2022 PGA Championship Picks, Predictions, Odds

Our VI PGA handicapping experts have compiled their best bets for the second major of the season, the PGA Championship. The site for this year’s major is Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the event will run from Thursday, May 19, to Sunday, May 22. 

The 2022 PGA Championship was originally supposed to be held at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New Jersey, but it was moved to Southern Hills last year. This will be the eighth time that Southern Hills hosts a major, and it was most recently the site of the 2001 US Open and the 2007 PGA Championship.

This course was recently revamped in 2018 by Gil Hanse. His aim was to recapture the original beauty that Perry Maxwell had in mind with the course, and it looks like he did the job. It is a par-71 that measures at 7,481 yards, and no one-shot lead is safe heading into the 18th hole.

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PGA CHAMPIONSHIP BETTING RESOURCES

  • Date: May 19 - May 22, 2022
  • Venue: Southern Hills Country Club
  • Location: Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA
  • Course Length: 7,481 yards
  • Course Par: 71
  • Defending Champion: Phil Mickelson
  • More Golf Futures
Updated on 03/18/2024
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PGA CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDER PICKS

The co-favorites coming into the 2022 PGA Championship are Jon Rahm and Scottie Scheffler. Rahm was the top-ranked golfer in the world until Scheffler cruised to a win at the Masters last month, usurping the Spaniard in the overall rankings.

Rahm must be considered one of the top contenders after his wire-to-wire win at the Mexico Open three weeks ago. He ranks first on the PGA Tour in GIR, and he is fifth in driving distance. Rahm won the US Open last year and has to be weighed at 12-1 to win his second major.

Scheffler has been the most dominant golfer on the PGA Tour this year. He has won four events since February, and he has seven T4 finishes this season. Although the reigning Masters champion wasn’t at his best at the Byron Nelson last week, he wasn’t bad either with four sub-70 rounds.

The other top contender to watch is Collin Morikawa at 18-1. Morikawa hasn’t been at his best in his last two tournaments, but he finished fifth at the Masters and has five T5 finishes on the PGA Tour this season. Morikawa won the 2020 PGA Championship and the 2021 British Open and has finished T8, T4, 1st, and 5th in the last four majors.

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PGA CHAMPIONSHIP MID-RANGE PICKS

Xander Schauffele is currently 29-1 to win the PGA Championship, and there is value in him at that price. Schauffele missed the cut at the Masters, but he won the Zurich Classic and finished T5 at the Byron Nelson with a 61 on Sunday. Schauffele is 16th in GIR and 4th in sand save percentage, and those are important numbers for Southern Hills.

I haven’t given up hope on Will Zalatoris yet either. Zalatoris is currently upwards of 30-1 to win his first major. He failed to make the cut at the Byron Nelson, but he had three straight T6 finishes before that letdown. Zalatoris is 9th in GIR, but he must be better with the driver if he is going to contend in Tulsa.

It's easy to talk yourself into Brooks Koepka at 42-1 to win the PGA Championship too. Koepka won the US Open in 2017 and 2018, and he claimed the PGA Championship in 2018 and 2019. He has been at his best in majors, and although he has had a tough time at the Masters the last two years, he finished T2, T4, and T6 at the other three majors last year. Koepka is currently +850 to finish in the top five this weekend. 

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PGA CHAMPIONSHIP LONG SHOT PICKS

The last several months have not been good for Abraham Ancer. He has just one T30 finish in 11 events this season, and he shot 76 on back-to-back days at the Wells Fargo Championship two weeks ago. However, Ancer is worth consideration at 80-1 because he ranks fourth on the PGA Tour in driving accuracy.

Seamus Power is sitting with a handful of golfers at 100-1 to win the PGA Championship. Power was one of the top performing golfers on tour through the first few months of the season, but his play has slipped since February as he has missed the cut in five of the last nine tournaments. Still, he is worth a lottery ticket at this price considering he ranks 6th on the PGA Tour in GIR.

My favorite long shot bet is Marc Leishman at 120-1 to win the PGA Championship. The odds on Leishman are long as he has missed the cut the last three times he has entered this major, but he has seven T25 finishes this season. Leishman will have to stay out of the bunkers and be more accurate off the tee, but he is excellent on his second shot if he doesn’t get into trouble out of the gate.

(Getty)

PGA CHAMPIONSHIP TOP MATCHUP BET

  • Brooks Koepka to win Group E (+250)

Very few golfers have ever thrived at majors to the extent we have seen with Brooks Koepka. The four-time major winner has a whopping 16 top ten finishes at majors since 2014, and he has been exceptional at the PGA Championship. Koepka has finished T15, T5, T4, T13, 1st, 1st, T29, and T2 over the last eight PGA Championships, and no one else in his group has been close to as good at any major.

PGA CHAMPIONSHIP TOP NATIONALITY BET

  • Top Asian Player - Hideki Matsuyama (+165)

Hideki Matsuyama is the overwhelming favorite to be the highest-finishing Asian player at the PGA Championship. Matsuyama has finished T25 at this event in five of the last six years, and last year’s Masters winner is coming off a T3 finish at the Byron Nelson. Lee Kyoung-houn might be seen as his biggest threat after winning the Byron Nelson, but he is an individual course specialist and has never made a cut at a major.

PGA CHAMPIONSHIP TOP PROP BET

  • Collin Morikawa Top 5 Finish (+410)
  • Cameron Smith Top 10 Finish (+230)
  • Xander Schauffele Top 20 Finish (+125)

I’ve already detailed my reasons for liking Morikawa and Schauffele, and both golfers have a very good chance of a strong performance at Southern Hills. Cameron Smith is the wild card in this bet, but he has been strong over the last several months. Smith won the Sentry Tournament of Champions and THE PLAYERS Championship, finished T3 at the Masters and T4 at The RSM Classic. He has been working on his game after disappointing performances at the RBC Heritage and Zurich Classic, and he will be fresh for this event.

BETTING ON THE PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

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