The Truist Championship is here, providing players with a final tune-up before the PGA Championship next week.
The latest: Rory McIlroy is favoured at Philadelphia Cricket Club following a dream start to the season where he won the Masters and completed the career grand slam. Scottie Scheffler boatraced the field last week, but is sitting this tournament out.
Check out my Truist Championship picks featuring Xander Schauffele and Viktor Hovland.
Truist Championship picks
Best bet: Schauffele to win (+1,600) & top-20 finish (-137)
Schauffele is in fine form ahead of his PGA Championship title defence next week.
The two-time major champion has three straight top-20 finishes, including a T8 at the Masters in April.
Schauffele missed the first two months of this season with an injury, but it looks like the rust has finally been shaken off.
- He ranks fourth in this field in strokes gained: approach (+1.10) over the last three months, according to DataGolf.
- Schauffele is 10th in driving distance (+10.3 yards above average) in the same span.
Philadelphia Cricket Club seems like a bomb-and-gougers paradise. The issue with Schauffele has been finding fairways, but that shouldn’t be much of a problem here.
And while McIlroy is a deserving favourite, the gap between him and Schauffele isn’t that big when the two are on top of their game.
Key stat: Last year, Schauffle finished inside the top 20 in 19 of his 22 starts. That includes his two major wins and eight additional top-five finishes.
Go to full Truist Championship betting markets.
Golf picks
Hovland to win (+2,500) & top-20 finish (+100): Is Hovland back? By his own admission, he’s not there yet. But that’s just fine.
The Norwegian won the Valspar Championship while still battling swing issues, and then carded a T21 at the Masters. He followed that up with a T18 at the RBC Heritage.
Here’s what he had to say at Augusta:
Hovland has picked up strokes on approach in seven straight events, and ranks second in this field in SG: APP over the last three months.
He’s also putting well and can bomb the ball. I’m loving these odds.
Clark to win (+5,500) & top-20 finish (+175): Wyndham Clark is a wildcard, hence the 55-to-1 odds.
That said, I think he’s worth a dart throw here.
Excluding the Zurich Championship (team event) and the Players Championship (WD), he has made the cut in seven straight events. In that span, Clark has a T5, T22 and T16.
He’s an extremely long hitter and can get hot with the irons. Clark has also won three events — including the 2023 U.S. Open — in the last three years.
Golf picks made at 4:50 p.m. on 05/07/2025.
Avery joined NorthStar Gaming as an intern in 2022 before stepping into a full-time role soon after. He loves betting on and analyzing golf — mainly because it’s easier than actually playing — but is a fan of all sports, from the NFL to the UFC.