The 2021 US Open is over and done, and what a tournament that was, right? But the 2021 PGA TOUR will continue to move along, with the next event scheduled this week at TPC River Highlands down in Cromwell, where the 2021 Travelers Championship will be held, as usual. The Travelers Championship is among the most popular events on the PGA TOUR’s calendar. In fact, it’s the second overall in terms of fan turnout. It’s going to be another great week in golf for sure, but which player will have the greatest Sunday of them all? Check out our preview of this event, with an overview of some of the favorites, sleepers, and long shots.
Even though he remains winless this season, Johnson is still a top-three player in the world. Currently ranked second overall, Johnson will look to defend this week the Travelers Championship he won a year ago (from which he took home a cool sum of $1.332 million). Johnson finished with a T19 in the recently concluded 2021 US Open, as he was tripped up by a 74 score in the final round after shooting a 68 in the third. Johnson has five top 10s in 14 starts this season, thus far.
After missing the cut in the Palmetto Championship at Congaree, Koepka picked up the pieces and finished with a strong T4 in the 2021 US Open, scoring a 69 both in the first and final rounds. Koepka now has three top 5s in all of his last three events in which he made the cut, including a T2 in the 2021 World Golf Championships-Workday Championship at The Concession and in the 2021 PGA Championship.
In his first start since scoring a victory in 2021 the Memorial Tournament earlier this month, Cantlay managed to place tied for 15th in the 2021 US Open. The 29-year-old product of UCLA has made six career PGA TOUR starts at TPC River Highlands, with the last three of those all earning him top 15 finishes.
Mickelson will have to wait for at least another year to try to complete a career grand slam after a disappointing performance in the 2021 US Open, where he finished with just a T62. Nevertheless. Lefty will look to get going again this week at TPC River Highlands, where he’s had success before. Mickelson won the 2001 and 2002 Canon Greater Hartford Open. He had a great shot at winning his third at that course in 2020 after firing scores of 64 and 63 in the first two rounds of that year’s Travelers Championship only to fizzle in the final two rounds.
After withdrawing from the 2021 Memorial Tournament following a bad score of 77 in the first round, Watson delivered a much better performance overall in his next start. He finished with a T50 in the 2021 US Open with a final score of 8-over 292. It wasn’t anything much to write home about, but at least it gives him some measure of momentum. Watson has now made the cut in seven of his last eight starts. Moreover, Watson is a three-time winner of the Travelers Championship (2010, 2015, 2018. He placed just 54th in the 2019 edition of the tournament before missing the cut in 2020.
Ranked just 237th in the world, Gordon will look to build on his surprise T14 performance in the 2021 Palmetto Championship at Congaree. That must feel so good for him after missing the cut in all of his previous five PGA TOUR starts.
Van Rooyen has missed the cut in five of his last six starts. However, in the last four times he made the cut, he ended up cracking the top 17 in all of them.
Writer’s Prediction
Brooks Koepka wins the 2021 Travelers Championship.
