Diane Knox Balas
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I can’t believe we’ve had 75% of the Majors for the year; time is going too quickly! Wyndham Clark was victorious around LACC to win the U.S. Open, his first Major and his second trophy of 2023. With Rory, Rickie, Scottie and Cam Smith all in the mix, it was an exciting Sunday evening of golf. This week feels like a big one on the PGA Tour for quite a few reasons. Firstly, we have another designated event with a $20 million purse, and that means the big names are traveling cross-country from Los Angeles to Connecticut to compete at TPC River Highlands. Eight of the OWGR top-10 are playing, and some of the big names to give this week a miss are past champion Jordan Spieth, Tyrrell Hatton, Sam Burns and Justin Rose.
Secondly, after a rather subdued atmosphere at LACC last week, this will be the opposite. The Travelers Championship always draws a huge crowd and the atmosphere will be brilliant. Fans and players alike love this tournament, and it’s always an entertaining week of golf, heightened now by the elevated status and large purse.
This was also the home of my brother, Russell Knox’s second PGA Tour victory back in 2016 so it holds a very special place in my heart. If you have time, and so desire, look up the winning moment on YouTube; he ripped off his hat and threw it like a frisbee into the crowd! So I have some intel from him on what it takes to win this tournament. I hope he can put it into practice this week and shoot himself out of him slump.
Last year, Xander Schauffele won by two shots over J.T. Poston and Sahith Theegala, who pretty much had the tournament wrapped up until he made a poor shot choice on the final hole. He’ll be back in action looking to take care of some unfinished business, I’m sure.
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TPC River Highlands: What you need to know
We’re looking at a short course this week, in fact, TPC River Highlands is the second shortest course on the PGA Tour schedule at just 6,841 yards. Past champions have been a real combination of shorter hitters (Chez Reavie, Kevin Streelman) and the bombers (Dustin Johnson, Bubba Watson). Distance is always an advantage as the guys can play aggressive lines and leave themselves shorter clubs into the green, but a number of holes here will force them to lay up and club down. Two par-4s measure under 350 yards, and ten of them are under 450 yards, with two very scoreable par-5s.
Watch out for the 15th hole too, a real risk-reward gem! It’s a 296-yard par-4 with water on the left and a massive hill on the right. It always makes for a lot of entertainment/drama.
The rough is known to be penal here, and even with wide fairways you will see a lot of guys clubbing down off tees to increase their chances of staying in the short grass. It’s also a tough scrambling course, so hitting greens is key. I’m really looking at driving accuracy and greens in regulation for my picks this week, as well as hot putting trends.
Knox’s Knockout Travelers Championship Best Bets
Tommy Fleetwood (+3500 at DK Sportsbook)
With the way Tommy Fleetwood has been playing, I was shocked to see him at 35/1. However, this is the joy of these elevated field events – Scheffler, McIlroy and Rahm push the odds up for everyone else! Tommy finished T5 last week at LACC and just missed out on his first PGA Tour win the week prior, when he lost in a playoff at the RBC Canadian Open. He’s also had two additional top-5 finishes since March. His putting has been tremendous lately, and he’s 7th in strokes gained: total on the Tour. This is only his third time playing this event, and his best finish was T13 in 2019, but Fleetwood is knocking on the door of victory, and the momentum is too good to ignore right now.
Harris English (+7500 at FanDuel)
75/1 for a past champion who finished in the top-10 at last week’s U.S. Open and has two top-3 finishes since March? I’m taking Harris English right away! When he won the Travelers in 2021, it took him EIGHT playoff holes to get it done. So it’s safe to say he knows this course well, plus this is his tenth time competing in the tournament. After taking some time off due to injury and rehabilitation, Harris is returning to the great form we saw in 2020/21. He’s currently 13th in putting average, and last week at LACC, he gained over 2.5 strokes on the field on the greens. I feel like another win is bubbling up for English, and I love these odds.
Brian Harman (+10000 at UniBet)
When looking at past performances at TPC River Highlands, this lefty’s resume is mighty impressive. In his last 8 appearances here, Brian Harman has finished within the top-8 five times, and was T8 last year. In five of his last six starts, he’s gained just under 9.5 strokes on the field total. He played well at the U.S. Open for three of the four days, before a final round +5 sent him into a tie for 43rd. He hasn’t done much since his T7 at the RBC Heritage back in April, but some good form and great history here could be a winning combo.
Austin Eckroat (+12500 at BetMGM)
Over 27% of approach shots come from the 150-175 yard range, and Eckroat sits 5th on the PGA Tour in that stat category. He’s had a 5th and a runner-up finish this season, plus an impressive T10 last week at the U.S. Open where he shot -5 in the final round. Eckroat is making a name for himself, and has been gaining in all stat categories consistently, apart from around-the-green, over his last five starts. His approach and off-the-tee performances have been solid, and this course should set up for him nicely.
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Travelers Championship Prop Bets
Top-10 Finish – Justin Suh (+1200 at Bet365)
If you haven’t been paying attention to this guy, change that! Suh has been putting together a fantastic rookie season on the PGA Tour, with six top-25 finishes in 2023. He’s excellent on the greens and sits at 11th on the Tour in strokes gained: putting, and good putting is vital at TPC River Highlands. This is his second appearance at the tournament.
Top-10 Finish – Kevin Streelman (+2000 at Bet365)
If you’re looking for a journeyman who loves TPC River Highlands, look no further than this man. Streelman has six top-15 finishes here, including a win in 2014 where he birdied the last seven holes to clinch it by one. He recently finished T9 at the Charles Schwab Challenge, and has steadily been gaining in approach for the last few months. I’ll also take him for a top-20 at +800.
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