The PGA Tour hits the road to Jeju Island in South Korea for this week’s CJ Cup at Nine Bridges. It’s the first event outside the U.S. since the new season started and it will be the first of three straight tournaments in Asia. The third edition of this spectacle features the past two winners and a limited field of 78 golfers with no cuts, so everybody plays thru the weekend. Defending champion Brooks Koepka and first-year winner Justin Thomas hold down the top spots on the odds board and the field will have a heavy local influence with no less than 12 Korean players pegging it up. The talented yet short field of players offers up numerous matchup betting opportunities. You can find current odds at BookMaker.eu when you’re ready to place a wager.
The CJ Cup at Nine Bridges Matchup Odds at BookMaker.eu
Phil Mickelson +155 vs. Lucas Glover -175
Adam Long +105 vs. Adam Schenk -135
Branden Grace -110 vs. Chesson Hadley -120
J.B. Holmes +105 vs. Jhonattan Vegas -135
Danny Lee -145 vs. Kyoung-Hoon Lee +115
Ryan Moore +100 vs. Dylan Frittelli -120
Brian Stuard -150 vs. Jazz Janewattananond +120
Sung Kang -110 vs. Vaughn Taylor -120
Charles Howell III -130 vs. Scott Piercy +110
Justin Thomas -135 vs. Brooks Koepka +115
Corey Conners -165 vs. Graeme McDowell +145
Marc Leishman -130 vs. Cameron Smith +110
Justin Thomas -165 vs. Hideki Matsuyama +145
C.T. Pan -120 vs. Kiradech Aphibarnrat -110
Sergio Garcia +100 vs. Billy Horschel -120
Pat Perez +120 vs. Ian Poulter -140
Jordan Spieth +100 vs. Sungjae Im -120
Jordan Spieth +100 vs. Rafa Cabrera-Bello -120
Tommy Fleetwood -120 vs. Collin Morikawa +100
Tommy Fleetwood -110 vs. Viktor Hovland -110
Tyrrell Hatton -105 vs. Chez Reavie -115
Joaquin Niemann -135 vs. Kevin Na +115
Harold Varner III -135 vs. Si Woo Kim +115
Emiliano Grillo -110 vs. Joel Dahmen -110
Luke List +110 vs. Ryan Palmer -130
Rory Sabbatini -105 vs. Abraham Ancer -115
Kevin Streelman -120 vs. Kevin Tway -110
Charley Hoffman +105 vs. Nate Lashley -135
Rafa Cabrera-Bello -105 vs. Sungjae Im -115
Gary Woodland -105 vs. Jason Day -115
Brooks Koepka -130 vs. Hideki Matsuyama +110
Keith Mitchell -120 vs. Troy Merritt -110
Andrew Putnam -105 vs. Byeong Hun An -115
Danny Willett -135 vs. Matthew Wolff +115
Viktor Hovland -120 vs. Collin Morikawa +100
Need to Know
I’m back in the plus column after a winning week at the Houston Open where I went 2-1 on my matchup picks. I was also good picking players to miss the cut with two of my selections ending with all four players getting whacked after 36 holes. Too bad I didn’t throw down on that. Anyway, it’s back to the grind this week with a limited number of players to choose from on the tournament head-to-heads. The field will attack a longer track at The Club at Nine Bridges with about 50 yards added since last year’s playing. The course stretches out to 7,241 yards now, which still isn’t cumbersome for the pros. Previous winners Koepka and Thomas are both big hitters, so there’s one thing to consider. Another consideration is the weather. We had a 12-swing difference in winning scores with Thomas battling wind gusts to finish -9. In gentler surroundings last year Koepka was -21. Weather doesn’t appear to be a factor, but we’ve seen changes on short notice in these parts so stay tuned.
The CJ Cup at Nine Bridges Matchup Picks
J.B. Holmes +105 vs. Jhonattan Vegas
This pick is more against the recent play of Vegas than it is an endorsement of Holmes. Neither has had a good start to the season, but Vegas has been the worst with a pair of MCs that followed a T56 at the Safeway Open. Holmes missed the cut at Greenbrier in his only event of the young season, but he had a strong last season that included a T23 at this tournament. I’m not really high on either player, but I’ll take the plus odds that accompany Holmes.
Marc Leishman -130 vs. Cameron Smith
Leishman is very familiar with this part of the world having started his career in Korea giving him an edge right out of the gate. He’s also played well here with a runner-up finish to Thomas in 2017 and a T18 last year. Leishman has had some down time since opening the season with a solo third at the Safeway Open, so he is coming in rested and confident.
Sungjae Im -115 vs. Rafa Cabrera-Bello
I’d stick with these two in any other tournament matchup, but since they are paired against each other I have to pick a side. And I’ll go with Im since this is basically a home game for him. He grew up on Jeju Island playing this course numerous times, which means nothing if you stink. Im doesn’t stink. The Rookie of the Year is still searching for his first PGA title, but a step down to the Korean Tour produced a victory just last week.
Brooks Koepka -130 vs. Hideki Matsuyama
The plus odds players always stand out for obvious reasons, and Koepka’s history in non-majors certainly makes me consider Matsuyama. However, knowing now that Brooks has recovered from an injury and is looking to respond to that MC in Las Vegas I’m going to throw down on Koepka despite the long odds. He’s done well here as his 21-under victory from last shows, and I’m banking on a strong showing.
Viktor Hovland -120 vs. Collin Morikawa
I like this matchup between present and future stars of the game, but I can’t get past the ball-striking numbers of Hovland, which have been remarkably consistent at the start of his career. He’s gained strokes tee-to-green, off the tee and on approach in all eight tracked events. There will be some regression, but even mild pull back leaves him as the leader in this matchup.
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