Muirfield Village GC has played host to the Memorial Tournament since 1976. It was a bit shorter back then, but other than that it is still familiar. It’s a par 72 that plays right around 7,400 yards. There’s a fair bit of trouble around this track with the golfers contending with 73 bunkers and 13 water hazards. The bentgrass greens here run at some of the highest speeds on Tour. For a more in-depth look at how the course has played in the past, check out the course preview article.
Vegas Values
Bryson DeChambeau ($46) is the fourth most expensive golfer this week. He won this event last season but came in with much better form than he is this year. DeChambeau is coming in on a streak of three straight missed cuts. Maybe he can get himself sorted out and play well here but with the 13th-best odds to win at one of the highest prices on the board, he’s a pass for me until I see his game come back into shape. Since the start of 2018, DeChambeau had been averaging about 4.2 SG: Tee to Green. Over the past three events, that average has dipped down to 0.65 strokes gained.
Emiliano Grillo ($31) is just a shade above $30 this week on Yahoo and is 55/1 to win the event in the middle of golfers boasting 80/1 and up prices at most books. Grillo has played well in the past at the Memorial with three-of-three made cuts on his resume including two Top 25 finishes. Since struggling at the Masters to a 62nd place finish, he’s improved each week with his ball-striking. He hit two-thirds of his greens in regulation last week and turned that into a 19th place finish at Colonial CC. In the span of those three events, he’s gained an average of 5.9 SG: Tee to Green.
Price Pivots
Rory McIlroy ($50) is priced all the way up as our most expensive golfer on the slate this week. We’re looking for discounts in this section though. It’s almost impossible to replicate Rory’s game, but there are some interesting names that pop up in the Sim Scores and Pivots app when you filter by his last three starts. Rickie Fowler ($46) off of a missed cut last weekend is an interesting name. Jason Day ($41) also pops up as a similar play. The one that really intrigues me, though, is Kevin Streelman ($21). He’s a mere $1 above min price and has been playing well recently. Streelman doesn’t have the same distance off the tee but he’s hitting more fairways and greens than McIlroy.
Matt Kuchar ($45) will surely be a popular name this week given the combination of his recent form and his history here at Muirfield Village. It makes sense, too, as he’s averaging over 4.0 strokes gained on approach over his last five events. Sung Kang ($28) is below $30 this week and compares quite well to Kuchar over their past few starts. Kang does have the blemish of missing the cut at the Wells Fargo on his recent resume, but he came back pretty strong with a win at the Byron Nelson and a seventh place effort at the PGA Championship. In many ways, Kang has outperformed Kuchar over this span and could provide some useful salary — and likely, ownership — savings at Jack’s Place this weekend.
Image Credit: Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire. Pictured: Rory McIlroy.
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