Steve Palmer's Charles Schwab Challenge final-round preview, best bets

Where to watch

Sky Sports Golf red button, 1.30pm Sunday

Best bets

Andrew Putnam to win 6.25pm twoball
4pts Evens bet365, Betfair, BoyleSports

Cam Davis to win 6.55pm twoball
2pts 20-23 BoyleSports

Jordan Spieth without Scottie Scheffler
1pt each-way 23-1 Betfair

Story so far

Scottie Scheffler is odds-on across the board for the Charles Schwab Challenge and the world number one is in position to extend his remarkable streak of recent success.

Discounting the Zurich Classic pairs event in which he had Ryan Palmer as a partner, Scheffler has won four of his last eight tournaments. The statistic could become an outrageous five wins from nine starts after another 18 holes at Colonial Country Club.

Scheffler, jostling for favouritism ante-post at around the 12-1 mark, went bogey-free for the first 52 holes of the tournament. A three-putt at the 17th hole of round three meant his first scorecard blemish of the week, but he bounced back immediately by holing a 30-foot birdie putt at the 18th, taking full command of the Charles Schwab Challenge.

Brendon Todd and Scott Stallings are tied for second place, two shots behind Scheffler, with Harold Varner alone in fourth place. A breezy day in Texas saw most of the field struggle on Saturday - and the class of Scheffler shone through.

Leaderboard
-11 Scottie Scheffler
-9 Brendon Todd, Scott Stallings
-8 Harold Varner
-7 John Huh, Cam Davis, Chris Kirk, Patrick Reed
-6 Mito Pereira, Davis Riley, Beau Hossler
-5 Andrew Putnam, Chad Ramey, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Jordan Spieth, Pat Perez

Best prices
8-11 S Scheffler, 8 B Todd, 9 S Stallings, 10 H Varner, 22 C Kirk, P Reed, 33 C Davis, 45 M Pereira, D Riley, 50 J Spieth, 90 bar

Final-round preview

Scottie Scheffler did not get the respect he deserved when he won his first three PGA Tour titles in the space of five tournaments. Many considered it a burst of form from a good player rather than the start of a new era for an absolutely elite player.

Victory in the Masters elevated Scheffler's status further and cemented his world number one ranking, but a missed cut in the US PGA Championship last time out cast doubt over whether he was set for a quieter spell. The Southern Hills failure, allied to a weak Colonial record, meant the planet's premier player was largely ignored by the betting community for the Charles Schwab. Regret is in the air.

Scheffler is obviously by far the most likely winner at this stage, but the forecast for strong Sunday winds quell any urges to get heavily involved at 8-11. The Texas-based star is a fantastic wind player, but a freak gust here or there could quickly bust his scorecard, and it seems the latest starters might suffer in the worst of the weather.

With some seriously rough wind scheduled for late in his round, Scheffler will be hoping that none of the early starters post a competitive clubhouse lead in gentler conditions.

Backing Scheffler at 8-11 is an unattractive option, but it is difficult to find an appealing pursuer with which to take on the overwhelming favourite. Jordan Spieth will know he is still in the hunt - an eagle at the easy first hole would probably propel the Texan into fifth place - but the 2016 champion will know he has precious little margin for error with a six-shot deficit to overcome.

Spieth, Cam Davis and Davis Riley may get close to Scheffler, without managing to topple him, and preference is for ignoring the outright market altogether and focusing on other betting opportunities.

Spieth at 23-1 in the without Scheffler market is worth a gamble. He is four shots off second place - and the pair tied for second could easily tread water in round four. Spieth's Colonial record is magnificent and he gives everything for 72 holes when playing this close to home. He will need an improvement in iron-play and putting for the bet to land - he is yet to find top gear this week - but it is entirely feasible everything falls into place for a strong Sunday.

Beau Hossler was labouring with injury during round three and seems vulnerable in his Sunday twoball against Andrew Putnam, who is well suited to the Colonial layout, while Cam Davis plays well in the wind and can see off John Huh in their final-round meeting.

Hossler teed off in round three with his right wrist taped, then aggravated the problem hitting from a heavy lie on the fifth hole. With a healthy pay cheque on the cards, he seems likely to battle to the finish line, but seems unlikely to sparkle.

Scheffler and Brendon Todd comprise the final twoball at 7.15pm UK and Ireland time.

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