Travelers Championship Betting Picks, Odds, Course Preview and Prediction
The PGA Tour now heads to Connecticut for the Travelers Championship this week. Andy Lack shares his Travelers Championship betting picks, odds, course preview, and prediction. Don't miss out on these Golf picks.
Andy Lack
| 7 min
Travelers Championship Betting Picks, Odds, Course Preview and Prediction
After a thrilling week at the U.S. Open, the PGA Tour now heads to Cromwell, Connecticut, for the Travelers Championship, our third Signature Event in a row. The Travelers Championship has long been a favorite of PGA Tour players, caddies, and fans, alike, despite its spot in the schedule directly following up a major championship. Scottie Scheffler headlines the field, looking to rebound after a surprising and disappointing U.S. Open performance. All eyes will of course be on how Rory McIlroy responds to another crushing defeat, and New England native, Keegan Bradley, will return to defend his title.
Travelers Championship DATE, START TIME, AND WHERE TO WATCH
- Date: June 20 - 23, 2024
- Where: Cromwell, CT
- Where to Watch: Golf Channel, NBC, Peacock
Travelers Championship ODDS
- Winner: Scottie Scheffler (+500), Rory McIlroy (+750), Xander Schauffele (+800)
Click here for the latest the Travelers Championship odds
Travelers Championship: Course Preview
TPC River Highlands
Measuring just a hair over 6,800 yards, TPC River Highlands remains the shortest golf course on the regular PGA Tour schedule. Over the last decade, it has surprisingly held up well to scoring, yet last year, it played as the 14th easiest course on the PGA Tour and featured its lowest scoring average in tournament history. This was due to a confluence of factors, including lack of wind, softer conditions, and a much stronger field. Ahead of the 2024 tournament, the golf course has made several competitive announcements. Last year's scoring certainly raised some red flags if this golf course was to continue hosting a signature event, and Rory McIlroy went as far as to call the golf course obsolete.
Gary Young, Senior Vice President of Rules and Competitions on the PGA Tour responded, "We make all of these changes based on data. Shotlink, which tracks every single shot that's hit during a tournament, we do a deep dive into that data. We're always looking at whether or not bunkering is still relevant, we're looking at maybe additional features that are not necessary to dissuade players from taking shorter routes to certain holes." With a focus on maintaining the character of the course from an architectural standpoint, the changes did not actually make the golf course longer. Not a single yard of added length has been added to the Pete Dye design.
The changes more-so debilitate longer drivers of the ball from being able to bomb and gauge this course to death, as the PGA Tour narrowed the fairways and added thicker rough to previously drivable locations. This should certainly increase the importance of accuracy off the tee and precision approach play. This should make the golf course play harder, but not overwhelmingly so. All weather factors equal, I would expect a quarter stroke per round difference at most, which is still more likely to produce a winning score in the 16 to 20 under range.
Overall, TPC River Highlands is incredibly stock in its skill-set. It's important to find the fairway off the tee, yet we've also seen Bubba Watson and Dustin Johnson win ranking outside the top-50 in driving accuracy. Given its total length, we've also seen this golf course be a safe haven for shorter hitters. Wedge play obviously reigns supreme, but the degree of difficulty on the iron shots at TPC River Highlands are incredibly low.
The Pete Dye is also one of the more sneakily challenging short game courses on Tour, but the greens in regulation percentage is high enough that players will not overly be reliant on this aspect of their game. Players absolutely will need to get hot with the flat-stick, but there is enough tee to green intrigue to prevent me from declaring this a pure putting contest. Overall, I will primarily be looking for players that keep the ball in play off the tee, are elite middle to short iron players, who can catch fire on the greens, and have a strong history on other shorter, positional golf courses.
Travelers Championship Key Stats
- Proximity 125-175 yards
- Strokes Gained Poa: Bent/Poa
- Comp Course History
Travelers Championship: Outright Picks
Ludvig Aberg (+1600) CLICK HERE TO SEE WHICH SPORTSBOOK HAS THE BEST ODDS
While Ludvig Aberg’s Sunday performance at the U.S. Open was certainly disappointing, I still walked away incredibly impressed with the talented young Swede. Aberg is inevitably close to winning a big event, and while the lights may have been a little too bright at Augusta National and Pinehurst No. 2, TPC River Highlands should provide the perfectly soft landing. Aberg has a surprisingly strong track record on shorter golf courses. His lone PGA Tour win came at Sea Island last fall, and he has already recorded top-10 finishes this year at Pebble Beach, TPC Sawgrass, and Harbor Town. Aberg has contended at every Signature Event in 2024 on a short, positional golf course. Despite his tremendous power advantage off the tee, Aberg has clearly found a knack for strategically picking apart these shorter venues. The most underrated aspect of Aberg’s game remains his flat-stick, and I completely trust his ability to keep up in a lower scoring affair. While the major championships may have familiarized the golf world with Aberg’s talent, now is the time to cash in on his first signature win.
Patrick Cantlay (+2500) CLICK HERE TO SEE WHICH SPORTSBOOK HAS THE BEST ODDS
Patrick Cantlay quelled any concerns about his form with a third-place finish last week at the U.S. Open on a golf course that tests all aspects of a player’s game. Cantlay gained over a stroke in all four major categories at Pinehurst, and despite playing in the second to last group, Sunday was actually his best ball-striking performance. Cantlay now returns to his most comfortable golf course on Tour, TPC River Highlands, where he has recorded seven top-25 finishes in 9 appearances, including a fourth-place last year. Cantlay always raises his baseline on short, positional golf courses and Bent-grass, and there are few players that I trust more on this style of test. While Cantlay did ultimately come up short at the U.S. Open, he should be walking away with only positives to take from the best major championship finish of his career. Feeling the heat of contention was presumably welcome, and I would expect Cantlay remains motivated as ever to collect his first PGA Tour victory in nearly two years.
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GOLF ODDS
