Welcome to our weekly PGA Tour gambling-tips column, that includes picks from GOLF.com’s professional prognosticator, Brady Kannon. A seasoned golf bettor and commentator, Kannon is a bunch and common visitor on SportsGrid, a syndicated audio community dedicated to sports activities and sports activities betting, and is a golf betting analyst for CBS Sportsline. You can comply with Brady on X at @LasVegasGolfer, and you may learn his picks under for the 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge, which will get underway Thursday in Texas.
Two long-time associates and legendary golfers from the state of Texas have us transitioning from Byron Nelson’s annual occasion to “Hogan’s Alley” at Colonial Country Club, house to 5 profession victories by Ben Hogan and what would be the eightieth version of the Charles Schwab Challenge this week on the PGA Tour — the longest operating match on the Tour on the identical golf course.
Colonial Country Club was designed by John Bredemus and Perry Maxwell and acquired a Gil Hanse/Jim Wagner renovation instantly following the 2023 enjoying of this match. This historic golf course now measures almost 7,300 yards and performs to a par 70. The fairways are slender and tree-lined, bordered by considerably penal Bermudagrass tough. The greens are small targets and are quick, Bentgrass surfaces. The take a look at requires correct placement off the tee, hitting greens in regulation, and a sizzling putter.
I checked out Driving Accuracy this week, Strokes Gained: Approach, Greens in Regulation, and Strokes Gained: Putting (Bentgrass). With 12 of the holes being par 4s, I checked out those who measure between 350-450 yards and I thought of Hole Proximity from 125-175 yards.
Colonial is likely one of the traditional, positional, accuracy-based golf programs that doesn’t essentially cater to the bombers and rewards a participant who can dial within the wedge play, gap putts, and keep away from bogeys. We positively see some comparable assessments on Tour and crossover success on these leaderboards as properly.
I all the time like to begin with Waialae Country Club, house to the Sony Open. Chris Kirk and Kevin Na instantly come to thoughts as two gamers which have dominated at each Waialae and Colonial. Na, David Toms, and Zach Johnson have gained at each tracks. Matt Kuchar, Kirk, Jason Kokrak, and Daniel Berger are examples of gamers who’ve had great success at every course. Sea Island (RSM Classic), Innisbrook (Valspar Championship), TPC Southwind (FedEx St. Jude Championship), and Pebble Beach are the opposite programs I used that present a substantial amount of correlation.
I consider it’s also price noting as we close to ever nearer to this yr’s U.S. Open championship that many winners right here at Colonial are additionally U.S. Open champs. It begins with Ben Hogan who gained a number of occasions at every. More just lately, Tom Watson, Corey Pavin, Jordan Spieth and Justin Rose are examples of gamers who’ve gained each championships. Keep an eye fixed on the leaderboard this week as it could actually probably present clues as to who is likely to be able to pop in just a few weeks at Shinnecock Hills. I can inform you that I’ve already made a guess on one very huge lengthy shot to win subsequent month’s U.S. Open, who has PGA Tour wins at Pebble Beach, TPC Southwind, and Colonial. We can have our Early Bets article for the U.S. Open up proper right here subsequent week.
We went the best way of the lengthy shot final week on the CJ Cup Byron Nelson and have been capable of get two prime 20 finishers in Stephan Jaeger and Taylor Moore. With this week’s area additionally missing an abundance of big-time stars, I’m going to make the most of the lengthy shot strategy as soon as once more.
Ryan Gerard (70-1)
Gerard is likely one of the premier ball strikers on Tour and that features being very correct off the tee. He’s fallen off the boil a bit since starting the season with two straight runner-up finishes however the first of these two second place finishes was at Waialae for the Sony Open. He’s made the reduce now in six straight begins, is an excellent putter, and is outstanding in Hole Proximity from 125-175 yards.
Mac Meissner (70-1)
I almost made Meissner a play final week at TPC Craig Ranch and he did certainly have a robust week, ending thirty first and firing three of 4 rounds within the 60s. He attended close by SMU, so I’ve to consider he’s accustomed to this golf course and definitely golf within the state of Texas. He completed fifth right here at Colonial in 2024. Meissner is a superb putter, nice on strategy, ranks twenty fifth on Tour in Scrambling, and is thirty seventh for Greens in Regulation. He ranks thirteenth on Tour in Bogey Avoidance.
J.T. Poston (70-1)
Similar to final week, I wish to lean on good putters once more right here in Fort Worth. Poston’s quick recreation numbers are surprisingly off this season for a participant who has all the time used such talent units as his power. He has prime 10 and prime 20 finishes at each one of many correlated programs this week, together with latest Tenth- and Twelfth-place finishes right here at Colonial. Poston additionally lives in St. Simon’s Island, Georgia and trains at Sea Island Golf Club, the place they play the RSM Classic. Despite his quick recreation numbers being off this yr, I can’t ignore that he has all the time been a wonderful profile for the sort of golf course.
Eric Cole on the 2024 WM Phoenix Open.
Getty Images
Eric Cole (90-1)
Cole is one more participant who checks the field of great quick recreation who excels in strategy play. He ranks forty seventh on Tour for SG: Approach, sixteenth for SG: Putting, and is thirty fourth in Scrambling. Like Meissner, Cole additionally completed thirty first final week and posted three of 4 rounds within the 60s. Prior to that he had two straight sixth-place finishes and a 14th. Cole has completed fifth and thirteenth on the Sony Open, as excessive as third at Sea Island, Twelfth on the Valspar, and has been twenty second, 14th, and fifteenth at Pebble Beach.
Taylor Moore (115-1)
If you have been enjoying our collection of Moore final week for First Round Leader, you cashed a pleasant winner as he fired a 62 at TPC Craig Ranch final Thursday. He ended up ending 14th for the match and ranked Tenth in that area for SG: Putting. He is now trending in the fitting path with finishes in his final three begins of 20-17-and-14. He gained the Valspar in 2023, the identical yr he completed fifth at TPC Southwind. Moore has additionally been as excessive as eighth on the RSM Classic.
Lee Hodges (150-1)
The outcomes on the correlated programs for Hodges are the strongest of all of our alternatives this week. He’s by no means missed a reduce right here at Colonial with a end as excessive as Twelfth on his resume. He’s been sixth and Tenth on the Sony, fourth and fifth at Sea Island, 18th on the Valspar, and thirteenth on the FedEx St. Jude. He is the one one in every of our selections this week who doesn’t have the historical past or the numbers of an awesome putter — however he ranks 57th on Tour for SG: Approach, sixteenth in Driving Accuracy, and is very good in Hole Proximity from 125-200 yards.