The Deutsche Bank Championship at TPC Boston is the second of the four FedEx Cup series of events and starts on Friday to enable a Labor Day finish.
The course, which has been used for all previous seven renewals, is not overly long at just over 7,200 yards and doesn’t really favour one type of player over another. However, all the past winners could be described as top-class – Tiger and Vijay have two wins apiece – so it’s safe to say the cream tends to rise to the top.
My Three Off The Tee:-
Steve Stricker @ 12/1 Totesport
Tiger is worthy of consideration at 8/1 (bet365) as he appeared to be striking the ball a lot better at Ridgewood last week and is a past winner here. However, he’s still going through some swing changes and had to resort to some serious scrambling for a share of 12th place, which suggests he's not quite ready to win just yet. Defending champion Stricker, on the other hand, arrives here at the top of his game after finishing third at The Barclays (two shots out of the play-off after a closing 66), ninth at Firestone and 18th at the USPGA, and his record here over the past four years reads an impressive 1-13-9-7. The 12/1 may not represent much in the way of value but he's a class act and I daren't leave him out.
Angel Cabrera @ 66/1 Betfred
The Argentinian is hard to predict and can be pretty wayward at times but this week’s track with its generous fairways and forgiving rough suits him down to the ground. Just look at his record here: tied-23rd (07), tied-15th (08) and tied-4th last year. Two of his best performances this season have come in majors – 18th at the Masters and 22nd at the US Open – but he’s coming off a tied-15th at The Barclays and has plenty of incentive to play well again this week due to his position in the FedEx Cup standings – currently 55th with only the top 30 making it through to the deciding Tour Championship in two week’s time.
Ryan Palmer @ 90/1 Blue Square
The final pick goes to one of the Tour’s most in-form players. After winning the Sony back in February, Palmer's form dropped off dramatically with 12 missed cuts in 16 starts. However, an equipment change after the Canadian Open clearly had some effect as he’s posted two top-five finishes in his last three starts, which gives him plenty of momentum coming into this week. The shrewdies have snapped up the three-figure odds but 90/1 (66/1 in a place) is still more than fair.
Bubbling Under: Stephen Ames (150/1 Boylesports)
The Canadian has lacked his usual consistency this season but is now working with coach of the moment Sean Foley and that could make a big difference. He’s also a superb player in the wind and that’s precisely what the forecasters are predicting. He’s worth an each-way dabble in the outright market, for sure, and makes plenty of appeal at 10/1 (Victor Chandler) to record a Top-10 finish.
Punters Beware: Phil Mickelson / Anthony Kim / Nick Watney
Lefty has a habit of bouncing back from a poor performance but he’s put in several of those of late (last week’s MC was as bad as it gets) and can’t be backed with any confidence. Kim is still struggling after thumb surgery, while Watney has a dreadful course record. Oppose them in match and group bets.
Recommended Bets:-
Steve Stricker 2pts each-way @ 12/1 Totesport
Angel Cabrera 1pt each-way @ 66/1 Betfred
Ryan Palmer 1pt each-way @ 90/1 Blue Square
Stephen Ames Top-10 Finish 1pt @ 10/1 Victor Chandler