With last week’s major, the PGA Championship at Oak Hill providing a stern, some would say brutal test, many of the PGA Tour’s stars could be fatigued this week in Texas at the Charles Schwab Challenge.
Picks Summary
- Golf Pick: Chris Kirk to Win Outright (+4000)
- Golf Pick: Chris Kirk to Finish in the Top 10 (+400)
- Golf Pick: Kevin Tway to Win Outright Win (+30000)
- Golf Pick: Kevin Tway to Finish in the Top 20 (+600)
Can Chris Kirk Twin for a Second Time at Colonial and in 2023?
Golf Pick: Chris Kirk to Win Outright (+4000) at Bovada (visit our Bovada Review)
Golf Pick: Chris Kirk to Finish in the Top 10 (+400) at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
I can remember backing Chris Kirk when he won here in 2015 at +4000, so yes, he can win here at Colonial. He has never really contended since 2015, but his years in the interim have been affected by some off-the-course issues.
This season the thirty-eight-year-old from Knoxville has already won the Honda Classic. It will not surprise me if he puts up a stout showing this week in search of a second win at Colonial, after a strong PGA Championship last week as Kirk is often able to back up and build on big efforts the previous week.
I am having a strong bet in the top 10 and outright win market on Chris Kirk this week, who represents value at the top U.S. betting sites.
Charles Schwab Challenge
May 25 – May 28, 2023 at Colonial Country Club
Course Notes
- Colonial Country Club
- Fort Worth, Texas
- Par 70, 7209 yards
- Flat short parkland tree-lined track with several doglegs and heavy bunkering
- Small Bentgrass elevated greens
- Bermuda Grass Fairways and rough
- Key Metrics – Greens in regulation, Bermuda putting
Previous Champions
The Charles Schwab Challenge was founded in 1946 at Fort Worth, the spiritual home of the great Ben Hogan. The event can be prone to experienced players of thirty and above winning as it’s often a strategic test of patience in Texas.
Leading Betting Contenders
Jordan Spieth (+1200)
The fans' favorite in Texas is a doubtful starter this week given the injury to the left wrist. Spieth’s plethora of forms at the Colonial is the most impressive of all this week’s competitors. I am sure he will be tempted to play, but not sure he should.
Collin Morikawa (+1600)
With his stellar iron play, Colonial is well suited to Collin Morikawa’s strength. No surprise he nearly won on his debut here in 2020 when the event was delayed due to Covid. Despite his lack of length for last week’s test, Morikawa caught my eye and has solid form credentials this week.
Value Alternatives
Cameron Davis (+5000)
The young Australian professional looks to be making small inroads into the top of the sport after last week’s strong showing at the PGA Championship. That backs up impressive efforts and top 7 finishes at the Players Championship and Heritage Classic. Cameron Davis loves Bentgrass greens and if he can get over last week’s exertions, he must have a solid chance.
Alex Smalley (+8000)
The twenty-six-year-old New Yorker Alex Smalley looks on the brink of his PGA Tour breakthrough after another solid week at the PGA Championship to back up a similar display at the Wells Fargo Championship. His debut at the Colonial last year was a solid one and this week is the perfect opportunity to win a first title.
Sleeper and Long shot
Is Kevin Tway a Live Longshot?
Golf Pick: Kevin Tway to Win Outright (+30000) at Bovada
Golf Pick: Kevin Tway to Finish in the Top 20 (+600) at BetOnline
I really like Kevin Tway’s credentials this week at the Charles Schwab Challenge as a strong sleeper picks in many markets. At first look, the Colonial wouldn’t be the most obvious pick at a track requiring accuracy for Tway, but in the early years of his PGA Tour career he took a real shine to this quirky test.
Three top 20 finishes from 2017 onwards with a best finish of 5th is an impressive plethora of form for the thirty-four-year-old from Oklahoma. The missed cuts since have reflected the poor form that Tway has been in, but this year there is a palpable change in play and confidence for the former Safeway Open winner, especially regarding Greens in Regulation stats.
A closing round of 63 for 11th at the Byron Nelson Classic illustrated that on his final start, so I was delighted to see Tway’s name make it into the starting lineup as a sponsor’s exemption. My plan is to bet Kevin Tway hard in the top 20 prop market with a modest stake as a long-shot wager given many of the top players could be burnt out at the Charles Schwab Challenge this week.
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
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