3 Golfers to Fade at the 2022 PGA Championship (Avoid Bad Chippers at All Costs)
I've already talked and written about length about which golfers you should target this year. Want outright winners? Check out my betting preview. Want long shots and dark horses? Read my article here.
This time, let's talk about some golfers to absolutely avoid.
The golfers I'll be staying far away from at Southern Hills this week will be those who struggle with their chipping around the greens. By all reports, chipping is going to be the toughest aspect of this year's PGA Championship. Small and slanted greens are going to force a lot of golfers to chip back on to try to save par.
Early chatter I’m hearing from players about Southern Hills is that *chipping* is going to be hugely important.
— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) May 17, 2022
Greens are super slopey and with significant wind expected all week, guys who play well are going to have to get up and down from some dicey spots.
Here are the three golfers I'm looking to fade at this year's PGA Championship. All odds listed are via WynnBET Sportsbook.
3 Golfers to Fade at the PGA Championship
Viktor Hovland +3100
If chipping is what's most important at Southern Hills, than you should stay away from Viktor Hovland. Hovland is literally the WORST chipper on the PGA Tour this season. Yes, literally.
He ranks 210th out of 210 golfers on Tour in strokes gained: around-the-green. Not only that, but he's last by a mile. He loses, on average, .838 strokes on the field in this area, while the next worst golfer is Hudson Swafford, who loses .699 strokes around the greens. That's not a good look.
His ball striking can make up for this weakness at most events, but bad chipping will cost him heavily at Southern Hills.
Brooks Koepka +4000
Brooks Koepka already has two PGA Championships under his belt, so a lot of bettors are jumping all over him at 40/1 this week. Let me be the first to tell you, just because he's been good at this event in the past, doesn't mean he's worth a bet this week.
Not only is Koepka's health in question after withdrawing from last week's AT&T Byron Nelson, but his numbers aren't even close to what they were when he was winning Major Championships. He ranks 108th in strokes gained: approach-the-green, 155th in strokes gained: around-the-green, and 80th in strokes gained: putting.
I don't care what his price is set at, I won't be betting on Brooks Koepka this week.
Tony Finau +6000
Tony Finau, much like Koepka, is one of those guys that I'm seeing a lot of people say "you have to bet him at that price!" No. No you don't.
He only has one top 10 finish all season, and his short game is all out of whack. He ranks 115th in strokes gained: around-the-green, and 192nd in strokes gained: putting. He's been truly one of the worst putters on the PGA Tour in 2022.
There's no way that bad of a putter is going to win a major tournament.
You can track Iain's bets on Betstamp here.