No DJ leaves field at Pebble Beach wide open
Last weekend, Brooks Koepka, priced as high as 50/1, fired a final-round 65 (including two Sunday eagles) to win the Waste Management Phoenix Open by one shot over Kyoung-Hoon Lee and Xander Schauffele. Schauffele fell to an 0-for-4 mark in converting 54-hole leads for his PGA Tour career and now has 10 runnerup finishes since 2017, the most of any PGA Tour player. Meanwhile, Dustin Johnson was winning the Saudi Invitational for the second time in three years as he held on for victory by two strokes over perennial bridesmaid Tony Finau, now with nine runner-up finishes worldwide since 2017, and Justin Rose.
DJ was scheduled to return stateside and headline the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am where he emerged victorious twice (2009 and 2010) and also finished twice as runnerup (2014 and 2018). However, the World No. 1 was a withdrawal late Monday night. Here’s a look at some players worth a wager:
Francesco Molinari (22/1)
The former Open champion has started 2021 refreshed with two top 10s. In those events, he ranked 15th and sixth respectively for Greens In Regulation. Molinari was ninth for SG: Approach (17th overall on the PGA Tour) and third for SG: Tee-To-Green (sixth overall on the PGA Tour) in San Diego two weeks ago. Keep in mind, those numbers were on a 7,700yard Torrey Pines Golf Course. They have the potential to be even better on a 7,000yard Pebble Beach course.
Though he is a debutant here, Molinari did finish 16th at Pebble Beach during the 2019 U.S. Open. Winds are expected to pick up this week and he has thrived on these setups in these conditions over the years as evident by his winning the Claret Jug at Carnoustie in 2018.
Kevin Streelman (35/1)
Streelman has three straight top-seven finishes, including a tie for second last year, and five straight top-20 finishes here at Pebble Beach. He also comes into this event with some progressively good form having finished tied for 37th at Torrey Pines (eighth for SG: Tee-To-Green) and finishing tied for 22nd last week in Phoenix (seventh for SG: Approach).
Henrik Norlander (40/1)
Norlander finished tied for second (second for SG: Tee-To-Green) among several players two weeks ago at Torrey Pines and has good recent history on coastal courses. He ranks in the top 20 on the PGA Tour for Greens In Regulation.
Brendan Steele (50/1)
Steele began his 2021 season much like he did his 2020 season contending for a victory at the Sony Open in Hawaii only to come up just short.
However, he has not let that close defeat prohibit him from playing solid golf in the two events since. Steele finished 21st at the American Express and 30th last week in Phoenix.
Chris Kirk (66/1)
Kirk missed the cut last week in Phoenix, but his game has come around lately. A second-place finish at the Sony Open earned him enough points to earn his full PGA Tour playing privileges from his Major Medical Extension.
He ranked sixth at the Sony for SG: Tee-To-Green and was 10th SG: Total at the American Express. Recent form here has not been great, but he does have a runner-up here back in 2013 and has always gone well on coastal courses.
Bo Hoag (100/1)
Despite missing the cut here last year in his first appearance, Hoag has made three straight cuts, including back-toback top-20s at The American Express and the Farmers Insurance Open.