With Sangmoon Bae unable to defend his title, a new champion is sure to be crowned in this year’s Frys.com Open. Rory McIlroy is the favorite to emerge from the weekend with the win, but can some under-the-radar sleeper spring a surprise and grab the first title of the new PGA Tour season?
Let’s check out three possible sleeper candidates that have a very good shot at taking the title. And for more coverage of this season-opening tournament, check out our complete Frys.com Open preview, as well as our Frys.com Open experts picks.
Despite failing to register a win this season, Daniel Berger was a worthy winner of the PGA Rookie of the Year award. The 22-year-old finished 11th in the FedEx Cup standings, and came on strong once the actual playoffs began.
[sc:Golf240banner ]Berger finished tied for 12th in the Deutsche Bank Championship and the Tour Championship, with his second-place finish at the BMW Championship sandwiched in between. That was one of his two runner-up finishes this season; he lost a playoff to Padraig Harrington in the Honda Classic.
It should be noted that Berger missed seven consecutive cuts before his breakout performances in the FedEx Cup playoffs. But because of his strong finish, he should warrant a look at +4,000 to win his first ever tournament.
Steven Bowditch
Steven Bowditch had a career year in 2015. The 32-year-old Aussie socored a win and a runner-up finish, which helped him end the year at 20th in the FedEx Cup standings.
He didn’t have a particularly impressive playoff run, although he improved with each tournament. From missing the cut in the Deutsche Bank Championship, he went T41 in the BMW Championship and T12 in the Tour Championship.
Bowditch was third on Tour this year in scrambling, a key skill which could see his +5,500 odds pout out in a big way. Bowditch put that skill to good use last season, when he finished second in the first Frys.com Open held at Silverado.
Brendon Todd
Brendon Todd didn’t get a win in the 2015 season, but he probably should have. He was Jason Day’s main challenger through two rounds, as he scored a 129 in the first 36 holes of the BMW Championship. However, it all fell apart as he shot rounds of 76 and 70, which cost him a shot at joining the season-ending Tour Championship.
Fueled by this major disappointment, Todd will look to redeem himself at Silverado. He certainly has the skill set to do so. The 30-year-old was 10th in driving accuracy, seventh in strokes gained: putting and 22nd in scrambling this season. Don’t sleep on Todd, who is +6,500 to start off 2016 with a win.
