The narrative of Brooks Koepka has become so all-encompassing that it’s easy to forget there is an event this week. It will be nice to re-enter reality following the frat-boy shenanigans of Bethpage Black. The Charles Schwab Challenge is one of five invitational events on the PGA Tour.
This event dates back all the way to 1946 and has some illustrious history. Golfing legend Ben Hogan was a Fort Worth resident and actually won this event five times. It has undergone various incarnations, known variously as the Crown Plaza Invitational and Fort Worth Invitational. Annika Sorenstam played here in 2003, making her the first woman in 58 years to participate in a full PGA event.
US PGA Tour 2019 | Charles Schwab Challenge
Colonial Country Club, Fort Worth Texas
Thursday 23 May – Sunday 26 May 2019
Colonial Country Club is one of the most classic courses on the PGA Tour and played host to the 1941 US Open. It also played host to the 1991 women’s US Open. It is a flat parkland-style course that is heavily bunkered and tight from the tee. In complete contrast to the bomber’s paradise that is Bethpage Black, Colonial is a course that favours accuracy far more than power. Just take one look at the list of winners. Jim Furyk, David Toms and Kevin Kisner are names that certainly reflect a classical test of golf. Justin Rose bucked the trend somewhat last year and will be back in town to defend his title.
Justin Rose has been fairly anonymous since winning earlier this season and doesn’t make the most appealing bet at present. Jon Rahm has bucked tradition here and blasted his way to two top 5’s in the last two years. Elsewhere great friends Ricky Fowler and Jordan Spieth will be looking to rack up some crucial FedEx Cup points. Francisco Molinari will be relieved to be competing at a course that is far more suitable to his surgical abilities. It will be interesting to see how the players get going after last week’s rescheduled PGA Championship.
Outright Betting (To Win)
Jon Rahm (11/1)
Justin Rose (11/1)
Ricky Fowler (14/1)
Jordan Spieth (14/1)
Xander Schauffele (16/1)
Value Bets
Graeme McDowell
To Win (66/1), To Place (14/1)
Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell will be looking to secure an Open Championship berth ahead of this year’s open at Royal Portrush. He would be truly gutted to miss out on a home Open in the same year that he returns to Pebble Beach for the US Open. His victory at the Corales event was pure McDowell and he should thrive in this classical test of golf. He has actually been in good form subsequent to that win, finishing 7th in the Texas Open and 18th in the Zurich. Perhaps most notable is his top 30 performance at Bethpage last week. The latter is a course that is antithetical to his game and this bodes well for his chances this week.
Abraham Ancer
To Win (75/1), To Place (16/1)
Abraham Ancer will be pleased with the way that he played the weekend at Bethpage: he actually outshot Koepka by four shots over the weekend. He tied for 16th in his first Major on American soil. He tied for 52nd last year, though middle rounds of 68-66 showed signs of encouragement. He has brilliant Texas form, making eight cuts out of eight events. His best result was a tie for 8th at last year’s Houston Open. He has seven top 10’s in his relatively short PGA Tour career and I feel that this week could be a great opportunity for him post-Major.
The Man to Beat
Francisco Molinari
To Win (16/1), To Place (7/2)
Italy’s first Major Champion Francisco Molinari has had to endure a tough few months of late. Let’s be honest, Augusta is not really a course that is suited to his accuracy based game. I think- meltdown aside – that his top 5 finish in Georgia was actually a brilliant result for the Italian. The Arnold Palmer Champion was also not ideally suited to the massive Bethpage Black layout. This Colonial test is far more suited to his abilities. I just think that his price looks about right in the wake of several disappointing results.
