Niall Lyons has five picks in the Sanderson Farms Championship this week in the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi.
Sanderson Farms Championship
The Sanderson Farms Championship will be held at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi.
Jackson CC has hosted this event for a number of years now and can be a track where you can narrow down your search for a winner more easily than other weeks.
A 7400+ yards par 72 awaits the field this week and demands a fair bit of length off the tee. Accuracy doesn't matter as much despite some plodder types doing well here down the years.
The rough isn't an issue but strokes gained approach certainly has been a stat to look towards for those wishing to contend this week.
The best ball strikers have dominated around here. Hughes made most of his ground in 2022 on approach play and around the greens having been not so good off the tee, but generally speaking it's the ball strikers that contend.
Runner up Straka was 8th OTT and 10th on approach. In 2021 Burns was 1st OTT and 2nd on approach. Garcia won in 2020 by ranking 1st OTT and 3rd on approach.
This is certainly the way forward around Jackson and thereafter it's about holing enough putts to contend on Sunday evening.
Below is a look at the top performers in this tournament in the past three editions.
Sanderson Farms Championship Tips
- 1.75pts each-way E.Cole 40/1 (1/5 6) Unibet, BetUK, Livescore
- 1.25pts each-way M.Meissner 50/1 (1/5 8) Skybet
- 1pt each-way C.Hoffman 60/1 (1/5 8) Coral, Ladbrokes
- 1pt each-way H.Norlander 66/1 (1/5 8) Bet365 8 place market
- 1pt each-way J.Highsmith 110/1 (1/5 8) Bet365, Skybet, Paddypower
William Hill
- Solid in-play betting service
- Cash-in option to help increase profitability
- Excellent reputation within the UK betting-industry
Eric Cole at 40/1 (Six Places)
Patrick Fishburn holds obvious claims and although there isn't a whole lot to beat here PGA Tour victories are hard to come by and the price for the maiden just isn't juicy enough.
He has the perfect game for this place though and it'd be no surprise should he contend once again, a habit he has gotten into during the last few months.
My preference is for Eric Cole who after his tee shot looks the most capable player in the field to gain the requisite strokes to get a head start on the field.
The tee shot is a slight worry to be fair and distance has played a fair part in proceedings here but there's room to open the shoulders here and punishment for wayward drives are minimal.
Instead we have to look to what happens after that and Cole excels in approach play, around the greens and on the greens and should relish this test.
Two appearances here haven't amounted to much yet with iron play costing him one year, and putting the next.
He is a much more consistent operator in these departments nowadays though and he has all the tools to put Jackson CC to the sword this week.
1.75pts each-way E.Cole 40/1 (1/5 6) Unibet, BetUK, Livescore
Mac Meissner at 50/1 (Eight Places)
Driving distance features heavily in the stats here over the last few years but it's worth nothing that a handful of plodders have gotten their hands on this trophy before and for that reason I'm happy to include one who is slightly less endowed off the tee in the shape of Mac Meissner.
Meissner sits 93rd in the standings and that doesn't reflect how well he has played in his maiden year. Five top 20s and a further two top 5 finishes have been a really solid foundation to build a career upon and I think we'll see this kid around for a long time.
Meissner sits inside the top 30 on tour in strokes gained approach this year and has shown incredible consistency in that department.
That bodes well for a first trip around Jackson CC that has always rewarded the best approach players for the week.
A bad week on the greens cost him last time out at the Procore but a switch from Poa Annua should suit.
He is talented enough to take down a field of this quality and should his putter be hot this week he'll have a serious chance.
Charley Hoffman at 60/1 (Eight Places)
At 47 years old there won't be an awful lot more chances for Charley Hoffman, but the fall series with some weaker events should give him a big chance to add to his four PGA Tour victories to date.
He has had a decent year to this point losing out in a playoff at the Phoenix Open and posting another couple of top tens.
He will gain his tour card for another year sitting around 80th in the Fedex standings but it's not beyond possibility he can jump into that 50-60 places for some elevated events next year. Hoffman has made his last five cuts on tour with the best of those being 8th at the Barracuda and 12th at the Wyndham.
He is playing solid throughout the bag and his last two performances have seen him putt a lot better than what he has done all year.
If that continues he still has the firepower with his long game to compete and he could better his 6th place here back in 2021.
Henrik Norlander at 66/1 (Eight Places)
It seems an obvious one to include given his record here but Henrik Norlander has shown enough lately to warrant serious consideration and he gets the vote in a very winnable contest.
The Swede has been impressive with his irons for the last three months and only being plagued by a misbehaving putter has cost him having better results.
The fact he has only missed one of his last eight cuts putting the way he has is a testament to how good his long game has been.
It should be perfect for another trip around Jackson where he has form figures of 4-4-24-2 in his last four appearances.
He lost out in a playoff here last time but those worrying about his putting woes can take comfort in the fact he has gained significantly on the field on the greens here in three of his last four efforts.
He also has gained on the field distance wise off the tee in three of those four, something that he has only achieved twice this year to date.
Norlander loves this place and he should also benefit from the trip to the DPWT lately and his 8th place in the Swiss Mountains.
Joe Highsmith at 110/1 (Eight Places)
Good ball strikers have a tremendous record around here and I'm prepared to take the chance on a young maiden in the shape of Joe Highsmith.
Having attended University in Los Angeles he may well be at his best on the West Coast but I'm prepared to give him a go in these parts after a fine effort at Silverado.
13th there was a good result and one could have been lively to a derivative bet back in California. 6th in Puerto Rico was his best result of the season and now he sits on a cliff edge lying 150th in the standings.
Places 125-150 receive conditional status but he is up against it even to hold onto that spot. It's a great motivational factor though and I wouldn't be surprised if this talented sort responds to that pressure.
He is the first golfer in PGA Tour history to record three hole in ones in one season so he has had plenty of highlights despite many missed cuts in his first year on tour.
His iron play has improved for his last efforts and Jackson should be a good fit for the bucket hat wearing, left handed 24 year old.
1pt each-way J.Highsmith 110/1 (1/5 8) Bet365, Skybet, Paddypower
