We’re barely a month into the year, but that’s no excuse not to look ahead and speculate on what’s in store for golf fans. In this piece, we’ll have a [sc:PGA15-250 ]brief overview of expected favorites to win each of the four major tournaments this year.
Speaking of tournaments, you can check out our preview of this year’s edition of the Sony Open in Hawaii.
[sc:MultiSportArticles ]
Top Contenders for the 2016 PGA Major Tournaments
Masters Tournament (Jordan Spieth, Bubba Watson, Adam Scott)
[sc:Golf240banner ]Few athletes had a better 2015 than Jordan Spieth. To summarize, Spieth won The Masters, the U.S. Open, placed fourth in The Open, and was a runner-up in the PGA Championship. In 12 PGA tournaments played in 2015, Spieth finished in the top 10 15 times, while missing just four cuts. Overall, Spieth made $22 million in 2015. Coming from a year like that, how can we not like his chances of winning the first major of the year, where he is +700 to win it?
We also included two other former tournament champions in Bubba Watson and Adam Scott. Watson had a rollercoaster 2015, in which he also finished tied for 38th in last year’s The Masters, but nonetheless has won the Green Jacket twice (2012 and 2014). Scott, on the other hand, didn’t win any PGA tournament last year (also placing 38th in The Masters), but was the winner in the 2013 edition.
US Open (Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson)
While Spieth did have an amazing 2015 PGA season and appears to be channeling his inner Stephen Curry on the golf course to start this year, let’s not forget the golfer who preceded him as the world’s No. 1 player: Rory McIlroy. Currently sitting at No. 3 in the world ranking, the Northern Irishman is expected by many to have a strong bounce back year following an injury-riddled 2015. Regaining the top spot in the world is high on the priority list of McIlroy, who has won the 2011 U.S. Open, the same year he set multiple tournament records. McIlroy is priced +160 to win exactly one major this season.
The Open (Jordan Spieth, Zach Johnson, Rory McIlroy)
Zach Johnson is the reigning British Open champion, so we’ll just go ahead and put him alongside the likes of Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy as among the expected chalks to win a major across the pond. Before raising the Claret Jug last year, the Cedar Rapids, Iowa native first had to contend with Louis Oosthuizen and Marc Leishman in a nerve-wracking three-man playoff at St. Andrews. Spieth, meanwhile, must be aching to win The Open after falling short (T4) last year, thus stopping his assault for a Grand Slam.
PGA Championship (Jordan Spieth, Jason Day, Rory McIlroy)
Jason Day may be too slow to defend his wife’s life in times like these, but he’s a good bet to stave off all those after his PGA Championship title. After years of chasing for his first major, Day dramatically won one last August, when he finished at 20 under 268 to defeat Jordan Spieth by three shots in the 2015 PGA Championship in Sheboygan. In 20 PGA tournaments last season, Day finished first five times and inside the top 10 11 times, while missing the cut just twice. Ranked No. 2 in the world, Day has a price of +1,000 to win exactly two majors this 2016.
