2014 PGA Travelers Championship Odds To Win: Bubba Watson Favored
By Drew Sharper
CROMWELL, CT (TheSpread) – The 2014 Travelers Championship is the next event up on the PGA Tour. Here is a look at the odds to win this week’s tournament.
According to oddsmakers from Bovada.lv, Bubba Watson is favored to win, as he has 23/2 odds to prevail. Other short odds to win are Matt Kuchar (25/2), Jason Day (14/1) and Dustin Johnson (14/1).
Watson won this event back in 2010. He is currently third in the world rankings, but coming off a missed cut at the U.S. Open. He has two wins this year and five top 10s in nine events.
Kuchar is fifth in the world rankings and coming off a 12th-place finish at the U.S. Open. He has one win and seven top 10s on the year.
Day is seventh in the world rankings. He is coming off a fourth-place finish at the U.S. Open. He has had a limited schedule this year, but has one win and three tops 5s in six events.
Johnson is 15th in the world rankings. He is coming off a fourth-place finish at the U.S. Open as well. Johnson is looking for his first win of 2014, but he has six top 10s on the year.
The 2014 PGA Travelers Championship will take place June 19-22 from TPC River Highlands. For a look at the odds to win this golf tournament, see below.
Bet on Travelers Championship Odds
2014 PGA Travelers Championship Odds To Win
Bubba Watson 23/2
Matt Kuchar 25/2
Jason Day 14/1
Dustin Johnson 14/1
Sergio Garcia 19/1
Keegan Bradley 22/1
Ryan Moore 30/1
Brandt Snedeker 30/1
Paul Casey 35/1
Charley Hoffman 35/1
Johnson Wagner 35/1
Hunter Mahan 35/1
Graham Delaet 35/1
Zach Johnson 35/1
Harris English 40/1
Marc Leishman 40/1
Freddie Jacobson 45/1
Brendon De Jonge 50/1
Louis Oosthuizen 50/1
K.J. Choi 55/1
Chris Stroud 55/1
Patrick Reed 60/1
Kevin Chappell 70/1
Jonas Blixt 75/1
Retief Goosen 85/1
Carl Pettersson 85/1
Matt Jones 85/1
Bo Van Pelt 85/1
Erik Compton 85/1
Morgan Hoffmann 95/1
Ben Crane 95/1
David Toms 95/1
Andrew Svoboda 100/1
Seung-Yul Noh 100/1
Russell Knox 100/1
Brian Davis 100/1
Aaron Baddeley 100/1
Camilo Villegas 100/1
Thorbjorn Olesen 110/1
Michael Thompson 120/1
Kevin Stadler 130/1
Kevin Streelman 130/1
Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano 130/1
Nick Watney 130/1
J.J. Henry 130/1
Robert Streb 130/1
Brendan Steele 130/1
John Huh 130/1
Ryo Ishikawa 130/1
Shawn Stefani 140/1
Luke Guthrie 140/1
Charlie Wi 150/1
Scott Langley 150/1
Tim Clark 150/1
Patrick Cantlay 150/1
Billy Hurley III 160/1
Andres Romero 160/1
Brian Stuard 170/1
David Lingmerth 170/1
Heath Slocum 170/1
Chad Campbell 170/1
Will Wilcox 170/1
Troy Merritt 170/1
Greg Chalmers 170/1
James Hahn 170/1
Bryce Molder 170/1
Stuart Appleby 170/1
William McGirt 170/1
Ken Duke 170/1
D.A. Points 170/1
John Merrick 170/1
John Rollins 190/1
Matt Bettencourt 200/1
Danny Lee 220/1
Justin Hicks 220/1
Kyle Stanley 220/1
Jonathan Byrd 220/1
Mark Wilson 220/1
Sang-Moon Bae 220/1
Patrick Rodgers 220/1
Sean OHair 220/1
Steve Marino 240/1
Tommy Gainey 250/1
Bronson LaCassie 250/1
Wes Roach 250/1
Jim Herman 250/1
Jamie Lovemark 250/1
Tim Herron 250/1
Miguel Angel Carballo 250/1
Tag Ridings 250/1
Bobby Wyatt 250/1
Michael Putnam 250/1
Charlie Beljan 250/1
Brian Gay 250/1
John Peterson 250/1
Richard H. Lee 250/1
Trevor Immelman 250/1
Tim Wilkinson 250/1
Jeff Maggert 250/1
James Driscoll 250/1
Bud Cauley 250/1
Peter Malnati 250/1
Andrew Loupe 250/1
Brad Fritsch 250/1
Scott Gardiner 250/1
Bubba made Travelers 'chalk'
By Sportsbook.ag
Tournament: Travelers Championship
Date: June 19-22, 2014
Venue: TPC at River Highlands
Location: Cromwell, Connecticut
In the wake of the U.S. Open, the PGA Tour heads north to Connecticut for the Travelers Championship; which has been played at TPC River Highlands since 1991. The field will be rather diluted this week after the major championship with just seven of the top-25 players from the World Golf Rankings in the field; including four (Bubba Watson, Matt Kuchar, Jason Day, Sergio Garcia) of the top-10. Last season, virtual unknown Ken Duke took this tournament in a playoff, fending off Chris Stroud with a score of 12-under and winning with a birdie on the second playoff hole.
This tourney has also given spectators plenty of excitement over the past 10 years, with the winner taking home the trophy after a playoff in five of the seasons. This is yet another tournament that is wide open to some of the fresh faces on tour, so let’s take a look at a few players who have a solid chance this week at the par-70, 6,844-yard course.
Golfers to Watch
Bubba Watson (23/2): Watson was 10-under after two rounds at this tournament last season, but could not close as he posted a 70 in each weekend round while also winning here back in 2010. He has now played himself to the third spot in the World Golf Rankings and is second in the FedEx Cup standings with two victories and seven top-10 finishes this year. Watson currently ranks first on the PGA Tour in driving distance (313.2 yards per) and this will definitely help him score low on one of the shortest courses on the PGA schedule.
Keegan Bradley (22/1): Bradley has posted a score in the 60’s in six of his past eight rounds at this course and finished in a tie for 18th last year with a score of 5-under. He had a solid performance last week at the U.S. Open, finishing in fourth place as he went under par in three of the four days, and should use that to boost his confidence this week. Just like Watson, Bradley is a long-hitter (301.4 yards per, 19th on tour) and averages 4.0 birdies per round (9th on tour) which should put him in contention from day one.
Graham DeLaet (35/1): DeLaet started the season on fire with top-8 finishes in five of his first six tournaments played, but has placed in the single-digits just twice since (11 starts). He has continued to be a force though, and has hit the most greens in regulation (72.01%) so far this year. He scored 11-under at this tournament last year, finishing in third place, and has a good chance to earn his first career PGA Tour victory this weekend.
Brian Davis (100/1): Davis has always played well at this course, finishing in the top-10 both in 2011 (9th) and 2012 (4th). He is not having the best season, but is coming around at the right time with top-14 finishes in two of his past four tournaments played, and could rebound from a poor year here this week.
Robert Streb (130/1): Streb has been solid in his second season on the PGA Tour, making the cut in 11-of-12 tournaments; including a runner-up finish at the Zurich Classic earlier this year. He is 9-under overall this year on par-4’s (2nd on tour) and could use that to help him win his first career PGA Tournament this week in Connecticut.
Travelers Championship Preview and Picks
By Matt Fargo
Covers.com
As with any golf fan, this is a letdown week after a Major, as the U.S. Open concluded Sunday with Martin Kaymer capturing his second Major Championship. The letdown not only comes because of the less importance on the line but also because the field strength goes way down following a Major championship. Both are the case this week for the Travelers Championship taking place from the TPC at River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut.
The scoring will be different compared to last week at Pinehurst where all but three players in the field finished over par. The last 20 winners of the Travelers have carded double-digit scores under par which means birdies are coveted so ball striking and hitting greens are of the utmost importance. This can be said almost every week on tour but when you are talking about going low, they become even more important. Last year, 4 players finished double-digits under par.
TPC at River Highlands has hosted this event since 1984 and it was formerly known as the Buick Championship and the Greater Hartford Open. It has gone through two redesigns and River Highlands is second only to the TPC Scottsdale for most spectators at a PGA Tour event. With the scoring, it is not a very difficult track even though last year resulted in an over par average for the first time in six years. The 6,841 yards in length makes it one of the shorter stops as well.
Because of the U.S. Open taking place last week, the field has been thinned out as just four players ranked in the OWGR top ten are here as well as only five of the top ten from the FedEx Cup Standings. The Travelers Championship has produced first time winners in each of the last four years starting with Bubba Watson's breakout victory in 2010 and culminating with Ken Duke's first ever PGA Tour victory last year. Don't be surprised to see the streak go to five after this week.
Graham DeLaet (+3,000) fits the profile to break out here. He is in search of his first PGA Tour victory and a mentioned, ball striking is of the utmost importance here and DeLaet leads the tour in that category. He missed the cut at the U.S. Open but he has six top tens on the season including a pair of runner-ups. He finished solo third here last year which was his best finish in four starts.
Hunter Mahan (+3,500) missed the cut by one shot last week with the difference being a two-stroke penalty for hitting the wrong ball. He has four top tens this season and while he hasn't won since the Shell Houston Open in 2012, this is a place he loves. He won here in 2007 but the success doesn't end there as he has a T2, T4 and a T11 in six starts since then and has missed the cut just once in that stretch.
Charley Hoffman (+4,000) has won twice on tour but not since 2010. Since then he has two runner-ups and a third while posting 13 top tens so he has been in the mix. Four of those top tens are from this year and he has missed only one cut. TPC at River Highlands has been kind to him as he has a T7 and a T2 the last two years. Hoffman is fifth on tour in total birdies with 272.
Brendon de Jonge (+4,500) is also in search of his first victory on tour and while he hasn't done much this year, he has gotten progressively better. He finished better than T36 only once in his first 12 starts in 2014 but he has done better than that in five of his last six starts including a T6 at the Wells Fargo. He finished T8 here in 2012 and de Jonge is 22nd on tour in total birdies with 243.
Bo Van Pelt (+6,500) will be the longshot choice this week. He had a miserable start to the season as he had only one made cut in seven starts starting in 2014. Since then, he has missed only two cuts in nine starts which includes five top 26 or better finishes. He has made the cut here five straight years and six of the last seven which includes a T6 and a T9. He is ranked 38th in hitting greens.
Recommended Tournament Win Five Pack at the Travelers Championship (all for One Unit)
Graham DeLaet (+3,000)
Hunter Mahan (+3,500)
Charley Hoffman (+4,000)
Brendon de Jonge (+4,500)
Bo Van Pelt (+6,500)
2014 Record to date after 22 events: -58 Units