Some of the PGA’s top players will convene on TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas, on Thursday all with an eye on their share of the $9 million plus prize money on offer.
With next week’s PGA Championship at Oak Hill just around the corner, some of the big names will not be participating in this warm up event. That said, there’s still going to be a host of famous faces in Texas this week including Scottie Scheffler, Tom Kim and Tyrrell Hatton, to name but a few.
Here, we’ll preview this tour event, which is now in its third year at this new location, and hopefully provide you with enough insight that you can pick out the winner.
Returning champ
K.H. Lee has won the last two versions of this tournament since it was moved to TPC Craig Ranch. He hasn’t exactly been setting the golfing world alight this campaign, but he clearly enjoys it here and the returning champ will be hoping for a three timer. His last few outings have seen him finish T-19, T-23 at the Masters and T-8 last time in Charlotte, so he’s certainly building up some momentum heading into this one.
Scottie Scheffler is undoubtedly the class act in the field and, with John Rahm absent, he can take advantage and close the gap on the Spaniard in the FedEx Cup rankings. He’s got the form to back it up too, having finished in the top 15 in his last 12 tournaments. That’s surely going to see him in contention for this, as long as his putting is on point on the huge, tricky greens.
All about the approach
The distinctively large greens at TPC Craig Ranch put much more emphasis on approach play. That means players who are much better with their irons and putters are more likely to get success over the big hitters. That gives Eric Cole a chance here as he ticks both of those boxes. That also gives Carson Young a shout if he can bounce back from missing the cut last week.
Tyrrell Hatton is certain to get plenty of attention in this one and rightly so. The Englishman comes into this following an inspired contending performance at the Wells Fargo Championship last week. He’s also had top five finishes in the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Players Championship, so there’s a feeling he’s due a big win.
Others to watch
Despite his stat profile not inspiring lots of confidence, Matt Kuchar is more than capable of winning against this field. He has the putting ability, so if the approaches are good, expect him to place highly. Adam Scott landed himself a T-5 finish at the Wells Fargo last week, one of his best performances of the season so far. If he can replicate that, he could be in with a shout, too.
Despite the big names, it’s K.H. Lee that everyone will be watching. Can he land the hat trick?
