Steve Palmer's Barracuda Championship preview, best bets, free golf tips

Golf tips, best bets and player analysis for the Barracuda Championship at Old Greenwood, California, on the PGA Tour.

Best bets

Patrick Rodgers
2.5pts each-way 28-1 Betway
Sam Burns
2pts each-way 33-1 Sky Bet
Alexander Noren
2pts each-way 25-1 Betfred, Sky Bet

The second tournament to start in this week's golfing triple-header is the Barracuda Championship – the PGA Tour gathering for those who have failed to qualify for the WGC riches in Memphis.

The Barracuda has 22-1 co-favourites in the shape of Russell Henley and Ryan Moore, reflecting the wide-open nature of the event, and a new course adds to the intrigue. The Jack Nicklaus-designed Old Greenwood takes centre stage and a Modified Stableford scoring system is in operation.

Steve Palmer's top tip

Patrick Rodgers 28-1

A return to California is always welcome for Patrick Rodgers, who matched the victories record of Tiger Woods when starring for Stanford University in his amateur days, and the 28-year-old may be ready for an overdue PGA Tour breakthrough this week.

Rodgers, a former world number one amateur, was expected to quickly claim silverware as a professional. A 2015 Web.com Tour title is all he has to show so far, though, and he has finished second three times on the PGA Tour. Rory McIlroy, Bryson DeChambeau and Charles Howell – in a 2018 RSM Classic playoff – have left Rodgers as runner-up.

Another occasion when Rodgers came close was in the 2015 Barracuda when he ended up in third place. That shows a liking for the Stableford format, Jack Nicklaus-designs, and to competing at altitude. Truckee is elevated almost 6,000 feet, almost exactly the same as previous venue Montreux.

Rodgers has a strong record in the Golden State and the putting touch to handle Old Greenwood greens which are full of undulations.

Next best bet

Sam Burns 33-1

A closing 66 for 32nd place in the 3M Open last Sunday continued the solid if unspectacular post-lockdown campaign of Sam Burns, and the downgrade to the Barracuda could be all that is needed for the 24-year-old to strongly threaten a maiden PGA Tour title.

Burns, powerful off the tee and confident on the greens, won on the Web.com Tour in 2018. His best PGA Tour finish of this season is sixth spot in California – The American Express – and there is every reason to expect this attacking sort to make a barnstorming Barracuda debut.

Other selection

Alexander Noren 25-1

A pair of weekend 66s saw Alex Noren briefly threaten to nick the 3M Open title, but he had to settle for a share of third place and remains a PGA Tour maiden. The ten-time European Tour champion could take great heart from that display, though, which featured a red-hot putter.

Noren has won three European Tour titles at altitude – twice at Crans-sur-Sierre in Switzerland and the 2016 Nedbank Challenge in South Africa by six shots – and should feel comfortable in Truckee. The closest the Swede came to a PGA Tour victory was a playoff loss in the 2018 Farmers Insurance Open in California.

Players to note

Brendan Steele
The Californian has twice won a PGA Tour title in his home state and 13th place in the Memorial last time out was an encouraging warm-up.

Maverick McNealy
Old Greenwood seems a good fit for the talented Californian maiden, but a horror fortnight at Muirfield Village was off-putting.

Old Greenwood course guide

Course Old Greenwood, Tahoe Mountain Golf Club, Truckee, California
Prize money $3.5m ($630,000 to the winner)
Length 7,390 yards
Par 71
Field 132

Format The Modified Stableford scoring system was introduced for the first time in 2012, allocating points based on the number of shots taken at each hole. Albatross = eight points; eagle = five; birdie = two; par = zero; bogey = minus one; double-bogey or worse = minus three

When to bet By 3pm Thursday

Time difference California is eight hours behind the UK and Ireland

Course type Parkland

Course overview Montreux Country Club, Reno, Nevada, staged this event from 1999 to 2019, but a new venue takes over this year. Jack Nicklaus is the designer of both tracks – the Montreux architect also crafted the Old Greenwood in 2004. It usually plays as a par 72, but the tenth hole will be a par-four for the PGA Tour professionals. The layout features a mountain backdrop in the High Sierras, with tall pines lining the twisting fairways, and balls fly far at the altitude (almost 6,000 feet). As if often the case with Nicklaus designs, the second shot is usually more difficult than the first – with water hazards and deep bunkers guarding the fast, severely undulating greens

Story of last year Collin Morikawa underlined his status as a potential superstar by carding birdie at four of his final five holes for a PGA Tour breakthrough victory at Montreux GC

Weather forecast Sunny and hot, with light to moderate breezes peaking on Sunday

Type of player suited to the challenge Accurate approach shots are always essential on Jack Nicklaus-designed layouts – and Old Greenwood is no different – but the greens there are notoriously difficult and a sharp short-game may be even more important

Key attribute Touch

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