Diane Knox Balas
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After an impressive start and a nervy finish, Europe were triumphant at the Ryder Cup and won the battle in Rome. Team USA certainly teased us with the upset in the Sunday Singles, though! I was starting to sweat as my American husband was pacing back and forth in the living room, praying that the unlikely would transpire and the U.S. would make a monumental comeback. Alas, it wasn’t to be.
As Rickie Fowler conceded a 3-foot putt, Tommy Fleetwood fist-pumped as Europe got to 14.5 points and won the Cup back. I still can’t get over the fact he gave him that putt with everything on the line…! Luke Donald’s twelve men played their hearts out over the three days of competition and maintained their 30 year winning record on home soil against an American side who looked sluggish out of the gate. The countdown begins to Bethpage Black in New York in 2025…
From the start of the week, we got that Euro win at +125, Max Homa as top U.S. points scorer at +900 and top Euro rookie with Bob McIntyre at +350.
From Day 2, Hovland & Aberg to beat Scheffler & Koepka at +130, and Homa & Harman to beat Lowry and Straka at +115.
Then finally from Day 3, Robert McIntyre to beat Wyndham Clark at +170. Not a bad week overall!
In a slightly anti-climatic move, the PGA Tour is back after a two-week break (yes, another one) for the next event in the FedEx Fall. The Sanderson Farms Championship returns to the Country Club of Jackson and last year’s champion MacKenzie Hughes, who was 110/1 entering the week, will be back to defend.
There are 6 events left on the schedule, and those 6 events will determine who gets their PGA Tour card for 2024. The top 125 from the FedExCup standings at the end of the year will be fully exempt. There’s also a spot in the first two signature events of 2024 up for grabs for those who finish 51-60.
Teeing it up this week are five golfers who finished within the top-50, meaning their FedExCup position won’t change no matter how they perform. Those guys are Eric Cole, Lee Hodges, Tom Hoge, Adam Svensson and Emiliano Grillo. Much like we saw with Sahith Theegala at the Fortinet Championship, these guys are out there to win. MacKenzie Hughes sits at No.51.
6 of the last 9 champions of this tournament have been first-time winners, and the Vegas favorite will be looking to follow this trend. Ludvig Aberg, fresh off his successful Ryder Cup debut, will be making the trip from Italy to tee it up at +1200. His teammate, Nicolai Hojgaard, withdrew from the tournament late Sunday night. After watching some of the celebrations, I applaud this move.
Country Club of Jackson: What you need to know
The Country Club of Jackson is a par 72 and measures in at 7,461 yards. This is the 10th anniversary of the club hosting the tournament.
Strong iron play seems to be the key to success, combined with a hot putter. Last year, Hughes gained over two strokes tee-to-green (ranked 3rd for the week) and almost 1.5 strokes in approach (6th).
The Donald Ross greens are small, putting a further premium on excellent approach play, and they’re fast. The fairways here are pretty wide too, meaning the bigger hitters can really let it rip, especially with four par-5s on the scorecard, and the rough isn’t all that penal. The field will have to plot their way around a number of doglegs, however.
Having said that, distance hasn’t really been part of the winning recipe over the years, with much more of a premium on solid ball-striking and accuracy when hitting the greens.
Knox’s Knockout Sanderson Farms Championship picks
Eric Cole (+2000 at DraftKings)
Cole is a favorite this week, but I’m grabbing him at 20/1 right away. A strong iron game and excellent approach shots are going to be important aspects of the game around the CC of Jackson, and that’s Cole’s forte. He’s looking for his debut win on Tour, even though he’s exempt for all the signature events next year, and his game is tailored to this course. He’s 12th in putting for the season, 24th in approach and has only lost strokes in approach in three tournaments this calendar year. In fact, a few weeks ago at the Fortinet, he finished 4th and gained strokes in every category apart from putting, which is rare for him. He’s played here once before and missed the cut, but I think the 35 year old rookie will feel relaxed and confident this week, with victory on his mind.
Sam Ryder (+5000 at BetMGM)
This Sam Ryder pick may be subliminal – he did appear on tv commercials during Ryder Cup breaks an awful lot over the weekend. But seriously, I do like him for the Sanderson Farms. Ryder sits at 61st in the FedExCup, therefore is playing for a spot in the signature events along with his first PGA Tour win and a lot of cash. Season-long, Sam is 4th in putting average and 25th in approach, plus he’s gained almost six strokes in approach in his last four events. Coming off a T14 at the Fortinet, and a T7 at the 3M Open back in July, Sam should see this is a huge opportunity week to finally get over the finish line first.
Greyson Sigg (+8000 at DraftKings)
I’m going with a guy who played well here last year and finished T9. Greyson Sigg sits at 99th in the FedExCup standings, therefore has some work to do to 100% guarantee his Tour card for next year. He finished T25 at the Fortinet with an additional three top-20s in 2023, ranks 3rd in driving efficiency for the year and 6th in approaches from 200 yards. With some solid course history here, I like Greyson to perform this week and capitalize on his strengths.
Chad Ramey (+8000 at DraftKings)
I’m going with some local influence for this week; Chad Ramey is from Mississippi and went to Mississippi State University. He’s going to be relying on the home crowds to get him fired up this week, because at 113th in the FedExCup standings he has some work to do. Ramey’s best finish here in three appearances is 26th, but his game is in a pretty good place with three top-20s in his last seven starts. His putting has been saving him – he leads the Tour in putts from 9 feet – and good putters are rewarded at this course. An important week for Ramey to make some moves up the standings.
Sanderson Farms Championship Prop Bets
Nate Lashley top-10 finish (+700 at Bet365)
Lashley has had some pretty decent finishes here – two top-20s in the last four years – and has been playing some good golf, with five top-30s since May. At 93rd in the FedExCup standings, he should feel confident against this field to make some moves.
Hayden Buckley top-20 finish (+230 at DraftKings)
I want to include Buckley somewhere in my picks this week but just couldn’t figure out where, and a top-20 at over double money feels about right. Buckley finished T19 here last year and T4 the year prior, grew up in Mississippi and is very familiar with the course.
