PGA Betting – 2012 Bridgestone Invitational Predictions
The PGA TOUR’s best return this week after most took a one week break to recover from the thrilling British Open. This week’s event is the Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club in Ohio.
2012 Bridgestone Invitational
Location: Akron, Ohio, United States
Course: Firestone Country Club
Date: Aug 2-5, 2012
Total Purse: US $ 8,500,000
Winner’s Share: US $ 1,400,000 (16% of total purse)
Defending Champion: Adam Scott ($1,400,000)
An elite field of only 78 will tee it up on Thursday on the extremely long Firestone Club – one of the Par 5’s measures 667 yards! Obviously length off the tee will be critical this week but long irons will also factor in. Power and precision is the name of the game here – let’s take a look at some of the names to consider this week!
The Favorites:
Tiger Woods 9/2
Woods once again has his name in the forefront of the golf world – now he enters a tournament that he has won seven times in 12 tries! He has been brutal here in his last two attempts however. He is healthy and has won three times this year and surely he absolutely loves this track! Tiger will also be motivated after a bad weekend at the British. He should be in contention unless his nemesis driver eludes him!
Luke Donald 12/1
Looked good at the British finishing T5 and he did finish second here last year. He is 102nd on the PGA TOUR in greens hit but fourth in Strokes Gained-Putting and 12th in adjusted scoring. Donald may not be the bomber that should fit this course’s layout, but he is as solid as they come with his putter and he is terrific with his long irons – look for Donald to make some noise this week.
Adam Scott 15/1
The defending champ has some baggage – his British Open meltdown will surely be on his mind. If there is any course in which he can right the ship it is this one – his game is absolutely Taylor made for this track. I like a bounce back performance this week – I just don’t love him to win!
Lee Westwood 15/1
Has finished top 10 in his last four appearances in this event, a T2 in 2008 included. He has done everything but win here – this week may be his time to shine!
The Contenders:
Rory McIlroy 20/1
Was T9 in this event in 2010 and T6 last year but he enters struggling to find his game. Rory has the game but not the form right now!
Hunter Mahan 25/1
Is one of the few multiple winners on TOUR this year and is coming off a difficult week in Canada. He won this event in 2010 and is currently third on TOUR in both total driving and greens hit – perfect stats for Firestone. Mahan could be a factor coming off a closing round 66 in the Canadian.
Zach Johnson 25/1
Is scorching hot – nobody has been more consistent the last three months. He finished T6 here last year and currently leads the TOUR in Stroked Gained-Putting. Johnson is hard to ignore – that’s for certain!
Jason Dufner 28/1
Looked OK at the British but fell off the pace on the weekend. He still has two wins, a second and a fourth place finish at the US Open over the past couple of months – not too shabby at all. On a course that favors players that have command of their long irons, Dufner has to be in the conversation.
Matt Kuchar 30/1
Had an ugly week in Canada but does have top 20s in his last two starts here. He is 18th on TOUR in greens hit and second in adjusted scoring and like Dufner is terrific with his long irons. Kuchar is due for a bounce back and Firestone fits his game well.
Bubba Watson 30/1
Has two top 25s in his last two starts here but enters 1st in both driving distance and GIR%. At 30/1 Bubba is one of the better value picks on the board based on his incredible power and superb long iron work.
Rickie Fowler 30/1
Finished T2 here last year and is currently 11th in total driving and 54th in greens hit on TOUR. He is 12th in all-around rankings as well which sets up well for this week at Firestone.
Dustin Johnson 30/1
Has been good this year – five top 10s in 13 starts. He also has two top 25s in three starts at this tournament. With an emerging putter Johnson is a threat each and every week he tees it up!
Bo Van Pelt 30/1
Finished T7 in Canada last week and is fourth on TOUR in total driving, 31st in greens hit and ninth in Strokes Gained-Putting. Van Pelt has had success here – T3 in 2010. He is playing steady golf and could threaten the favorites this week.
The Sleepers:
Nick Watney 50/1
It is not often that Watney is considered a sleeper! He has finished top 25 in his last four tournaments and he has recorded top 25s in this tournament the last two years. Watney is off many people’s radar – not mine!
Ernie Els 50/1
Has a terrible history here – no top 20s in seven appearances but Ernie is on some kind of high right now. Ernie at this price is very good value! [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Fredrik Jacobson 100/1
Super-sleeper time! He was T 11 here last year and in 2012 he has two starts in America with a T15 and a T8. He’s certainly worth a look at 100/1!
The Pick:
My pick this week… like last week – Matt Kuchar at 30/1. His clam demeanor and all around game should serve him well. He seems to show up in the bigger tournaments and fade in the lesser – look for him to shine this week.
I can’t resist Nick Watney at 50/1 as my sleeper. He certainly has the game and he is fresh off a couple of weeks off!
2012 WGC Bridgestone Invitational Open Betting Lines & Future Odds
CLICK TO BET
| Tiger Woods | 9/2 |
| Luke Donald | 14/1 |
| Rory McIlroy | 20/1 |
| Adam Scott | 16/1 |
| Lee Westwood | 20/1 |
| Jason Dufner | 28/1 |
| Hunter Mahan | 25/1 |
| Zach Johnson | 28/1 |
| Bubba Watson | 28/1 |
| Graeme McDowell | 33/1 |
| Justin Rose | 33/1 |
| Bo Van Pelt | 33/1 |
| Phil Mickelson | 33/1 |
| Rickie Fowler | 33/1 |
| Steve Stricker | 40/1 |
| Matt Kuchar | 33/1 |
| Dustin Johnson | 28/1 |
| Louis Oosthuizen | 50/1 |
| Ernie Els | 50/1 |
| Jason Day | 50/1 |
| Jim Furyk | 50/1 |
| Francesco Molinari | 50/1 |
| Ian Poulter | 66/1 |
| Nick Watney | 66/1 |
| Keegan Bradley | 66/1 |
| Charl Schwartzel | 66/1 |
| Bill Haas | 66/1 |
| Brandt Snedeker | 66/1 |
| Sergio Garcia | 66/1 |
| Martin Kaymer | 66/1 |
| Nicolas Colsaerts | 50/1 |
| Martin Laird | 66/1 |
| David Toms | 80/1 |
| Scott Piercy | 80/1 |
| Retief Goosen | 80/1 |
| Fredrik Jacobson | 100/1 |
| K.J. Choi | 100/1 |
| Geoff Ogilvy | 80/1 |
| Peter Hanson | 80/1 |
| John Senden | 80/1 |
| Paul Lawrie | 125/1 |
| Kyle Stanley | 125/1 |
| Ben Crane | 125/1 |
| Carl Pettersson | 100/1 |
| Kevin Na | 150/1 |
| Jonathan Byrd | 100/1 |
| Aaron Baddeley | 125/1 |
| Ryo Ishikawa | 150/1 |
| Thomas Bjorn | 125/1 |
| Sang-Moon Bae | 200/1 |
| Bernd Wiesberger | 175/1 |
| Simon Dyson | 150/1 |
| Marc Leishman | 200/1 |
| Y-E Yang | 200/1 |
| Greg Chalmers | 200/1 |
| Branden Grace | 200/1 |
| Danny Willett | 250/1 |
| Rafael Cabrera -Bello | 175/1 |
| Gonzalo Fernandez | 200/1 |
| Johnson Wagner | 200/1 |
| Marcel Siem | 150/1 |
| Mark Wilson | 200/1 |
| Robert Rock | 250/1 |
| Kyung-Tae Kim | 200/1 |
| Jamie Donaldson | 200/1 |
| Alvaro Quiros | 150/1 |
| Robert Allenby | 200/1 |
| Jeev M Singh | 200/1 |
| Thongchai Jaidee | 200/1 |
| Ted Potter | 250/1 |
| Joost Luiten | 200/1 |
| Michael Hoey | 300/1 |
| Yoshinori Fujimoto | 300/1 |
| Toru Taniguchi | 500/1 |
| Lee Slattery | 350/1 |
| Tom Lewis | 400/1 |
| Oliver Bekker | 500/1 |
| Toshinori Muto | 400/1 |
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