Due to the upcoming Olympics, the 2016 WGC - Bridgestone Invitational has a new date this year. Same great course in Firestone Country Club but almost two months earlier. The weather will be different and the South course will be much dryer than it usually is.
World No. 1 Jason Day +525 and newly crowned U.S. Open champion Dustin Johnson +815 headline a field that includes 40 of the top 50 in the current Official World Golf Ranking. The 59-player betting field is the smallest of the year and is missing a few key players. Rory McIlroy, Henrik Stenson, Rafa Cabrera-Bello and Masters champion Danny Willett all decided to play in Europe this week.
Jordan Spieth +1040, Hideki Matsuyama +3600, Justin Rose +2500, Phil Mickelson +4050, Adam Scott +2500 and defending champion Shane Lowry +4050 all are scheduled to compete.
Last year Shane Lowry fired a final round 66 to hold off Bubba Watson +2450 by two shots. Key par saves and birdies from the trees sealed Lowry’s first win on U.S. soil. It also gave him full time status on the PGA Tour.
The tournament may well come down to the 667-yard, No. 16. “The Monster” is known for being the longest hole on the PGA TOUR schedule.This narrow tee shot demands an accurate drive to avoid the fairway bunkers which is critical to hitting the downslope. However, a well-placed drive does not warrant an easy birdie. Most players will be forced to lay up and even the long hitters like Bubba and DJ will have second thoughts about going for this well guarded green. The prudent play is to get your par and get out of there. This beast of a par 5 provides one of the most intimidating approach shots in golf and will be a pivotal hole this Sunday in Akron, Ohio.
TV Coverage: Thursday-Friday, 3:30-6:30 p.m. ET - Golf Channel. Saturday, 1-2:30 p.m. - GC, 3-6 p.m. - CBS. Sunday, 1-2:30 p.m. - GC, 3-6:30 p.m. - CBS.
Current 2016 WGC - Bridgestone Invitational Golf Odds at BookMaker Sportsbook:
Jason Day +525
Dustin Johnson +815
Jordan Spieth +1040
Brooks Koepka +1950
Justin Rose +2500
Adam Scott +2500
Branden Grace +2650
Bubba Watson +2450
Matt Kuchar +2750
Jim Furyk +3050
Rickie Fowler +3200
Patrick Reed +3250
Hideki Matsuyama +3600
Charl Schwartzel +4050
Phil Mickelson +4050
Shane Lowry +4050
Jason Dufner +3600
Zach Johnson +5500
Daniel Berger +4500
Bill Haas +6050
Marc Leishman +6050
Paul Casey +6050
Russell Knox +6500
Louis Oosthuizen +6050
Justin Thomas +6050
Byeong-Hun An +6500
Kevin Na +7500
Brandt Snedeker +6500
David Lingmerth +6500
J.B. Holmes +6050
Danny Lee +8000
Kevin Chappell +7500
Chris Kirk +9050
Scott Piercy +7500
Harris English +8500
Emiliano Grillo +9050
Charley Hoffman +1050
Jimmy Walker +13050
William McGirt +13000
Smylie Kaufman +13050
Kevin Kisner +15050
Soren Kjeldsen +17050
Billy Hurley III +18000
Anirban Lahiri +20500
K.T. Kim +20500
Matt Jones +20500
James Hahn +20500
Andrew Johnston +20500
Fabian Gomez +20500
George Coetzee +25500
Jim Herman +25500
Vaughn Taylor +27400
Brian Stuard +29500
Davis Love III +30050
Marcus fraser +27500
Steven Bowditch +27500
Nathan Holman +30050
Young Han Song +30050
Yosuke Tsukada +30050
Michio Matsumura +30050
ODDS ANALYSIS
STRONG PLAYS
Since coming off a wrist injury that sidelined him for half the year, Jim Furyk +3050 is back and playing well again, striping it down the middle, hitting greens and making putts. He tied for second at the U.S. Open and followed it up with a top 25 at the Quicken Loans National. He loves playing at Firestone with nine top 10”s. Furyk finished T3 here last year and he is a green light in all formats this week.
Brooks Koepka +1950 is on the rise and destined to be a part of this year’s Ryder Cup team. He’s consistent on a weekly basis and seemingly always on the leaderboard over the past few weeks. He has the ability to take it deep at any given moment. He comes in playing solid with P2-T2-T13 in his last three starts and T6 last year in his debut at Firestone, posting all four rounds under par. Koepka is worth a look in all formats.
FADES
Justin Rose +2500 is fighting a sore back and his status is uncertain. He passed last week at Congressional which leads me to believe that something is really wrong with Rose. Sore backs can flare up at any given time on any given shot, so if Rose is on the board in the weekly matchups, FADE the wilted Rose!
I’m curious to see how U.S. Open champion Dustin Johnson +815 plays this week. His past history at Firestone Country Club is not very good and he will likely be paired against Jason Day and Jordan Spieth in the matchups and you know both of them are hungry to get back in the winner’s circle. D.J. finishes no better than 15th this week.
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The WGC Bridgestone Invitational is scheduled for June 30 - July 3, 2016. Firestone Country Club will host the event and CBS will televise the event live.
