 10 winners at triple-digit odds.
I'm on Scheffler @ 35/1, Vaughn Taylor @ 55/1, Carlos Ortiz @ 100/1 and Tom Hoge @ 200/1 - all with 8 places each-way.
-
Niemann 33/1
Ancer 50/1
Todd 50/1
Munoz 60/1
Charles Schwab Challenge
in Golf Betting Tips
Posted
The Charles Schwab Challenge is played at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas. This is an Invitational Status event on the PGA Tour, so it's a shorter field of 120 players, with no Monday qualifiers and the like. Colonial, is a 1930's golf course - classical in nature. It's a +7,200 yard Par 70, with a couple of difficult par-5s. Treelined and parkland in nature, it can't be simply overpowered like many tracks on the PGA Tour. So all types can win this and I see definite correlating course links with the likes of Augusta National and TPC Boston. That makes sense as the green surfaces are Bentgrass.
I'm backing Patrick Reed 22/1, Charley Hoffman 45/1, Brandt Snedeker 66/1, Matt Wallace 66/1 and C.T. Pan 150/1.