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One week before the U.S. Open, the best of the best tee off at the Memorial starting Thursday, with Nicolai Hojgaard (40th) and Min Woo Lee (35th) being the only players currently ranked in the top 50 of the World Golf Rankings to stay home.
Can Victor Hovland shake his brutal PGA Tour season and go back-to-back at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio? Or will another golfer step up at Jack’s Place?
Let’s break down the 2024 Memorial Tournament and offer our best bets.
Memorial Tournament best bets
Patrick Cantlay to win (25/1 at BetMGM)
Cantlay’s course history and his current form are playing in his favor this week.
He dominated at Muirfield, winning in 2019 and 2021 and logging a T3 in 2022. He has yet to log any wins this season but has made every cut and has two top-five finishes in his past seven tournaments.
We are zoning in on three areas at Muirfield: putting, driving accuracy and approach to the green, particularly with long irons since this 7,569-yard course is one of the longest on the PGA Tour.
So far this season, Cantlay ranks 45th in GIR% (greens in regulation percentage) from 200-plus yards, 21st in putts per round, 24th in one-putt percentage, 27th in scrambling and 69th in driving accuracy.
While this has not been Cantlay’s most fruitful season, he has still been rock-solid. And he could undoubtedly string together four inspiring rounds for his third win at Muirfield.
Collin Morikawa to win (14/1 at FanDuel)
There aren’t many players not named Scottie Scheffler in better form right now than Collin Morikawa, who has logged four top-10s in his past five outings, including a fourth-place finish at Charles Schwab, a T4 in the PGA Championship, a ninth-place finish at RBC Heritage, and a T3 at The Masters.
Morikawa also has a strong history at Muirfield. He was two shots out of the lead after three rounds last year but had to withdraw due to back spasms, and he was the runner-up in 2021, ultimately losing in a playoff to Cantlay.
Morikawa is among the great iron players on tour (71st in shots gained approaching the green), even though he has not been as prolific this season as in the past. He also hits fairways at an alarmingly high rate, ranking first in fairway accuracy at 78%, a substantially higher percentage than virtually everyone else on tour.
He has also been masterful with the putter this season, ranking 10th in putts per round, 11th in one-put percentage and 16th in three-putt avoidance.
With his current form and strengths, Morikawa is also a solid bet to win the 2024 Memorial Tournament.
