Well it is a virtual guarantee that this week at The Charles Schwab will be less eventful than the week prior at The PGA Championship. At least off the golf course that is. There could however, be more on course intrigue this week than last. Colonial has a lot more character and intrigue than Valhalla does as a venue. It relies more on craft than strength and while par is irrelevant, it does tend to be more of an exacting test that keeps scores lower than Valhalla does. It should prove to be a refreshing change of pace after last week. We also have one of the stronger fields for this event that we have had in recent memory. With the stage set, we will get into our picks with the usual format of one player from the top, middle, and bottom of the odds board.
Justin Rose
Rose had a great showing for himself last week at The PGA Championship. While he faded some on Sunday, he still finished T6 on a set up that was less than ideal for his strengths. His game is in a great spot right now and he is coming to a venue he has had success at in his career. He finished T12 at this event last year and finished T3 in 2020. When you combine the current form with the course history, I like Justin Rose as my pick to win this week with a floor of a top five finish.
Robert MacIntyre
MacIntyre has never played in this event before so there is no course history to work with. We do however, have his current form to observe and he is playing some spectacular golf. In his last two starts on tour he has T8 and T13 finishes respectively. He has gained some important competitive reps over the last calendar year between The PGA Championship performance he just turned in, his experience on the Ryder Cup team, and his battle with Rory at The Scottish Open last year. I think that we are seeing Robert MacIntyre really round into form and this streak of quality play will continue for him. Look for MacIntyre to grab a top 10 finish this week.
Ben Kohles
Kohles, a KFT grad this year on tour, is playing the best golf of his season right now. He has made his last four cuts including that heartbreaking solo 2nd at The Byron Nelson that still feels fresh in our minds. His putter has really turned around from earlier in the season when he was statistically a disaster on the greens, to the last few weeks where he has been hovering around average. That uptick in putting has really changed his fortunes. What usually holds him back is a lack of length, but length off the tee does not come into play as much at Colonial as it does other places. I like Kohles to grab a top 20 finish this week.
