5 our expert’s favorite picks

Welcome to our weekly PGA Tour gambling tips column, featuring picks from GOLF.com expert Brady Kannon. A seasoned golf bettor and commentator, Kannon is a regular guest on SportsGrid, an integrated audio network dedicated to sports and sports betting. You can follow on Twitter at @LasVegasGolferand you can read his picks below for the Procore Championship, which starts Thursday in Napa, Calif. Along with Kannon’s recommended games, you’ll see data from Chirp Golf, a mobile app that includes both Free-To-Play and Daily Fantasy golf tournaments where you can win cash and prizes for each round and tournament.

After a quick break, the PGA Tour resumes this week, kicking off its FedEx Cup Fall at the Procore Championship at Silverado Resort & Spa in Napa, Calif.

Most of the stars we have seen in the last two weeks in the Tour Championship, will be out this week and probably, for the most part of the autumn series. The Procore Championship is the first of eight events that make up the FedEx Cup Fall. Ultimately, this division will determine the top 125 players in FedEx Cup points, and, there, eligibility for the 2025 season, which begins in Kapalua, Maui, in January.

Sahith Theegala is your defending champion, earning his first and, so far, only PGA Tour victory here in Napa last fall. Two time winner, Max Homa is here. And fellow Presidents Cup contenders, Wyndham Clark, Corey Conners, Min Woo Lee, and Mackenzie Hughes round out most of the standouts in this week’s lineup.

Silverado (North Course) is a track where a mixed bag of players has seen success. Solid Total Drivers with a good short game may seem to be the latest trend, working for the last four winners of the event, Theegala, Homa, and Stewart Cink. Shortstops like Brendon Todd and Matt Kuchar have done well here in the past, as have pure hitters like JJ Spaun, Emiliano Grillo, and Kevin Streelman. It is worth noting that many of these holes are doglegs and short clubs can and will be used off the tee. We need to mention again that although these small roads are narrow and lined with trees, the rough ones are very punishable.

I’m leaning towards Strokes Gained: Off the Tee this week, and Good Drives Gained. I also emphasized Scrambling and SG: Approach. On a smaller scale, I looked at SG: Par 5’s, Birdie or Better, Hole Proximity from 75-150 yards, and SG: Poa Annua Greens. Note that this vegetable is actually a hybrid between bentgrass and poa annua.

In choosing the corresponding courses this week, I found some tracks that are perfect for working off the tee, putts, putts, and birdies. That led me to TPC Craig Ranch (Byron Nelson), Memorial Park in Houston (Houston Open), Detroit Golf Club (Rocket Mortgage), Pebble Beach, and TPC Summerlin (Shriners Children’s Open).

This is the first full tournament we’ve had since the Wyndham Championship a month ago. If so, I will play each of these options to win outright and finish in the top 20.

Maverick McNealy (22-1)

The Stanford graduate is very familiar with California golf and putting on these greens. He has done well in the past at Silverado and Pebble Beach, finishing second in each in 2021. In his last four eight games, McNealy finished 17-7-3-12. McNealy is ranked 41st on Tour in Total Driving. In the last 24 rounds, he is eighth in the field in SG: Putting (Poa Annua), 19th in Scrambling, and fifth in Birdies or Better Gained. Last year, we also hit Theegala at Silverado, getting his first Tour win. Let’s do the same here this season with another Californian looking for his first tour win.

JJ Spaun (34-1)

Spaun finished 11th here last year and 9th in 2020. In those years, he shot three out of four rounds in the 60s. Adding a fourth round in the 60s could knock him out of the winner’s circle. He is another California boy who is very familiar with these types of greens and in his last two starts, Spaun has finished third and ninth. Back in June, he was 10 in the Rocket Mortgage Classic, one of our affiliate courses. Over the past 24 rounds, Spaun is No. 1 in SG: Approach, fourth in Birdies or Better Earned, and third in SG: Par 5s.

Eric Cole (43-1)

In his last seven starts, Cole has posted two seventh-place finishes and a sixth-place finish — the sixth place coming at Detroit Golf Club, again, which is the course we’re connected to this week. He was fourth here in Napa last year and has made two consecutive top-15 finishes at Pebble Beach. He was also third last year at the Shriners Children’s Open at TPC Summerlin. In the last 24 rounds, Cole is ranked 29th in SG: Putting (Poa Annua), 39th in Scrambling, 18th in SG: Approach, 11th in Birdies or Better Earned, and No. 1 in both SG: Par 5s and Hole Distances between 100-125 yards.

Chan Kim (60-1)

Kim has played all over the world and has won eight on the Japan Tour. He won in back-to-back weeks last year on the Korn Ferry Tour and is making a name for himself on the big stage. He has finished in the top 12 in his last five starts on the PGA Tour. Kim is ranked 28th on Tour in Total Driving and over the last 24 rounds, fourth in Hole Proximity from 125-150 yards, sixth in SG: Approach, eighth in Birdies or Better Gained , and is ranked 13th in Scrambling. Four of our five picks this week are looking for their first Tour win and Kim looks to be one to do just that.

Jacob Bridgeman (80-1)

Here is a Tour Rookie who has played this event in Napa back in 2022. He was successful and ended up finishing in 55th place. Bridgeman is currently ranked 121st in FedExCup points, so he will need a strong FedExCup Fall to maintain his eligibility on the 2025 Tour. That kind of encouragement doesn’t hurt a guy who has been in good form, finishing 12th and 19th. his last two starts. He thrives in three areas: Hitting, Putting, and Scoring, all of which we like to have this week. In the last 24 rounds, Bridgeman is ranked 20th in SG: Putting (Poa Annua), 23rd in SG: Approach, 26th in Birdies or Better, and and 16 in Scrambling. He looks to be another up-and-comer on the Tour who should break through this week.

Chirp Golfers picks this week

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