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Free PGA Picks: 2015 Wells Fargo Championship Betting Preview

2015 Wells Fargo Championship Preview and Picks

After quite a week at The Players the PGA pros move to North Carolina and Quail Hollow to play the 2015 Wells Fargo Championship. A terrific field has been assembled to give it a go on the 7,562 yard par-72 layout that includes a terrific final three holed dubbed The Green Mile and the two toughest finishing holes on TOUR last season.

2015 Wells Fargo Championship
Location: Quail Hollow Country Club, Charlotte, NC
Date: May 14 – 17, 2015 on Golf Channel/CBS
Defending Champion: J.B. Holmes
Purse: $7,100,000 / Winner Share: $1,278,000

Four par 5s and a drivable par 4 to go with four par 3s will greet the Pros. Driving is a key stat to look at this week – distance is certainly an asset. Current form, course history and a hot putter will also help, as always on this typically tough track.

So who should we be keeping an eye on this week? Let’s break it down.

2015 Wells Fargo Championship Favorites:

Rory McIlroy 10/3

Has eaten up this track – four top 10s in five tries with a win in 2010. His play has certainly ramped up as the weather has gotten warmer – he was T8 at The Players and he won the Match-Play the week before. Current form and track history are definitely on Rory’s side – it is going to be awfully hard to bet against him!

Henrik Stenson 18/1

Has surprisingly missed the cut the last three times he’s played here but is in way better form that in any of those years. Right now he is second in both strokes-gained stats and adjusted scoring and is sixth in bogey avoidance – terrific attributes for this track.

Jim Furyk 18/1

Course history alone makes Furyk one of the favorites – four finishes of T11 or better, including solo second last year at 13-under and a win. He is coming off a disappointing Players but should be good to go on one of his favorite tracks.

2015 Wells Fargo Championship Contenders:

Phil Mickelson 20/1

Phil missed the cut last week – he should be rested for this one! Phil’s game is perfectly suited to this track and his course history is terrific at Quail Hollow – 11-for-11 with five top fives and another four top 15s. He will be after his first win here but this week sets up very well for a breakthrough.

Hideki Matsuyama 22/1

Matsuyama played well last week but faltered on Saturday to finish T17. His stats match up very well with Quail Hollow – third in ball-striking and 10th in adjusted scoring. Hideki is climbing the ranks and has to be considered an every-week threat – he has sit straight top 25s and is almost a lock to continue that trend this week.

Bill Haas 28/1

Haas is coming off his best result since a win at the Humana – a T4 at The Players. His track history here is pretty good – a pair of fourths being his best. But current form has Haas on the radar this week.

J.B. Holmes 28/1

Defending Champion here enters off a T51 at The Players – I am willing to give him a mulligan for that effort. He has a win and two runner-up finishes the last few months and his game seems perfectly suited for this track – sixth in distance off the tee and ninth in strokes gained: tee-to-green. Holmes is as confident a guy as there is right now and could be due for a repeat.

Ryan Moore 40/1

Has played this track very well – a T5, T6 and T18 in last three editions and was last seen finishing a very respectable T12 at the Masters. Moore is a Horse for the Course and looks like nice value here.

2015 Wells Fargo Championship Sleepers (50/1 or higher):

Justin Thomas 50/1

Enters on the heels of three straight top 25 finishes and with a ton of confidence after a top 15 at The Players in which he had a record 10 birdies on Saturday. Thomas is extremely long off the tee, has some good touch around greens and has been playing very well of late. On a track that has rewarded first-time winners, Thomas could be the man!

Webb Simpson 66/1

Worth a mention because he is a member here and he did win this event in 2012.

Jason Kokrak 100/1

Gotta love one of the biggest bombers on TOUR. It doesn’t hurt that he is a local resident either. He finished T23 here last year, is T8 in par 5 scoring this year and should eat up sections of this track. Kokrak has finished inside the top 20 in four of his last six starts overall – if you are a gambling man, Kokrak may be worth a shot at this price.

2015 Wells Fargo Championship Picks:

The pick this week isn’t sexy but it is smart. Rory McIlroy at 10/3 is expensive for sure but how can you deny the world’s best player on a track that he has done well at?

The sleeper is Justin Thomas at 50/1. His stats line up perfectly here and his present form is unmistakable.

By DaveB

Dave B has been a Fantasy Football writer for us for 10 years. A couch potato wannabe, Dave’s insights have been read by 10’s of people for years. He hope’s for world peace + global relaxation. Enjoy and remember only smoke things that are completely natural.