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Professional golf’s fourth and final Major of the 2016 season gets underway this Thursday with first round action in the PGA Championship being played at Baltusrol Golf Club in New Jersey. This is one last chance for the sport’s top players to add a big win to the resume, but with a deep field of the best golfers in the world, this year’s PGA Championship could be completely up for grabs.
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The PGA Championship presents that one last opportunity of the year to win a Major and heading into this year’s event at Baltusrol there are quite a few big names that have been shutout through the first three events this year. BetOnline has released its futures odds to win this week and I have my eye on two players that could pay off at much longer odds.
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Top Favorites
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<strong>Dustin Johnson</strong> ditched the dubious distinction of being the best golfer to never win a Major with his stirring victory earlier this season in the US Open at Oakmont. With expectations running high as the favorite to win the Open Championship earlier this month, he could only muster a ninth-place finish at two under par. His odds to win this week have been set at +700 and there could be quite a bit of value in that number given a second-place finish this past weekend in the Canadian Open. Johnson has now finished first or second in three of his last four tournaments.
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The second-favorite to win the 2016 PGA Championship is <strong>Rory McIlroy</strong> at +850. There is no doubt that he is one of the best golfers in the world given everything he has accomplished in his career including two PGA Championship titles, but his odds to win this week may be a bit overvalued due to some heavy money coming in from the betting public. After missing the cut at the US Open, he did bounce back with a respectable fifth-place finish at Royal Troon in the Open Championship, but he was never really in contention to win. The pressure is always dialed up on McIlroy when a Major rolls around so I am taking a pass this week in light of current form.
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The third big name near the top of the futures list at BetOnline is<strong> Jordan Spieth</strong> and he comes in at +1400 odds to win his first Major of the year. Last season, he was at the top of his game when it came to Majors with victories in both the Masters and the US Open followed by a tie for fourth in the Open Championship and a second-place finish in this event. There is no doubt that Spieth is another one of the best golfers in the world, but the pressure of living up to such lofty expectations could once again work against his game this week. Coming off a tie for 30th at Royal Troon, I am backing off Spieth for this Major despite his attractive odds.
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Top Contender
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I believe there is some solid value in a couple of players a bit further down the list with <strong>Sergio Garcia </strong>at the top of my list at +2500. He has long been thought of as one of the best golfers in the world never to win a Major, so there is quite a bit of risk and reward with this pick. The main reason that I am going with Garcia as my top contender is his back-to-back fifth-place finishes in the US Open and the Open Championship this year. At age 36, he knows that his window of opportunity main not stay open all that much longer so the sense of urgency to capitalize on his current form has to be running high.
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Top Longshot
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If you are looking to take a flyer on a pretty steep longshot this week, then I would go with<strong> Jason Dufner</strong> at +8000 betting odds. He comes into this tournament ranked 27th on the PGA Money List with five Top 5 finishes in 22 events including a victory early in the season in the CareerBuilder Challenge. He ended up 22nd in the Open Championship on the strength of a final round 69 and he placed a respectable eighth in the US Open. Adding some value to these long odds is his stunning victory in the 2013 PGA Tournament at Oak Hill in New York when he shot a four-round 270 to claim his lone career victory in a Major.
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