Brooks v. Bryson: Odds, Our Pick for the Match at Wynn Golf Club
Sometimes, in life, it's best to take your own advice instead of relying on intuition.
If we had, we may have landed on Talor Gooch as a pick for the RSM Classic because as we pointed out, “the theme here has generally been journeymen finding glory and having to go as low…” If you’re an avid PGA Tour follower, Gooch has been lurking on leaderboards for a few years now and he took his chance at a place that treats new winners with same southern hospitality Sea Island is known for. Gooch is now atop the FedEx Cup rankings heading into 2022 and will enjoy his highest ever world ranking at No. 33 over the holidays.
As for the picks, Cam Smith did not disappoint among the favorites and continued his stellar run with a T-4 finish. However, the high value on both Max Homa and Adam Hadwin did not come to fruition on the weekend.
The official PGA Tour schedule now goes dormant until early January, but the gambling corner rolls on. We now head to the Las Vegas strip for the latest rendition of the The Match where Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau will look to settle their “beef” a few months too late. This heavyweight matchup has surely lost its luster since both competitors looked to be in good graces during Ryder Cup week and any PIP money motivation shuddered over the weekend when God, I mean Tiger Woods, posted a three-second practice swing to his social feeds. Alas, this is golf being played in Vegas, so there must be something to play.
According to SI Sportsbook, the slight favorite is Bryson DeChambeau at -120 to beat Brooks Koepka in the 12-hole match-play format.
The Match will take place at Wynn Golf Club, formerly known as The Desert Inn Golf Course where Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Tiger Woods all won PGA Tour events. However, not a single hole from the old course is still present after it closed in 2000 and reopened in 2005 under the watchful eye of hall of fame designer Tom Fazio.
It is a true Vegas layout being on the same street as the faux Eiffel Tower and Statue of Liberty. Both players will have to hold their nerve on the varying degree of length and difficulty throughout the layout. Listed at just 6,722 yards from the back tees, the par-70 course may seem like a pitch-and-putt for these bruisers, but the short holes play very short, and the long holes play long.
As with most head-to-head matchups, it all comes down to motivation. Koepka has always tried to remain nonchalant about the whole feud and express how little he tries among his peers. His Twitter bio in fact says “athlete” instead of “golfer”, like he’s the tennis player who didn’t make the football team. However, when he arrives to the first tee on Friday, the juices will be flowing, but just not as much as DeChambeau’s. Being labeled the “nerd” in this fight, he is going to want this much more than Koepka and will be laser focused throughout. Lay the small juice with DeChambeau and catch the tail end of Black Friday sales.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.
2021-22 picks scoreboard:
Winners: 1
Top 5s: 3
Top 10s:
Top 20s: 1