We just missed our third outright of the season with Bryson Dechambeau at 25-1. He had so many chances to win in the playoff but, just couldn’t seem to make a putt. Patrick Cantlay was red hot on the greens and took home the BMW Championship to give him the lead headed into the Tour Championship.
We’re now onto the Tour Championship, the final leg of the three-tournament FedEx Cup Playoffs. This is the 15th year that the PGA Tour has implemented this system, and just the third year that the staggered strokes format is in effect.
For those who are unfamiliar with how the Tour Championship works, I’ll give you a brief breakdown. If you’d like the official PGA Tour breakdown with the price pool included check out this link. The Top 30 golfers following the BMW Championship in the FedEx Cup Standings, will compete in the Tour Championship. The players will all go off at a different score based on their performance throughout the season. Here’s a list of who will be starting with what strokes:
| Patrick Cantlay | -10 |
| Tony Finau | -8 |
| Bryson DeChambeau | -7 |
| Jon Rahm | -6 |
| Cameron Smith | -5 |
| Justin Thomas | -4 |
| Harris English | -4 |
| Abraham Ancer | -4 |
| Jordan Spieth | -4 |
| Sam Burns | -4 |
| Collin Morikawa | -3 |
| Sungjae Im | -3 |
| Viktor Hovland | -3 |
| Louis Oosthuizen | -3 |
| Dustin Johnson | -3 |
| Rory McIlroy | -2 |
| Xander Schauffele | -2 |
| Jason Kokrak | -2 |
| Kevin Na | -2 |
| Brooks Koepka | -2 |
| Corey Conners | -1 |
| Hideki Matsuyama | -1 |
| Stewart Cink | -1 |
| Joaquinn Niemann | -1 |
| Scottie Scheffler | -1 |
| Daniel Berger | E |
| Erik van Rooyen | E |
| Sergio Garcia | E |
| Billy Horschel | E |
| Patrick Reed | E |
Patrick Reed who didn’t play last week due to double pneumonia will likely not play this week even though he has qualified for this event.
The odds for this event are different from any other tournament as they have the starting position factored in. Also, another thing to keep any eye out when placing a bet this weekend, is to verify if the odds are including starting strokes. The odds are significantly different as you can imagine, and may mess up your bet if you choose the wrong option. For all of my bets this week, I will be placing them with starting strokes included.
Tournament Information:
- Dates: September 2, 2021- September 5, 2021
- Location: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
- Course: East Lake Golf Club
- Par: 70 (4x 3’s / 12x 4’s / 2x 5’s)
- Length: 7,346 yards
- Format: 72 hole stroke play (staggered)
- Field/ Cut: 30 Players | No Cut
- Greens: MiniVerde ultradwarf bermuda .100”
- Fairways: Meyer zoysiagrass .400”
- Rough: Tifway bermudagrass 2.5”
- Purse: $60,000,000 / Winner $15 Million
- Stimpmeter: 12+ feet
- Avg. Green Size: 6,090 sq. ft
- Water Hazards: : 5 (In-Play on 4 Holes)
- Bunkers: 74
- Stroke Average:
- 2020: 68.92 (-1.08)
- 2018: 69.62 (-0.38)
Course Architect/ Comparable Courses:
- Course Architect: Tom Bendelow (1904)
- Renovations:
- Donald Ross (1913)
- Rees Jones (1994, 2008, 2016)
- Comparable Courses:
- TPC River Highlands
- TPC Twin Cities
- TPC Deere Run
- Sedgefield Country Club
TV Information:
- Round 1: Thursday, September 2, 2021
- Golf Channel* – 1:00 PM –6:00 PM ET
- Round 2: Friday, September 3, 2021
- Golf Channel* – 1:00 PM – 6:00 PM ET
- Round 3: Saturday, September 4, 2021
- Golf Channel* – 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM ET
- NBC** – 2:30 PM – 7:00 PM ET
- Round 4: Sunday, September 5, 2021
- Golf Channel* – 12:00 PM – 1:30 PM ET
- NBC** – 1:30 PM – 6:00 PM ET
- Thursday: Mostly Sunny 75 F, 5 mp/h N, 66% Humidity, 10% Chance of Rain
- Friday: Partly Cloudy 74 F, 8 mp/h E, 60% Humidity, 0% Chance of Rain
- Saturday: Partly Cloudy 76 F, 5 mp/h SSE, 58% Humidity, 10% Chance of Rain
- Sunday: Partly Cloudy 78 F, 8 mp/h WSW, 59% Humidity, 10% Chance of Rain
Key Statistics:
- Strokes Gaines: Off the Tee
- Strokes Gained: Approach
- Strokes Gained: Putting
- Strokes Gaines: Around the Green
- Strokes Gained: Tee to Green
- Par 4 Scoring
- Birdie or Better Percentage
- Driving Accuracy
- Driving Distance
- Greens in Regulation Percentage
- Scrambling Percentage
Previous Winners Scores & Prices:
- 2020: Dustin Johnson*
- Price: 15-8
- 2019: Rory McIlroy*
- Price: 9-1
- 2018: Tiger Woods
- Price: 14-1
- 2017: Xander Schauffele
- Price: 100-1
- 2016: Rory McIlroy
- Price: 13-2
- 2015: Jordan Spieth
- Price: 9-1
(* In 2019, the staggered stroke play format was introduced. From 2018- 2015 those are the 72 hole leaders.)
Picks (Outright) – Including Starting Strokes:
- Justin Thomas (+1800)- FanDuel
- Risk 0.45 to win 8.10 Units
- Dustin Johnson (+2500) – Caesars
- Risk 0.32 to win 8.0 Units
- Rory McIlroy (+2500) – Caesars/ Draftkings
- Risk 0.32 to win 8.0 Units
- Sungjae Im (+5000)- FanDuel
- Risk 0.16 to win 8.0 Units
Total Risk on Outrights: 1.25 Units
Picks (Top 20) – Including Starting Strokes:
- Joaquin Niemann (-115)- FanDuel
- Risk 1.15 to win 1.0 Units
Total Risk on Top 20: 1.15 Units
Total Risk on The Tour Championship: 2.40 Units
PGA Year to Date: +3.24 Units
Apologies for the short write up on the final tournament of the season but, it’s been a busy week. Also, I’d like to thank Kiev for the opportunity to write for TheOddsBreakers and share my golf knowledge. We’ll end the season up units but, I’m looking forward to next year with a full season of picks. Next year will feature more content, so keep a lookout for that.
Best of luck, and as always you can find me on Twitter @GatorBetting and Instagram @Gator_Sports_Betting.
