Travelers Championship

Odds to Win Tournament

After an exciting PGA Championship, the golfers head to Connecticut for the Travelers Championship on Thursday. Jimmy Walker is the guy that emerged as the winner at the PGA Championship last weekend. He defeated Jason Day by one stroke and that gave Walker his first ever major victory. He’ll now take the week off and it is certainly a well-deserved break. The field in this tournament will, however, include guys like Bubba Watson, Brooks Koepka, Branden Grace, Matt Kuchar and Patrick Reed. Watson is the top dog coming into this thing, as he has won this tournament twice in his career. That includes his victory here a year ago as well. With that out of the way, let’s now take a look at who might be winning this thing on Sunday:

Bubba Watson (14-to-1) - When looking at a tournament that is low on top-ranked golfers, it’s tough to pass up on somebody like Watson. The lefty has dominated the Travelers Championship in his career, winning his second event here in 2015. Watson shot a 16-under in last year’s installment and that was the best score shot in this tournament since 2011. He may be struggling as of late, but it’s still hard to avoid taking a guy with the talent of Watson. He is one of the only players in this field that has a true championship pedigree and is worth taking a shot on at 14-to-1.

Patrick Reed (22-to-1) - Reed is yet another guy with a ton of talent and he will definitely come into this event with some passion. Reed had a share of the lead at one point during the PGA Championship, but he struggled in rounds 3 and 4. That should give him a bit of a chip on his shoulder coming into this thing, as he knows he has what it takes to win a major and just needs to find a way to put it all together at the right time. This weekend presents a good opportunity for him to go out and play a good weekend of golf. With a lot of the top golfers taking breaks, Reed is one of the best pure golfers in the field and his 22-to-1 odds could end up paying off in a big way on Sunday.

Louis Oosthuizen (40-to-1) - Louis Oosthuizen has been struggling recently, as he has not cracked the top-10 in a tournament since coming in second at the WGC Match Play event back on Mar. 23. Oosthuizen did, however, shoot a four-under to tie for 22nd at the PGA Championship last weekend and that was the first time he shot under par for a tournament since the PLAYERS Championship in May. Oosthuizen is a very good player and perhaps last week’s tournament is exactly what he needed to get his confidence back and start competing the rest of the season. He’s worth a shot at 40-to-1, as he will not be getting odds anywhere close to these if he is to regain his form soon.

Smylie Kaufman (130-to-1) - When looking for a dark horse to win this event, it’s hard to look past Kaufman. Kaufman has had a very up-and-down season, but he is a high-upside player and that is exactly what you should be looking for when trying to take a guy that can pay off huge. Kaufman has already won a tournament this year, shooting a 16-under to win the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in October. He also has five top-15 finishes since then and should be able to get it going this weekend. In this empty field, taking a shot on Kaufman at 130-to-1 is a great option. Even a half-unit would make for an excellent Sunday.