The 2020 PLAYERS Championship GolfBet Gambling Guide

These are exciting times for golf bettors with the launch of GolfBet, the hook-up between the PGA TOUR and the Action Network.

There’s some interesting stuff on the site each week, and this will surely herald an exciting new dawn for golf betting in the US and beyond.

So with that in mind, here’s our GolfBet Gambling Guide for the 2020 PLAYERS Championship.

THE PLAYERS Tournament Preview

THE PLAYERS Championship is arguably the most eagerly anticipated tournament on the calendar outside of the four majors, and a high-quality field will take to the tee at the legendary TPC Sawgrass.

Aside from the injured Tiger Woods, THE PLAYERS field reads like a who’s who of world golf, and when you have players like Justin Rose and Marc Leishman available at Vegas odds of +4100 you know there is plenty of depth to work with.

Heading the market is the defending champion, Rory McIlroy, who is the shortest-priced player in the field ahead of Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas and Bryson DeChambeau.

A lack of form means that the likes of Dustin Johnson (+2700) and Brooks Koepka (+2900) are available at some meaty prices – can either bounce back to form at TPC Sawgrass this week?

THE PLAYERS Course Preview

It’s fair to say that Pete Dye had a devilish streak.

The famed architect is responsible for a number of layouts that have been used in majors, and yet TPC Sawgrass will remain as his most cherished work.

This layout features Dye’s customary small greens, which are protected by deep bunkers and collection areas. When you factor in that the wind tends to blow here, that makes recording high GIR numbers particularly difficult.

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The course weaves its way through the landscape with no two holes playing in the same direction thanks to some clever doglegging, and while the winning score here is typically in the mid to high teens there is a chance that may be a touch higher this time with the fairways and greens playing so firmly and quickly.

THE PLAYERS Outright Winner

Cometh the hour, cometh the man.

At the moment, there really isn’t anyone playing with the consistency of Rory McIlroy, and as the defending champion we know that this Sawgrass track suits his eye.

He has finished inside the top-five of his last six starts, and the Irishman has spoken candidly of his high quality ball-striking – an absolute necessity at this layout. If the putter behaves, there are few who will be able to hang on to McIlroy’s coattails this week.

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Does Jon Rahm have the patience for Sawgrass? Are Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka playing well enough? Do we believe that Tommy Fleetwood is capable of getting over the winning line in a field of this class?

All are worthy questions, but there are no question marks about McIlroy this week.

THE PLAYERS Top 5 Finish Pick

Adam Scott is quietly putting together a hell of a season…winning twice within his last four starts.

The first of those came at the Australian PGA Championship around Christmas time, so may have gone largely unnoticed, but his second came at a first-class Genesis Invitational.

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That showed that his ball-striking remains strong, and the Aussie will love the firm and fast conditions this week – it’s a home-from-home for Australian players.

He missed the cut at Bay Hill last week, but played well on Friday and we’ve no qualms about a guy who has six top-20 finishes to his name at TPC Sawgrass.

THE PLAYERS Top 10 Finish Pick

If Byeong Hun An could putt, he would be in among the best players in the world.

But the Korean does struggle on the greens, even though he gained strokes on the field putting at the Honda Classic.

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Maybe he will fire this week again with the flatstick, and if he does his short game is so good that An could negotiate problems that many others in the field will struggle with.

Long off the tee and a brilliant chipper, Sawgrass is exactly the kind of track where An can bank another top-10 finish.

THE PLAYERS Top 20 Finish Pick

Scottie Scheffler has been collecting top-20 finishes for fun on the PGA TOUR this season – that’s six in all after his latest success at Bay Hill.

He chipped very nicely there, and for a player who has shown a preference for Bermuda we don’t have to have any doubts about the youngster’s ability to double-up on the Florida Swing.

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The good new for top-20 backers is that Scheffler has finished inside the top-five in wind-stricken events this term, and so even in a better quality of field there’s no reason not to expect another solid performance.

THE PLAYERS Match-up to Watch

How many more times can Sungjae Im go to the well? The Honda Classic winner also went deep into the Arnold Palmer last week, and while he may be 21-years-old playing nine weeks out of the last ten will surely catch up with him soon from a fatigue perspective.

Depending on your sportsbook, Im will be placed in a match-up against either Xander Schauffele or Hideki Matusyama, either of whom a case can be made for.

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Schauffele has been gaining strokes from tee-to-green week in, week out of late, and there were plenty of signs the flatstick was heating up for him at Bay Hill – +1.46 strokes were gained putting there.

Matsuyama is a more mercurial talent, but he’s banked top-10s in two of his last three starts and has a fine resumé at Sawgrass, which reads 8-MC-22-7-17-23.

Who to Fade this Week

While there is obvious upside to his game, Brooks Koepka spoke in no uncertain terms about where his game is at right now in a frustrated interview at Bay Hill.

We can’t publish the actual words he used, but suffice to say they were not for a family audience!

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Koepka has struggled since returning from knee surgery and has looked far from his best. With no top-10 in five trips to Sawgrass, his mood is unlikely to be improved this week.

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