The fourth and final golf major of the year, the 2016 PGA Championship, is all set for this weekend. That means it’ll be the final chance bettors have to wager on the always exciting parlayable matchups for a major tournament, so don’t miss out. To help sift through the 32 available pairings, let’s break down three of our best picks to come out on top in their respective matchups.
Jason Day might be the No. 1 golfer in the world, but Dustin Johnson is easily the hottest one at the moment. Just look at where Johnson has finished in his last six tournaments: 3rd, 5th, 1st, 1st, T9, T2. That’s a remarkable run of results! Furthermore, the new world No. 2 has topped Day in five of those tournaments despite the Aussie finishing T8 at the U.S. Open and T3 at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
Don’t overthink this one. Johnson, who is the overall favorite at +750 to win the PGA Championship, is just in a zone right now, and is the right bet to get another one over on Day at Baltusrol.
Mickelson and Stenson put on quite a show at Royal Troon. The two went shot for shot until the very end, where Stenson eventually prevailed to claim his very first major. Believers of “momentum” will likely side with Stenson to carry his good form into Baltusrol. The odds certainly have Stenson as the overwhelming favorite to top Mickelson for the second-straight tournament.
But don’t discount the possibility that Stenson suffers a bit of a post-major victory hangover. He hadn’t been playing well heading into The Open as it was. He missed the cut at the Wells Fargo Championship and The Players Championship. He was also on course to missing the cut at the U.S. Open before withdrawing, citing minor neck and knee issues.
Even a small slip from Stenson should open the door for Lefty to get the slight leg up at Baltusrol, where he won the PGA Championship when the course last hosted the major back in 2005.
Jim Furyk is back after a wrist injury, but he’s still not quite back to his best. His shock T2 finish at the U.S. Open and recent 13th-place finish at the RBC Canadian Open aside, Furyk has not finished inside the top 20 in any of his other seven tournaments this season.
That’s in stark contrast with the consistent Zach Johnson. The two-time major winner has finished well inside the top 20 in each of his last four tournament starts. This includes laudable finishes in the last two major tournaments: a T8 finish at the U.S. Open and a T12 at the recently-concluded British Open. Look for Johnson to finish considerably higher than his compatriot this weekend.
Writer’s Prediction
Betting straight on those three golfers at $5 each will net you around $14. But put all of them in a three-golfer parlay for a $15 bet, and stand to win $91 if (or when) they all pan out.
Complete Listing of Parlayable Matchups for the 2016 PGA Championship
Matchups
Dustin Johnson (-120) vs Jason Day (-110)
Rory McIlroy (-135) vs Jordan Spieth (+105)
Henrik Stenson (-145) vs Phil Mickelson (+115)
Sergio Garcia (-130) vs Adam Scott (EVEN)
Justin Rose (-115) vs Matt Kuchar (-115)
Bubba Watson (-115) vs Rickie Fowler (-115)
Patrick Reed (-120) vs Brandt Snedeker (-110)
Charl Schwartzel (-115) vs Martin Kaymer (-115)
Zach Johnson (-125) vs Jim Furyk (-105)
Danny Willett (-110) vs J.B. Holmes (-120)
Lee Westwood (-125) vs Shane Lowry (-105)
Justin Thomas (-115) vs Bill Haas (-115)
Luke Donald (-125) vs Joost Luiten (-105)
Tony Finau (-125) vs Jimmy Walker (-105)
Marc Leishman (-125) vs Rafael Cabrera-Bello (-105)
Paul Casey (-110) vs Russell Knox
Kevin Chappell (-120) vs Gary Woodland (-110)
Keegan Bradley (-115) vs Billy Horschel (-115)
Scott Piercy (EVEN) vs Danny Lee (-130)
Jhonatthan Vegas vs Emiliano Grillo (-115)
David Lingmerth (-105) vs Andy Sullivan (-125)
Webb Simpson (-115) vs Ryan Palmer (-115)
Francesco Molinari (-145) vs Matthew Fitzpatrick (+115)
Charley Hoffman (-110) vs Kevin Kisner (-120)
Graeme McDowell (-110) vs Chris Kirk (-120)
Byeong Hun An (-130) vs Tyrrell Hatton (EVEN)
Soren Kjeldsen (-130) vs Alexander Noren (EVEN)
Brendan Steele (-115) vs Kevin Na (-120)
William McGirt (-115) vs Harris English (-115)
Bernd Wiesberger (-135) vs Thomas Pieters (+105)
Padraig Harrington (-115) vs Andrew Johnston (-115)
David Toms (-110) vs Vijay Singh (-120)
Create a betting account now and don’t miss this chance to parlay some major golf action one more time this year.
