Steve Palmer's CJ Cup Byron Nelson predictions & free golf betting tips: Great Scott ready to take control again in Lone Star State

When to bet on the CJ Cup Byron Nelson

By 12.45pm on Thursday

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Where can I watch the CJ Cup Byron Nelson?

Live on Sky Sports Golf from 12.45pm on Thursday

Steve Palmer's CJ Cup Byron Nelson predictions

Adam Scott
3pts each-way 28-1 bet365

Stephan Jaeger
2pts each-way 33-1 Betfair, Power

Byeong Hun An
2pts each-way 30-1 bet365

Kyoung-Hoon Lee
1.5pts each-way 50-1 bet365

Sam Stevens
1pt each-way 100-1 bet365

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Steve Palmer's CJ Cup Byron Nelson preview

Jordan Spieth heads the betting in his home state this week and the local hero is bidding to win the Byron Nelson for the first time, but nothing in his recent performances breeds confidence. He has missed the cut in three of his last five tournaments.

Spieth missed the cut by three shots in the Masters – an abysmal effort – then suffered some injury niggles on his way to 39th place in the 69-runner Heritage last time out.

Steve Palmer's top tip

Adam Scott 28-1

Former world number one Adam Scott has been playing rock-solid golf for several months and is being disrespected in the market for a low-grade CJ Cup Byron Nelson.

Scott, who has posted ten top-ten finishes over the last year, finished 14th in the Texas Open in his last visit to the Lone Star State. He was 22nd in the Masters last time out and has not played since then, so is fresher than many of his Byron Nelson rivals.

Four of Scott's 14 PGA Tour titles have come in Texas. He won this tournament in 2008 at a different track and his TPC Craig Ranch form figures are 32-8. He signed off with a 63 last year to show he had got a handle on the Ranch.

Scott has worked hard on his putting over the last couple of seasons and has made great strides. An Aussie (Jason Day) won this event last year and another looks great value to do so this time.

Next best bet

Stephan Jaeger 33-1

German ace Stephan Jaeger won his maiden PGA Tour title in Texas a month ago when he fended off Scottie Scheffler in the Houston Open. Jaeger is the only player who has managed to defeat Scheffler in the Masters champion's last five tournaments.

Jaeger has won six times on the Korn Ferry Tour and a second PGA Tour triumph would come as no surprise this week. He finished 18th in the Heritage, skipped the Zurich Classic, and can build on solid Craig Ranch form figures of 38-11.

Other selections

Byeong Hun An 30-1
Kyoung-Hoon Lee 50-1
Sam Stevens 100-1

Byeong Hun An enjoyed the best finish of his Major career in the Masters, finishing 16th, underlining his re-emergence in the sport. An, like Scott, has made progress on the greens with a long putter. Both men have been revived by finding a solution to their main bugbear.

An threatened to win in Hawaii at the start of the year, finishing fourth in The Sentry and second in the Sony, then he was eighth in the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. The Korean was 14th on his Craig Ranch debut last year.

Kyoung-Hoon Lee is a staggering 62 under par for his 216 holes at Craig Ranch. He won the first two Byron Nelsons at this track and is the undisputed King of McKinney. The juicy odds against Lee's name are surprising when you consider he was fourth in the Cognizant Classic at the start of last month, ninth in the Valspar Championship, then 11th alongside Michael Kim in the Zurich Classic last week.

Complete a five-pronged attack with Sam Stevens, who looks good enough to win on the PGA Tour and is well suited to this week's assignment. Stevens, a Texas-born 27-year-old, was 14th in the Texas Open in his last visit to this state. Fourth place alongside Paul Barjon in the Zurich Classic on Sunday was a hugely encouraging warm-up for Craig Ranch, where he finished 34th on debut 12 months ago. He was second in the Texas Open last year and looks a lively outsider for this.

Course guide for the CJ Cup Byron Nelson

• Course TPC Craig Ranch, McKinney, Texas
• Prize money $9.5m ($1.71m to the winner)
• Length 7,414 yards
• Par 71 – three par-fives; 11 par-fours; four par-threes
• Field 156 The cut Top 65 and ties qualify for round three
• Highest-ranked players in field (world ranking in brackets) Jordan Spieth (20), Jason Day (22), Tom Kim (23), Will Zalatoris (30), Min Woo Lee (32)
• Course records - 72 holes 261 Jason Day (2023) 18 holes 60 Sebastian Munoz (2022)
• Course winners taking part Kyoung-Hoon Lee (twice), Jason Day
• When to bet By 12.45pm on Thursday
• When to watch Live on Sky Sports Golf from 12.45pm on Thursday
• Time difference Texas is six hours behind the UK and Ireland
• Last week – Zurich Classic 1 R McIlroy & S Lowry (15-2), 2 C Ramey & M Trainer, 3 R Brehm & M Hubbard, T4 G Higgo & R Fox, S Stevens & P Barjon, Z Blair & P Fishburn, N Echavarria & M Greyserman
• Course type Parkland
• Course overview TPC Craig Ranch hosted the Byron Nelson for the first time in 2021. It staged the Nationwide Tour Championship in 2008 and the Web.com Tour Championship in 2012. It was also used for the second stage of the Korn Ferry Tour Q-School in 2019, won by Taylor Montgomery. The track has Zoysia fairways, relatively slow bentgrass greens, and is easy for Tour pros. The 14th hole is a driveable par-four
• Story of last year Jason Day edged Austin Eckroat and Si Woo Kim to end a five-year PGA Tour victory drought
• Weather forecast Showers and thunder threats throughout. Light to moderate breezes throughout
• Type of player suited to the challenge The trees are a long way from the fairways, making for welcoming targets off the tee, and big-hitters can make merry
• Key attribute Power

Steve Palmer's CJ Cup Byron Nelson key stat

Kyoung-Hoon Lee is 62 under par for his 216 holes at TPC Craig Ranch

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