Tony Finau headlines Niall Lyons' picks in the PGA Tour event at the Four Seasons resort.
We travel to Texas once again and the Four Seasons resort in Irving where a stellar field turns up to do battle one of the better courses on the PGA tour rota. Weather usually plays a factor in determining the winning score here and this week should be no different with wind and thunderstorms forecast throughout the week. I have always been a firm believer that length off the tee is a huge advantage around here, which invited me to back Brooks Koepka last year where he miraculously found a way not to win despite having control of the tournament heading into the back 9.
This time around the course may play a shade more difficult with harder conditions awaiting the players on the first few days. That being said, I'll still be focusing mainly on the big hitters. Dustin Johnson head the field around the 9/2 mark and holds every chance of making another jaunt into the winners enclosure on Sunday. This lad is coasting around golf courses at the minute and it is hard not to see him in contention once again. With four top tens here he arrives here with a much better chance than he did last week at Sawgrass where he finished a very respectable 12th on a course that doesn't suit. The course in Las Colinas really does suit though and I wouldn't put anyone off backing him. I backed him here last year at double these odds of 9/1 so giving the way he is playing 9/2 if fair enough. With low scores on offer though I feel plenty more could contend and I prefer to take some bigger prices this week.
Brooks Koepka was another on my list but around the 16/1 mark it just can not be a bet. He has plenty of flaws and may not materialise into the golfer I thought he would be. I am happy to leave that price alone.
I backed TONY FINAU a couple of times early in the year and he played well for us despite getting the job done. This is another venue on which he could notch a win and at 35/1 I'm prepared to have a bet. I am not too worried about the missed cut at the Players as Sawgrass is certainly not somewhere I'd expect his game to flourish.
Last time out in Texas last month he finished in a tie for 3rd. Couple that with two other top 5s this year and Finau is beginning to improve his game a notch. A huge hitter off the tee, Finau has been highly touted since starting on Tour a few years ago and a low key win in the Puerto Rico Open is his only foray into the winners enclosure. That will change in time though and with two top 15 finishes here in two appearances I believe he is certainly sitting at a value price.
After a period in the wilderness barely able to make a cut SMYLIE KAUFMAN has come out of those depths and given his ability to hit a long ball I feel he is worth playing. He has already missed eight cuts this term and doubters were worrying whether the trend was going to continue. Thankfully for him he has found something and is now producing better results. 5th at Eagle Point followed by a top 15 at Sawgrass are two very impressive results on tricky golf courses. He had missed cuts prior to his first win at the Shriners before finishing 10th the week before that triumph so it is important to look out for some form with this lad. Still very young at 25 years of age Kaufman still has a lot to offer and it wouldn't surprise me should he challenge this week.
KEVIN TWAY may have problems getting over the line in time as he hasn't had a lot of experience in doing so. However, given his form and ability to hit the ball far from the tee he may well just figure in this event. He has looked quite impressive in recent weeks with 3rd placed finishes at the Texas Open and Zurich Classic. That was backed up with a mighty impressive 5th placed finish at Eagle point. These are proper good venues he is playing well on and Tway may just be ready to take that step up. More evidence of how he copes under pressure would be preferable before having a bet but at the price it is worth chancing.
