Shriners Open: Steve Palmer's golf tips, best bets and player analysis

Free golf tips, best bets and player analysis for the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, on the PGA Tour.

Where to watch

Sky Sports Golf, from 6pm Thursday

Best bets

Aaron Wise
2.5pts each-way 70-1 RedZone
Collin Morikawa
2.5pts each-way 30-1 bet365
Joaquin Niemann
2pts each-way 33-1 Sky Bet
Adam Hadwin
1.5pts each-way 45-1Betfred
Peter Uihlein
1pt each-way 125-1 Sky Bet

Cameron Champ will be seeking back-to-back PGA Tour titles in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open this week after a closing birdie landed the Safeway Open for the Californian powerhouse last Sunday.

Champ faces a stronger field in Las Vegas, though, with world number one Brooks Koepka returning to action. Koepka has missed two cuts in four Shriners starts, but was fourth and second in his other two visits. Inconsistent putting makes the favourite an unappealing option.

Patrick Cantlay and Bryson DeChambeau have won the last two Shriners, but Cantlay was a disappointing 40th in the Safeway after a dismal Tour Championship, while DeChambeau folded tamely in the Safeway having led at the halfway stage.

Steve Palmer's top tip

Aaron Wise 70-1

Victor Perez and Cameron Champ underlined the importance of home advantage last week when winning the Dunhill Links and the Safeway Open – Perez was competing about 20 minutes from his Dundee base and Champ an hour from his Sacramento home – and this week it could be the turn of Aaron Wise to employ local knowledge to maximum effect.

Wise has made Las Vegas his home city and TPC Summerlin is his practice base, so it is not surprising that he has managed to compile solid form figures of 10-32-15 in the Shriners Open. The 2018 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year can be expected to rip the track apart in sunny, calm conditions over the next four days.

Wise won his maiden PGA Tour title with a 23-under-par total for a three-shot triumph in the AT&T Byron Nelson and his lone Web.com Tour success was with a 21-under-par score for a five-shot victory. This powerful and attacking 23-year-old will expect birdies at Summerlin in his second start of the season, the rust having been taken off with 39th place in the Sanderson Farms Championship.

Wise has had a quiet 2019 in the wake of his barnstorming 2018, but Major form figures of 17-41-35-41 were impressive for one so young, and he remains one of the most promising players on the planet.

Next best bet

Collin Morikawa 30-1

Like Wise, Collin Morikawa is a Las Vegas resident – neither of them were born in Vegas, but both decided to make the city their home, and the local lads can shine at a venue they know well. Morikawa took more than a month off between the BMW Championship and the Safeway Open, so probably had some practice rounds at Summerlin while it was being groomed for PGA Tour action.

Morikawa is a former world number one amateur who has made a seamless transition to the pro ranks and his maiden PGA Tour title came in the Barracuda Championship in July. The Barracuda is played in Reno, Nevada, and further success in the same state could be coming on Sunday. Tenth place in the Safeway last week was a tidy warm-up.

Other selections

Joaquin Niemann 33-1

Adam Hadwin 45-1

Peter Uihlein 125-1

Super-talented 20-year-old Chilean Joaquin Niemann won his maiden PGA Tour title by a six-shot margin last month, joining Seve Ballesteros and Rory McIlroy as the only non-Americans in the last 95 years to win on the PGA Tour before their 21st birthday. Niemann should go from strength to strength in the wake of his Greenbrier romp.

Niemann was world number one amateur for 44 weeks, so was always destined for stardom, and he finished tenth on his Shriners Open debut last year. This is a golden chance for quick follow-up success.

Adam Hadwin topped the greens-in-regulation statistics in the Safeway Open last week and closed with three birdies to lose by just a shot to Champ. Hadwin has a strong record in desert golf – he fired a 59 in the 2017 CareerBuilder Challenge and has form figures of 2-3-2 in that event – and his close-season practice base is TPC Scottsdale, Arizona. The Canadian can flourish again in the desert this weekend.

Complete your staking plan with Peter Uihlein, who was co-leader in this event last year before dropping away on the Sunday. The course suits and he has had a couple of encouraging warm-ups this season, finishing 36th in The Greenbrier and 23rd in the Sanderson Farms.
Uihlein is a former world number one amateur, he has won on the European Tour, he has triumphed on the Web.com Tour, and there are signs that a PGA Tour breakthrough may not be long away for the 30-year-old underachiever.

Players to note

Scottie Scheffler
The Korn Ferry Tour star has made a bright start to life on the PGA Tour and could power his way into contention.

Matthew Wolff
The power-packed 20-year-old Californian returns refreshed after almost two months off. The 3M Open champion is respected, but may take time to hit his stride on his Shriners debut.

Scott Piercy
The Nevada man – born and based in Las Vegas – won the first of his four PGA Tour titles in his home state in the 2011 Reno-Tahoe Open. Summerlin suits him, but he finished last of the weekend qualifiers in the Safeway on Sunday for an untimely confidence dent.

Beau Hossler
The 24-year-old, twice a runner-up on the PGA Tour last year, finished seventh in the 2017 Shriners. He is inconsistent, but could be worth chancing at a fancy price.

Chesson Hadley
The Carolinian has finished fifth and fourth in the Shriners and 23rd place in the Safeway last week was a timely return to form after a quiet spell.

Wyndham Clark
The big-hitting maiden blew a golden winning chance in the 3M Open in July and has been struggling since, but he is based in Las Vegas and could enjoy this home-city gig.

TPC Summerlin course guide

Course TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada
Prize money $7m ($1.26m to the winner)
Length 7,255 yards
Par 71
Field 144
Course records- 72 holes 260 Ryan Moore (2012), Webb Simpson (2013) 18 holes 60 JJ Henry (2013), Rod Pampling (2016)

Course winners taking part Jim Furyk (three times), Martin Laird, Kevin Na, Ryan Moore, Webb Simpson, Ben Martin, Smylie Kaufman, Rod Pampling, Patrick Cantlay, Bryson DeChambeau

When to bet By 2.40pm Thursday

When to watch Live on Sky Sports Golf from 6pm Thursday

Time difference Las Vegas is eight hours behind the UK and Ireland

Last week - Safeway Open 1 C Champ (125-1), 2 A Hadwin (80-1), 3 M Leishman (45-1), T4 C Howell (66-1), Z Blair (300-1), J Thomas (7-1), T7 D Frittelli (55-1), C Percy (150-1), X Zhang (300-1)

Course overview The TPC Summerlin has been part of this event since 1992, but the tournament used to be played over several different tracks. Until 2004, it was a five-round affair which was called the Las Vegas Invitational and the Invensys Classic.

Then, under the titles of the Michelin Championship (2004-05), the Frys.com Open (2006-07) and the Justin Timberlake Open (2008-12), it became a four-round, 72-hole event. The pop star is no longer the title sponsor. Prior to 2008, other courses were used in tandem with Summerlin, but after Timberlake became tournament host it has been staged exclusively at Summerlin.

It is an easy course for professionals and always serves up a birdie-fest. The three par-fives (the ninth, 13th and 16th) are straightforward and the 341-yard par-four 15th is driveable. The eighth, a 239-yard par three, is by far the toughest hole.

The story of last year Bryson DeChambeau edged out defending champion Patrick Cantlay by a shot to secure his fourth PGA Tour victory of 2018.

Weather forecast Sunny and extremely hot, with light breezes throughout.

Type of player suited to the challenge Anyone arriving at Summerlin with a cold putter will struggle to stay the pace. Every hole bar the eighth is a solid birdie opportunity and converting putts is the key to success.

Key attribute Touch/putting

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