Golf’s unofficial fifth major, THE PLAYERS, gets underway on Thursday with the famous 17th island green in the spotlight. The world’s best golfers are in the field this week, led by World No. 1 Dustin Johnson who is listed as the favorite. Johnson came through for us last week in one of the matchups but he has not had any success in the past at THE PLAYERS. The winning streak for our matchups continued last week with a 2-1 record. Let’s take a look at this week’s matchups and picks.
THE PLAYERS Matchup Odds at BookMaker.eu
Rory McIlroy -122 vs. Dustin Johnson
Dustin Johnson -180 vs. Jordan Spieth
Dustin Johnson -143 vs. Sergio Garcia
Rory McIlroy -180 vs. Jordan Spieth
Rory McIlroy -154 vs. Sergio Garcia
Sergio Garcia -132 vs. Jordan Spieth
Jon Rahm -135 vs. Jason Day
Rickie Fowler -142 vs. Jason Day
Hideki Matsuyama -132 vs. Jason Day
Rickie Fowler -120 vs. Jon Rahm
Jon Rahm -123 vs. Hideki Matsuyama
Rickie Fowler -128 vs. Hideki Matsuyama
Justin Rose -160 vs. Justin Thomas
Henrik Stenson -127 vs. Justin Rose
Justin Rose -138 vs. Brooks Koepka
Henrik Stenson -155 vs. Justin Thomas
Brooks Koepka -130 vs. Justin Thomas
Henrik Stenson -153 vs. Brooks Koepka
Paul Casey -124 vs. Adam Scott
Adam Scott -158 vs. Kevin Kisner
Paul Casey -180 vs. Kevin Kisner
Matt Kuchar -149 vs. Phil Mickelson
Francesco Molinari -160 vs. Phil Mickelson
Francesco Molinari -145 vs. Matt Kuchar
Kevin Chappell -115 vs. Martin Kaymer
Kevin Chappell -164 vs. Patrick Reed
Martin Kaymer -160 vs. Patrick Reed
Russell Henley -160 vs. Cameron Smith
Ryan Moore -120 vs. Jason Dufner
Charl Schwartzel -120 vs. Tyrrell Hatton
Daniel Berger -133 vs. Marc Leishman
Brian Harman -128 vs. Patrick Cantlay
Pat Perez -147 vs. Tommy Fleetwood
Tony Finau -118 vs. Louis Oosthuizen
Alexander Noren -120 vs. Lee Westwood
Adam Hadwin -120 vs. Matthew Fitzpatrick
Bernd Wiesberger -165 vs. Charley Hoffman
Branden Grace -140 vs. Jimmy Walker
Russell Knox -120 vs. Shane Lowry
Graeme McDowell -120 vs. Bubba Watson
Zach Johnson -120 vs. William McGirt
Kevin Na -121 vs. JB Holmes
Ross Fisher -130 vs. Wesley Bryan
Ryan Palmer -115 vs. Bill Haas
Emiliano Grillo -118 vs. Gary Woodland
Sung Kang -143 vs. Luke Donald
Billy Horschel -142 vs. Rafael Cabrera Bello
Steve Stricker -123 vs. Martin Laird
Jim Furyk -141 vs. Graham Delaet
Lucas Glover -131 vs. Brendan Steele
THE PLAYERS Matchup Picks
Before we get to the picks there are a few things to consider. This tournament takes place at TPC Sawgrass and the Stadium Course has been revised a little bit for the 2017 event. All of the greens and bunkers were redone, five greens were expanded, water was added and now the 12th hole is a drivable par 4. Last year the TPC Sawgrass was the 19th toughest course on the PGA Tour. Jason Day won wire-to-wire last year; Rickie Fowler won two years ago, while Martin Kaymer won three years ago. One of the most important stats to consider at TPC Sawgrass is Strokes Gained: Approach the Green. It is very similar to Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. Jordan Spieth leads the PGA Tour in Approach the Green, while Dustin Johnson is second and Rickie Fowler is fourth.
Rickie Fowler -142 vs. Jason Day
This is a matchup between the last two PLAYERS winners, as Fowler won two years ago while Day won last year. Fowler is simply playing better than Day this year and until Day shows some decent form, he is a go-against.
Matt Kuchar -149 vs. Phil Mickelson
I was looking for a matchup where I could go against Mickelson, as he has missed the cut in this event the last four years. Kuchar has played pretty well this season and I think he could win this matchup before Saturday.
Kevin Chappell -164 vs. Patrick Reed
Chappell was the runner-up last season and he is playing really well this season, while Reed simply can’t hit the ball straight. I can’t see Reed turning things around at TPC Sawgrass, so I will take Chappell.
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Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker.eu. The PLAYERS is scheduled for May 11-14, 2017. TPC Sawgrass will host the event and NBC and Golf Channel will televise it.
