The Bobby Weed designed TPC Summerlin course © Peter Corden
Nick Watney 16/1 © tourprogolfclubs.com
The Tour moves to the TPC Summerlin Club in Las Vegas for the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.
Designed by Bobby Weed with input from Fuzzy Zoeller, the 7,223-yard opened for play in November 1991 and was built in the heart of Summerlin, a 22,000-acre planned community on the western-most edge of Las Vegas, it incorporates traditional golf design with the natural desert terrain of the region.
As a stadium course, the TPC Summerlin was built to accommodate golfing fans with unrestricted views of tee shots, fairway approaches and putting, by using strategically placed spectator mounds and natural amphitheatres.
Kevin Na 33/1 © Keith Allison
My tips to win:
When you look at Nick Watney’s 16/1 record in this event you wonder how he hasn’t won it yet. Nick has had three Top 10 finishes in the last three years here – one of those was a runners-up finish to Kevin Na in 2011. Watney finished the FedEx cup well with two Top 10 finishes from his last four events, one being his runners-up finish at the BMW Championship, which he followed up with a Top 15 at the Tour Championship. I think we will see a positive Nick Watney tee it up here this week
Kevin Na 33/1 is a past champion here winning the event back in 2011. He put up a good defence of his title making the Top 25 the following year. He also has a Top 15 finish here in 2008. Kevin comes into this week in great form finishing strongly in the Frys.com Open last week to take make the Top 5, firing a final round 64.
Not many players win back-to-back tournaments, but I am going to stick with Jimmy Walker 33/1 again this week after his great performance at the Frys.com Open. Jimmy had a Top 10 finish in this event last year firing a final round 73, which saw him drop six places. As I said last week Walker finished his 2013 FedEx Cup season with a Top 15 at the BMW Championship at Conway Farms and I can only see him keeping that good form going after last week’s finish.
George McNeill 50/1 © James Kennedy
My each-way tips:
It was a shame that Robert Garrigus 40/1 couldn’t go low in his final round at the Fry.com Open where he started the last day in a Top 5 position, but it does show that Robert’s game is in good enough condition to get him into a position to challenge. Garrigus has had several Top 25 finishes at this event, his best being a third place finish back in 2007 and with the form he comes into this week I can see him challenging again this week.
George McNeill 50/1 is another past champion here winning the event back in 2007 when it was known as the Frys.com Open, he didn’t do so bad in last weekends Frys.com making the Top 10. But George seems to bloom when he tees it up at the TPC Summerlin track. He had a runners-up finish in 2009 and another Top 15 finish a year later and with the form he is in coming into this week, I think he will do well again.
I am going to have three each way tips this week, mainly because I think Martin Laird 50/1 represents very good odds for the Scot. Martin is not only a past champion here winning this event in 2009 but he followed that victory up with a runners-up finish defending his title.
For updated betting odds during the tournament go to planetgolfreview.com
