Workday Charity Open | Course Preview, Field, & What to Watch for

The first leg of the Ohio double-header starts this week as the Tour has made its way to Muirfield Village. Annually home to the Memorial Tournament, which is scheduled for next week, the Tour added the Workday Charity Open to replace the cancelled John Deere Classic on the 2020 re-start schedule.

Muirfield Village, famously known as Jack’s place, will be a change from the courses we’ve seen so far. It’s a Par 72, that plays just under 7,400 yards. Some big names are absent from the field this week, including Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods, but other big names will be teeing it up Thursday. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Justin Thomas (@justinthomas34) on Jul 7, 2020 at 2:51pm PDT

Course Preview

Muirfield isn’t necessarily a bombers paradise, but long hitters can have fun here. The second shot is more important around this place, so accuracy will be at a premium. Only 1 Par 4 plays under 400 yards, so expect the boys to pull head covers off a bunch. Justin Thomas said the course is looking pure in an Instagram post earlier this week…

Field

Brooks Koepka returns after a few weeks off. He was originally scheduled to start in the Travelers Championship, but had to WD due to his caddie testing positive for COVID-19. He had some fun on Twitter last night with a tweet many are speculating is directed towards Bryson DeChambeau after his comments about his encounter with a cameraman.

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— Brooks Koepka (@BKoepka) July 7, 2020

Brooks showed good form in his first 2 starts, highlighted by a solo 7th finish at the RBC Heritage. It would be a very Brooks move to win this week after Bryson claimed the trophy at the Rocket Mortgage. These two don’t seem to like each other very much, and 99% of the golf world is on Brooke’s side. 

After 2 Top 10 finishes, Justin Thomas missed the cut at the Travelers and will look to bounce back this week at Muirfield. JT doesn’t miss too many cuts, so I don’t expect him to miss 2 consecutively. He’s a ball striker’s ball striker, and finished T8 at the 2018 Memorial.

Patrick Cantlay has only made 1 start since the break, but it was a T11 at the Travelers. He returned in good form, and gets back to a course where he won just a year ago. He putted well in Connecticut, and if he’s able to do that again I see him being in the mix come Sunday. 

Justin Rose is coming off a missed cut at the Travelers, but Muirfield Village is a second home for him. Rosey is 2nd in all-time earnings here, which includes a win, and 2 runner-up finishes. If he rolls it well, he’s always in the mix. A fantastic ball striker, I expect him at the top of the leaderboard the next few weeks. 

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Players to Watch 

Cameron Champ has returned from break in great form. He’s only made 2 starts, but both have been Top 15 finishes. He’s one of the best drivers on Tour, and will be able to let the big dog eat this week. 

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Matthew Fitzpatrick may have a secret weapon for the next 2 weeks. He is bringing on Bones Mackay to carry the bag, who’s seen this place a few times. Matthew missed the cut at the Travelers, but posted a T14 at the RBC Heritage. 

Featured Groups

Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka, Jason Day

Thursday: 7:45 a.m. (No. 10 tee); Friday: 1:10 p.m. (No. 1 tee)

Patrick Cantlay, Phil Mickelson, Jordan Spieth

Thursday: 1:10 p.m. (No. 1 tee); Friday: 7:45 a.m. (No. 10 tee)

Patrick Reed, Matthew Wolff, Rickie Fowler

Thursday: 12:59 p.m. (No. 1 tee); Friday: 7:34 a.m. (No. 10 tee)

Viktor Hovland, Jon Rahm, Gary Woodland

Thursday: 7:34 a.m. (No. 10 tee); Friday: 12:59 p.m. (No. 1 tee)

Weather

DUBLIN WEATHER

My Pick to Win 

Brooks – all day. My bias may be showing (the fact that Bryson isn’t my favorite player), but I see Brooks coming out and dominating. Showing Bryson you don’t have to be 400 pounds to win out here. 

Brooks to Win (+1500) 

Cover Image Via Instagram