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The scoring once again followed the hottest players in the field as the Nicklaus Tournament Course yielded the friendliest results today. With the likes of Cameron Tringale (-7), Hudson Swafford (-7), Vincent Whaley (-10), Sahith Theegala (-10), and Will Zalatoris (-12) all posting rounds of 65 or below, the course average came out to 68.92.
Compared to that of the Stadium Course (69.69) and La Quinta Country Club (69.83) and it is clear why 14 of the top-24 on the leaderboard are scheduled to play the Pete Dye design tomorrow. Leading the charge is the overnight co-leader and now 36-hole leader, Patrick Cantlay.
Last season’s Player of the Year, the UCLA product will attempt to win his fourth PGA Tour title in the last seven months. While it was not pretty at times, Cantlay carded a second round of 4-under 68 on the Nicklaus Tournament Course to compliment his first-round of 10-under 62 at La Quinta CC.
Sitting at 14-under and one-stroke clear of his nearest pursuer, Tom Hoge, the 29-year-old will now be tasked with slaying the Stadium Course in the most adverse conditions. With winds forecasted anywhere from 20 to 30 mph tomorrow, the openness of the layout leaves PGA West defenseless from Mother Nature.
When asked about the challenge tomorrow may bring, Cantlay said, “I think usually you have to really put your foot on the gas and make a ton of birdies. Tomorrow if the forecast stays the same it will not be that kind of day and it’s just, it will be a different challenge. So, controlling your golf ball will be a premium tomorrow and leaving your golf ball in the correct spot will be really key to scoring well.”
Few have been better at controlling their golf ball than Cantlay who is now listed as a clear favorite at PointsBet Sportsbook at +140. With so much golf to be played and so many questions swirling, this number feels a touch too short.
Rethinking our first second strategy, we will revert back to our original plan and target a player on La Quinta CC. With yet another poor Round 2 play under our belts, we will leave the matchups on the back burner for now and add an outright selection to our portfolio.
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Updated Odds to Win (Odds Via PointsBet):
+140: Patrick Cantlay
+1200: Tom Hoge
+1400: Will Zalatoris
+1600: Lanto Griffin
+1800: Joseph Bramlett
+2200: Greyson Sigg, Jon Rahm, Seamus Power
+2800: Cameron Young
+4000: Patton Kizzire
+5000: Harold Varner III, Sungjae Im, Roger Sloan, Zach Johnson
+6000: Denny McCarthy, Sam Ryder
+6600: Aaron Rai, Vincent Whaley
+8000: Brandt Snedeker, Harry Higgs, K.H. Lee, Paul Barjon, Wyndham Clark
+9000: Francesco Molinari
+10000: Davis Riley, Lee Hodges, Lucas Glover, Sahith Theegala, Si Woo Kim
Round 3 Plays (Odds Via PointsBet):
Sungjae Im +5000 to win (0.66 units):
Im certainly passed the eye test in Round 2 for those who watched the afternoon coverage of the tournament. Posting +1.62 Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee and +2.89 SG: Approach, the South Korean led those players on the Stadium Course in both categories on Friday, only to be let down by his short-game.
Lowlighted by a three-putt par on the par-5 16th, the two-time winner on the PGA Tour ranked 44th in SG: Around-the-Green and 31st in SG: Putting. Set to take on La Quinta CC in Round 3, Im has a golden opportunity to move up the leaderboard as there are only seven players ahead of him who are on the same course rotation, despite being in a tie for 32nd at 8-under.
Led by Hoge, who sits five-strokes clear of Im, plenty can change over the next 36-holes. With heavy winds in the forecast, ball-striking will be at a premium tomorrow. If able to replicate his performance today, while also finding a semblance of touch on the greens, the 23-year-old should be well positioned for his second win of the season come Sunday.
Outrights YTD: +28.54 units, +478.48%
Overall YTD: +25.79 units, +141.56%
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