The entire sports world will have eyes on Fort Worth, Texas and Colonial Country Club Thursday-Sunday as the PGA TOUR makes its return.
This will be the first major sporting event in roughly 90 days since sports shutdown due to COVID-19. Because of this, there certainly will be some new eyes on the sport, especially bettors looking for some action. In addition, it is a loaded field with the majority of the top players playing after being away from the game for so long.
There will be no fans on site and all players have been subject to COVID-19 testing.
Here's a guide on who is playing, where/when to watch and some players to potentially bet on.
TV SCHEDULE
Thursday-Friday, 4 p.m.-7 p.m. (Golf Channel) Saturday-Sunday, 1 p.m.-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (CBS)
FIELD
It is stacked with 16 of the top 20 players in the world, including all of the top five. This gives it a major championship feel in a way and the featured groups have some of the best players playing together.
Here are some of the featured groups with their tee times Thursday and Friday.
- Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka (1:06 p.m., 7:56 a.m.)- Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler (12:55 p.m., 7:45 a.m.)- Phil Mickelson, Gary Woodland, Kevin Na (7:56 a.m., 1:06 p.m.)- Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose (7:45 a.m., 12:55 p.m.)
Other marquee players in the field include Jason Day, Webb Simpson, Kevin Kisner, Patrick Reed, Matt Kuchar, Tony Finau, Jim Furyk and Xander Schauffele.
The only players in the top 20 who are missing this week are Adam Scott, Patrick Cantlay, Tommy Fleetwood and Tiger Woods.
LONG-SHOT BETS
Win- Collin Morikawa (+3300)
This is incredibly hard to predict on a normal week, but even harder this week with no tournaments for the last three months to go off of. Morikawa is a cut-making machine, as he has yet to miss one in his PGA TOUR career (21 starts). He also has five top 25s in his last seven starts, so we feel like he's due to cash in big and earn his second career win.
Top 10- Jordan Spieth (+450)
Normally this wouldn't really be saying much, but Spieth has just three top 10s since last June and is still looking to find his form. With that being said, Spieth did finish T-8 in last year's edition, which included a final round 72. In what is a home game for him, he's only finished outside the top 15 once in seven chances. Speaking Tuesday, Spieth acknowledged he worked on some things during the layoff, so this could be the perfect week to get back into his old form.
Top 20- Harris English (+300)
English entered the layoff in prime form with three top 20 finishes in a row and this is a week to keep it going. He's finished in the top five twice in seven tries, including second in 2016. Given his experience and confidence from earlier in the year, he seems like a good selection.
MATCHUP BETS
Sungjae Im over Dustin Johnson
This is mostly a pure fade of Johnson, who doesn't really have much to get motivated for in this event, and he didn't look so great in the TaylorMade Driving Relief skins game. He's played in only four events this calendar year and doesn't have a top five finish, which is very unlike him. Meanwhile, Im was one of the hottest players on TOUR before the layoff, including a win at the Honda Classic.
Webb Simpson over Bryson DeChambeau
Simpson comes into the event in great form in his recent events as the No. 7 player in the world and a winner at the Waste Management Phoenix Open in February. He also has had some success at the event in the past, including two consecutive top fives in 2016 and 2017. DeChambeau is still changing his body and may still be working things out. In four past appearances at the event, he's made just one cut and has broken par only twice.
Matt Kuchar over Matthew Fitzpatrick
Kuchar has one of the best records at the tournament as this will be his 12th appearance. Those previous 11 include three top 10s and five top 25s, including a runner-up finish in 2013. Meanwhile, Fitzpatrick was in the United Kingdom for most of the layoff and wasn't able to much practice in like most of his peers.
