British Open champion Jordan Spieth will join Masters champ Sergio Garcia and U.S. Open winner Brooks Koepka in the marquee group at Quail Hollow.
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There was a time Sunday when it looked like the one clad in the red shirt would charge into contention at The Honda Classic, much like he’d done here six years ago. Tiger Woods twice made birdies to pull within four shots of the lead, but his rally stalled both times. It was still his best performance of this nascent comeback, as Woods finished at even-par 280 (70-71-69-70). He made an 18-footer for birdie on No. 14 to reach 3 under, but then hit his tee shot on the next hole into the water. It was the second time this week that he found the water on the opening hole of the three-hole stretch dubbed the “Bear Trap.” He also reached 3 under after making a 9-footer for birdie on the eighth hole. He pulled his tee shot on the next hole and missed the green. Woods used putter from a collection area right of the putting surface but missed his 5-foot par putt. Woods was seven shots back at the start of the round, but holed a 20-footer for birdie on the first hole and 9-foot birdie putts on Nos. 4 and 8. He was 8 over par this week on Nos. 15-17. He hit it into the water on No. 15 in the second and fourth rounds. On Saturday, he bogeyed both Nos. 15 and 17. Six years ago, Woods fired a final-round 62 here to nearly chase down Rory McIlroy. Woods, seeking his first win since 2009, eagled the 18th hole to finish two back. Woods won the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard three weeks later.
The “Bermuda Quadrangle” isn’t as catchy as its cousin the “Bermuda Triangle”, or Cameron Tringale for that matter, but it’s the second of four consecutive weeks on TifEagle Bermuda greens in the state of Florida. The PGA TOUR rolls into Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge and provides a last chance saloon to qualify for THE PLAYERS Championship next week at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. The field of 121 will face the slickest greens (13-plus Stimpmeter), Bermuda or otherwise, they have navigated this season. Also, rough over two inches will be in play for the first time since Torrey Pines South. With generous fairways and large green complexes, there will be punishment for missing targets. Throw in the breeze, 84 bunkers and eight water hazards over 7,454 yards (Par-72) and all 14 clubs in the bag will need to be on point. The invitational prize pool, similar to The Genesis Invitational and the Memorial Tournament, is $9.3 million with $1.674 million, 500 FedExCup points and a three-year exemption, along with a red Alpaca cardigan, going home with the winner. RELATED: Power Rankings | Expert Picks RECENT WINNERS 2019: Francesco Molinari (-12, 276) Became the second consecutive champion to post a bogey-free 64 (-8) in the final round to win. … Trailed by five entering Sunday. … 64 was the lowest round of the week. … Third consecutive winner (1st) in the top two in Strokes-Gained: Putting and top three (T3) in bogey avoidance. … Kept it out of trouble – T3 fairways and T6 GIR, plus was fifth in scrambling. … Fourth consecutive international winner. … Won in his seventh attempt. Notables in the field this week: 54-hole leader Matthew Fitzpatrick beat 2018 champ Rory McIlroy (T6) by a shot in the final group to claim second, two shots back. … Debutants Rafa Cabrera Bello, who opened with 65 and led after Round 1, and Sungjae Im shared T3 with co-36-hole leader Tommy Fleetwood. … Sung Kang and 2019 Honda Classic winner Keith Mitchell were also T6 along with first-timer Matt Wallace. … Mitchell co-led the field in par-breakers with 21. … 2019 Desert Classic winner Adam Long (T10) hit the top 10 on his first look. … 45 players were under par, but just two signed for double-digits. 2018: Rory McIlroy (-18, 270) Began Sunday two back before posting a bogey-free 64 to win by three. … Played the weekend 13 under, which alone would have been good enough for T4. … Gained a career-high 10.027 strokes on the greens and only needed 100 putts. … Made 54 of 54 inside seven feet. … Like Molinari and most winners, did NOT have any form entering the week. … Last four winners, including McIlroy (T3) have all been in the top four in Par-3 scoring. … Only winner in the last four inside the top 15 (1st) in proximity. … Co-led the field in bogey avoidance. … Won in his fourth visit. Notables in the field this week: Bryson DeChambeau’s first appearance (2nd) as a professional found him co-leading after 36 and playing in the final group one shot behind local Henrik Stenson (4th). … Former Orlando/Lake Nona resident Justin Rose was third playing the weekend 67-67. … Ryan Moore shared fifth with Tiger Woods (not entered 2020) to round out the double-digit under-par club. … Marc Leishman’s title defense fell short at T7, leaving Matt Every (2014-2015) as the last champion to back it up. 2017: Marc Leishman (-11, 277) Renowned wind player became second consecutive Australian to win after Jason Day in 2016 and only sixth international winner. … Trailed by three entering the final round before posting 69 to win by one. … Co-led the field in GIR, was T1 bogey avoidance and second Strokes-Gained: Putting. … Only player to have all four rounds under-par. … Won in his eighth attempt and didn’t have a top-10 payday to his name in 2017 entering the week, just like Molinari and McIlroy. Notables in the field this week: Charley Hoffman and Kevin Kisner played in the final group, both shot 73 and both shared second. … Rory McIlroy and debutant Tyrrell Hatton shared fourth. … Co-18 hole leader Emiliano Grillo, Lucas Glover and 2019 champ Molinari finished T7. Key stat leaders Top golfers in each statistic on the 2018-19 PGA TOUR are listed only if they are scheduled to compete this week.  * - previous top 10 finish here since 2015 Strokes Gained: Putting  1 Denny McCarthy  4 Graeme McDowell  5 Andrew Putnam  8 Wyndham Clark  9 Vaughn Taylor 10 Beau Hossler 13 Rickie Fowler 14 Pat Perez 15 Harris English 16 Billy Horschel 17 *Justin Rose 20 *Kevin Kisner 22 *Patrick Rodgers 23 Sam Ryder 24 Ian Poulter 24 *Rory McIlroy Par-3 Scoring  1 *Rory McIlroy  3 Scott Piercy  3 Hideki Matsuyama  7 Rory Sabbatini  7 Danny Lee  7 Andrew Putnam  7 Keegan Bradley  7 *Marc Leishman  7 *Troy Merritt  7 Denny McCarthy 16 Vaughn Taylor 16 Billy Horschel 16 Charles Howell III 20 Corey Conners 20 *Jason Kokrak (T10, 2019) 20 Brian Stuard 20 Bud Cauley Bogey Avoidance  1 *Rory McIlroy  4 *Tommy Fleetwood  4 Charles Howell III  7 Scott Piercy  9 *Lucas Glover 10 Vaughn Taylor 11 Brooks Koepka 12 Xander Schauffele (debut) 13 *Matt Jones (3rd, 2015) 14 *Sungjae Im 14 Hideki Matsuyama 17 Bud Cauley 19 Denny McCarthy 22 Rory Sabbatini 25 *Patrick Reed (T7, 2018) Horses   Rory McIlroy: 69.40 scoring average with T11 or better in four of five, plus 15 of 20 rounds in the red. Francesco Molinari: Hasn’t missed in seven attempts and three of the last four T9 or better; 24 of 28 rounds in the red. Henrik Stenson: Orlando resident has cashed seven of his last eight, all T17 or better but has never won. Justin Rose: Broke a run of 3rd-T13-T9 with T63 last year, but is 12 of 14 career with eight T25 or better. Cut Makers Tommy Fleetwood: Three straight the last three years (T3-T26-T10) and each visit has a round of 76 or WORSE! Byeong Hun An: Four of five and all heading in the right direction. Emiliano Grillo: DNS 2019 but T26-T7-T17 the three years prior. Hideki Matsuyama: Five straight but only top-20 was T6 in 2016. Caution. Billy Horschel: Seven running but T13 is the best of the bunch. Charles Howell III: 11 on the trot and the last two years are the best of that streak.
Collin Morikawa has only played in the RBC Heritage twice – finishing T64 in 2020 and T7 a year ago – but even with those mixed results and limited course history, it’s no surprise he’s a popular play at the BetMGM online sportsbook this week. Harbour Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island is a unique course on the PGA TOUR. It is a classic design from a collaboration of Pete Dye and Jack Nicklaus that places a major emphasis on playing target golf, especially off the tee. Typically, players who try and overpower the course with long drives do not enjoy much success. It rates in the bottom three on the PGA TOUR in terms of average driving distance, which indicates the bigger hitters are oftentimes hitting less than driver and the players who lack distance off the tee do not need to make up for it in other areas. This leads us to Morikawa, who currently has golf odds of +1400 and, as of Tuesday, is pulling in the most handle (12.1%) and second-most tickets (7.3%). Cameron Smith, who has +1400 golf odds to win, is drawing the most tickets (7.6%). Morikawa enters the week 88th in driving distance this season (299.7 yards) but is ninth in driving accuracy (68.33% fairways hit). He is also 10th in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee. All three metrics match what is needed at Harbour Town this week. In addition, he can generate positive vibes from his top-10 finish at the event last year and is coming into the week following a fifth-place finish at the Masters, which included a final round 67. The 25-year-old is also due for a win. In nine PGA TOUR events in the 2021-22 season, he has seven top-10 finishes but has yet to earn a victory. He’s proven he can win in the past, so eventually, the trend has to change, and he will come out on top one of these weeks. Current Handle & Tickets Handle 1. Collin Morikawa – 12.7% 2. Cameron Smith – 7.2% 3. Daniel Berger – 7% 4. Justin Thomas – 6% 5. Kevin Kisner – 4.9% Tickets 1. Cameron Smith – 7.6% 2. Collin Morikawa – 7.3% 3. Daniel Berger – 5.2% 4. Justin Thomas– 4.7% 5. Kevin Kisner – 4.4% Thomas, who opened with +1100 odds, now has +1200 odds, the best in the field, while Berger has odds of +2800. It is also worth noting Harold Varner III, who had a strong week at Augusta, has seen his odds go from +6600 to +5000. While it is not the same as Augusta National and the Masters, the RBC Heritage is still an excellent event for golf betting. * Visit BetMGM.com for terms and conditions. 21+ years of age or older to wager. BetMGM is available in AZ, CO, DC, IA, IN, IL, LA, MI, MS, NJ, NV, NY, PA, TN, VA, WV, or WY only. All promotions are subject to qualification and eligibility requirements. Paid in free bets. Free bets expire in 7 days from issuance. Minimum deposit required. Excludes Michigan Disassociated Persons. Please Gamble Responsibly. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-NEXT-STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO, DC, LA, NV, WY, VA), 1-800-270-7117 for confidential help (MI), 1-800-GAMBLER (IN, NJ, PA & WV), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA) or call (877-8-HOPENY) or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), call or text the Tennessee REDLINE: 800-889-9789 (TN) or call 1-888-777-9696 (MS). Sports betting is void where prohibited. Promotional offers not available in Nevada.
