Steve Palmer's Rocket Mortgage Classic third-round preview, best bets, free tips

When to watch

Sky Sports Golf, 1.15pm Saturday

Best bets

Kevin Kisner to win Rocket Mortgage Classic
1pt each-way 28-1 bet365, Betfair, Hills, Power

Brian Stuard to win twoball
2pts 8-11 Betway, Hills, Sky Bet, Power

Story so far

Webb Simpson has had a remarkable fortnight of highs and lows – and the drama has continued in the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club.

Simpson won the RBC Heritage the week before last, covering his final seven holes in five under par to claim the trophy, but was swiftly brought crashing back down to earth when one of his daughters tested positive for Covid-19.

Simpson withdrew from the Travelers Championship due to his family situation, but returned to action in Detroit after everyone got the all-clear at his North Carolina home. The world number six has slipped straight back into a groove, rounds of 68 and 64 meaning a share of the lead at the halfway stage.

Bookmakers will not be enjoying the tournament. Short-price ante-post favourite, Bryson DeChambeau, is only one shot behind, while Simpson, second in the pre-event betting, is sharing pole position with Chris Kirk. The final twoball is scheduled to tee off at 7.05pm UK and Ireland time.

Leaderboard
-12 Chris Kirk, Webb Simpson
-11 Seamus Power, Matt Wolff, Bryson DeChambeau, Mark Hubbard, Ryan Armour, Richy Werenski
-10 Kevin Kisner, Sepp Straka
-9 Brian Stuard, JJ Spaun, Matt Wallace, Hudson Swafford, Brendon Hagy, Doc Redman, Troy Merritt, Tyrrell Hatton, Cameron Tringale
-8 Viktor Hovland, Ted Potter, Luke List, Mark Anderson, Maverick McNealy, Pat Perez, Lanto Griffin, Scott Stallings, Adam Hadwin, Emiliano Grillo

Best prices
11-4 W Simpson, 3 B DeChambeau, 16 C Kirk, T Hatton, M Wolff, 28 V Hovland, K Kisner, 33 M Hubbard, R Armour, R Werenski, 40 D Redman, 45 S Power, 50 S Straka, 66 bar

Third-round preview

A feature of PGA Tour golf in the post-lockdown age has been how congested the leaderboards have been – the course set-ups have been generous, birdies have been freely available, and nearly all the events have been wide-open for the most part.

The Travelers Championship provided some final-round separation, but even at River Highlands, Dustin Johnson wobbled coming down the stretch and ended up needing a par at the last to win by a single shot. The Tour has been hugely competitive and the Rocket Mortgage Classic could be set to throw up another tight tussle.

Bryson DeChambeau is in such awesome ball-striking form that he obviously has the potential to pull away from the pack, but his unconvincing short-game may not allow him to do so. And even if DeChambeau did click on the greens, Heritage champion Simpson, riding high in the world rankings and never more at ease with his game than now, will fancy his chances of keeping pace.

Joint-leader Chris Kirk, who almost quit the sport last year as he battled with alcoholism, marked his new-found sobriety with a victory on the Korn Ferry Tour the week before last, so he should not be dismissed, either. Again, PGA Tour punters are going into a weekend with a puzzle that only Mystic Meg could be confident of successfully completing.

The cloud of coronavirus also hangs over proceedings, so anyone testing positive during the event will have to withdraw, so stakes should be kept sensible. The best tactic for punters yet to get involved in the outright market may be to choose one or two of the chasing pack who could enter the equation at a healthy price and challenge DeChambeau and Simpson on Sunday.

Racing Post Sport ante-post followers will be hoping that Doc Redman and Viktor Hovland can build on promising starts by getting in the thick of things. Both players are in excellent ball-striking form and appear a hot putting round away from something spectacular.

Hovland at 28-1 is a decent option at this stage, while Kevin Kisner is also worth considering at the same price. Kisner had been disappointing in the three previous tournaments, but found his A-game in round one in Detroit, and with the course getting firmer and faster by the second, this has become a good opportunity for him to contend for a fourth PGA Tour title.

A hot, sunny day, with light to moderate breezes is forecast, and Kisner could join Redman and Hovland in making a move towards the top of the leaderboard to threaten DeChambeau and Simpson. The 28-1 Kisner, with some firms offering each-way terms of a fifth the odds the first five, seems a solid investment.

Third-round twoball punters are pointed towards Brian Stuard, a Michigan man with a tidy game well suited to a drying Detroit. Stuard finished fifth in last year's Rocket Mortgage and should be a shorter price than he is to defeat JJ Spaun in round three (6.15pm UK).

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