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It took very little time for Scottie Scheffler to bounce back from a mediocre performance at Pinehurst, winning last week’s Travelers Championship in a playoff against Tom Kim.
This week, the PGA Tour heads to Detroit Golf Club for the Rocket Mortgage Classic, headlined by a handful of top golfers, including last year’s winner, Rickie Fowler.
However, Fowler and Cameron Young, who shot a 59 in Round 3 at the Travelers and became just the 12th player in tour history to shoot a sub-60, are not the main storylines.
On Thursday, 15-year-old sensation Miles Russell will tee it up after receiving a sponsor’s exemption. This will be Russell’s PGA Tour debut, an awe-inspiring accomplishment for a freshman in high school.
The Detroit Golf Club is a wide-open course with little danger. Only one hole has a water hazard, and most bunkers are relatively straightforward. Further, the greens have little undulation and even fewer protections, so most golfers should feel comfortable attacking them.
Thus, we are targeting long hitters and golfers with command of their short irons this week. Here are our best bets for this week’s tour stop in Detroit.
Rocket Mortgage Classic best bets
Cameron Young to win (16-1 at bet365)
Young enters this event on a tear. He can easily harness the momentum of last week and duplicate it at Detroit because this course favors long hitters like him.
Young ranks 31st in driving distance this season, meaning he will have plenty of short irons into these relatively flat greens. Young’s form had not been great before entering last week. However, the Travelers easily could have marked a turning point in his season.
Davis Thompson to win (33-1 at BetMGM)
Thompson has still not secured a win on tour, with his T2 at Myrtle Beach in early May being his closest effort. However, he could change that this week in Detroit. Thompson has only played this course twice but has made the cut twice and finished T24 last year.
This season, Thompson has elevated his game, ranking 44th in driving distance, 35th in GIR% (greens in regulation percentage) from less than 125 yards, 40th in GIR% from 125-150 yards and 26th in GIR% from 150-175 yards. All of these metrics matter at Detroit Golf Club, as length off the tee and short iron play are imperative for success.
Thompson’s form has also been solid, logging two top-10s, including a T9 at Pinehurst No. 2, in his past five tournaments. This could be when he breaks through for his first win, especially in a weaker-than-usual field.
