Fantasy Golf Sleeper Report – 2022 Butterfield Bermuda Championship

2022 Butterfield Bermuda Championship Fantasy Sleeper Report

It was ten years ago that Rory McIlroy first ascended to the top of golf’s world rankings, and a decade later the Irishman finds himself back at the summit following victory at the CJ Cup.

Ironically it was at The Summit Club in Las Vegas where McIlroy won the CJ Cup in 2021, and he hit the jackpot again on Sunday – albeit some 2,000 miles away in South Carolina.

It was classic final round fare from McIlroy, who made an avalanche of birdies to exert dominance before streaking away with some solid, no risk golf down the back nine. Despite a couple of bogeys, the likes of Jon Rahm, Kurt Kitayama and K.H. Lee could not do anything to prevent the 32-year-old claiming the 23rd title of his PGA TOUR career.

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From the sublime to the….erm, less so, we go from McIlroy and Rahm duking it out at the fun Congaree Club to something altogether more different at the Bermuda Championship.

Seamus Power, Denny McCarthy and Thomas Detry lead the way in the betting for an event which is almost a parody of a PGA TOUR outing, and with thunderstorms and winds of up to 20mph expected it could be a week for bettors to watch the action through their fingers.

At least Royal Port is amenable enough. The Robert Trent Jones design features wide enough fairways and huge green complexes, so the secret is to keep your ball on a string with low flight before making putts of all lengths and angles – even in the fiercest of weather 12 months ago, Lucas Herbert was able to compile a winning score of -15.

It was perhaps no surprise that the Aussie was able to win in just his third PGA TOUR start – he is something of a Links golf specialist, and the exposed nature of Royal Port means that those able to keep their ball under control will have the best chance this week.

That worked for Herbert, Brian Gay and Brendon Todd – the last three Bermuda Championship winners, and who to a man were available at sportsbook odds of 100/1 or longer.

Yep, this event is prime long odds, sleeper play territory, where he who putts the best will probably get his hands on the trophy.

Finding that individual….well, that’s the tricky part. But here’s five for whom a decent argument can be made in our Bermuda Championship sleeper report:

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Adam Long – 50/1 – Low grade putting contests tend to be where Adam Long plays his best golf.

A winner of the Desert Classic, Long has also twice finished inside the top-three of the Mayakoba and was solo fifth at the Corales Puntacana.

Whether he likes the conditions remains to be seen, but in events where length off the tee doesn’t matter and green complexes are huge, Long’s putting ability – he ranked 24th last season for SG: Putting and 2nd so far this – could ultimately prove to be the difference between success and failure.

Adam Schenk – 50/1 – It’s amazing how often in low-quality fields we turn to those players who are yet to truly fulfil their potential.

Adam Schenk won on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2017, but after taking up his PGA TOUR card the following season he is yet to truly show his best.

Eight top-10s on the PGA TOUR reveal his potential upside, with a handful of those coming in the winds of Nevada and Texas alongside a T7 at the Corales Puntacana.

With top-20s in his last two starts at the Shriners and ZOZO Championship, Schenk should be salivating at the prospect of his maiden PGA TOUR title this week.

Nick Taylor – 50/1 – The last time Nick Taylor truly found his ball-striking groove he went and won the AT&T Pebble Beach, and the signs are that he is rounding up to that kind of form right now.

T6 and T19 finishes at the Fortinet and Sanderson Farms Championships have come off the back of much-improved tee-to-green form, and he’ll be hoping to carry that over to Bermuda, where an improved week with the putter could see Taylor go close to a third PGA TOUR title.

Strong performances in Puerto Rico and at the Sony Open confirm that Taylor enjoys these coastal conditions whether the breeze is blowing in from the Atlantic or the Pacific.

Sam Ryder – 75/1 – If we’re taking players on the strength of their potential this week, then a guy who ranks inside the top 30 for strokes gained on approach and when putting has to be on the radar.

Sam Ryder is one of those players that has the ability to frustrate his backers from one week to the next, but a respectable if unspectacular formline of 36-28-45 suggests he can kick on amongst lower-grade opposition this week.

Top-three finishes in PGA TOUR events in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico confirms that the jaunt to Bermuda will also be of interest to the 32-year-old Floridian. 

Brice Garnett – 90/1 – These are weeks where backing guys who make putt after putt is not a bad strategy at all.

Brice Garnett has enjoyed five straight seasons on the PGA TOUR almost solely down to the power of his flat stick, and while his abilities on the greens seemed to desert him last season, his mojo has returned this given that he ranks 11th for SG: Putting. 

There’s little else to say – Garnett is a guy who could win this event or finish dead last, but as a former champion in the Dominican Republic with a top-five to his name at Mayakoba, you’d certainly hope there’s a strong performance in the offing.

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Want more of this week’s fantasy predictions? Check out our full fantasy preview for the Butterfield Bermuda Championship here.

Sleeper Report Predictions Last Season (2021-2022)

[skill_bar heading=”Total Top 3s” percent=”0%” bar_text=”0 out of 25 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 10s” percent= “6.70%” bar_text=”1 out of 25 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Top 25s” percent=”26.67%” bar_text=”4 out of 25 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Winners Picked” percent=”0%” bar_text=”0 out of 5 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Runners-Up Picked” percent=”2.44%” bar_text=”0 out of 5 events” style=”background-color: #5fb341″][skill_bar heading=”Total Made Cuts (Includes Sleepers)” percent=”53.33%” bar_text=”8 out of 25 picks” style=”background-color: #5fb341″]

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