Wyndham Championship 2024 Tips: Harman for glory in North Carolina

After a fantastic week at Le Golf National saw world #1, Scottie Scheffler add an Olympic gold medal to his ever-growing collection of accolades, we’re now back in the U.S and just one week away from the beginning of the FedExCup Playoffs.

Our traditional final stop before that season-ending series of events takes us to North Carolina and Sedgefield Country Club for the Wyndham Championship. An event that gives players on the outside of the FedExCup top-70 one final chance to make it into next week’s St Jude Championship.

Our golf tipster Jamie Worsley is here with his in-depth preview and he's picked out six players to consider backing each-way as he takes us through his Wyndham Championship Betting Tips...

TOURNAMENT HISTORY

Having first been staged in 1938, the Wyndham Championship (formerly the Greensboro Open) is one of the oldest events on the PGA Tour. It has held this important spot on the schedule, immediately preceding the FedExCup Playoffs, since 2007.

Sam Snead won the inaugural 1938 edition and then went on to record a further seven victories – in 1946, 1949, 1950, 1955, 1956, 1960 and 1965 - with his final win here, at Sedgefield Country Club in 1965 making him the oldest winner in the history of the PGA Tour, at the age of 52.

Snead’s record of eight wins is far clear of anyone else in the tournament’s history. Davis Love III (1992, 2006, 2015) is next best on three wins. Whilst there is an eight-strong list of two-time winners, which includes Byron Nelson (1941, 1945), Sandy Lyle (1986, 1988) and most recently, Brandt Snedeker (2007, 2018).

Last five winners:

• 2023 – Winner: Lucas Glover (-20); runners-up: Byeong Hun An, Russell Henley (-18)
• 2022 – Winner: Tom Kim (-20); runners-up: John Huh, Sungjae Im (-15)
• 2021 – Winner: Kevin Kisner (-15, playoff); runners-up: Branden Grace, Si Woo Kim, Kevin Na, Adam Scott, Roger Sloan (-15)
• 2020 – Winner: Jim Herman (-21); runner-up: Billy Horschel (-20)
• 2019 – Winner: J.T Poston (-22); runner-up: Webb Simpson (-21)

Lucas Glover capitalised on a hot run of form in the event last year, recording the first of his back-to-back wins at Sedgefield Country Club before going on to win the St Jude Championship the following week. He returns to defend and would become the first player since Sam Snead in 1956 to successfully do so if he were to come out on top this week.

THE COURSE

The event has had several homes in the past but has been exclusively held at Sedgefield Country Club since 2008. This followed a restoration of the course by Kris Spence in 2007, as he attempted to return this 1926 Donald Ross original to its former glory.

The course plays as a par 70 and measures 7131 yards. It contains 12x par 4s (374-507 yards), 4x par 3s (174-235 yards) and 2x par 5s (529-545 yards).

Whilst there are a handful of tougher, longer par 4s/3s, Sedgefield CC is packed with scoring chances, with the two par 5s short and the majority of the par 4s there to be got at. This means the event often results in a birdie-fest, possessing an average winning score of -19.6 across the last 10 renewals.

This traditional, tree-lined course appears tight in places though there is enough room out there, with the average-width, predominantly doglegging fairways ranking just above average for driving accuracy. They are well protected by some strategic bunkering, whilst 2.5” bermudagrass rough can make for some tricky lies in the.

There are gentle elevation changes on approaches into many of the large, bermudagrass greens, which run at a speedy 12.5 on the stimp. These elevated, undulating surfaces are typical Ross, with many sloping from back-to-front, most crowned and possessing run-offs at their edges. Additionally, intelligent greenside bunkering often sits away from the putting surfaces, leaving players with awkward-length bunker shots should they find the sand.

All of these intricacies of the putting surfaces and their surrounds make Sedgefield Country Club one of the most demanding short-game challenges on tour. However, with the greens some of the easiest to find - possessing the fifth-highest greens-in-regulation percentage on the PGA Tour – players shouldn’t be faced with these greenside challenges too often.

Water is in-play on six holes, but it isn’t enough of a threat to keep the scoring down. Providing players keep the ball in-play, they should be able to create plenty of clear scoring opportunities and as long as the weather doesn’t throw up anything ugly, low scores should be the order of the day again at Sedgefield CC this week.

THE WEATHER

This week’s event could be set for some tumultuous weather, with a tropical storm in the area potentially causing strong winds and plenty of rain before and during the first two days of the tournament.

That may lead to stoppages over those opening two rounds, but it is forecast to disappear over the weekend. At which time the field will be able to enjoy a wet, receptive course with little wind, which means we should see some low scores on Saturday/Sunday.

KEY STATS

• SG: Approach
• Proximity 150-175 yards

In a usually low scoring event where a high percentage of greens are hit, quality approach play is an obvious asset to have at Sedgefield Country Club.

Lucas Glover proved this last year, ranking 1^st in approach on his way to taking the title, whilst his three closest challengers ranked inside the top-15.

Tom Kim was a strong 12^th in approach when winning in 2022. This was a year in which six of those finishing 10^th or better ranked inside the top-10 with their irons.

An approach-heavy leaderboard saw Kevin Kisner come out on top in a six-man playoff in 2021. He ranked 12^th in approach, whilst four of the guys he beat in the playoff ranked inside the top-10, with Kevin Na, Adam Scott and Si Woo Kim ranking 2^nd, 3^rd and 5^th respectively.

Jim Herman ranked 4^th in approach when collecting the trophy in 2020 and 2019 winner, J.T Poston ranked 1^st.

Further to this, the short-mid irons have proven the most frequent approach distances in recent years. I would pay particular attention to players who excel in proximity from 150-175 yards this week.

• SG: Putting (bermudagrass)

Mastering these tricky putting surfaces has proven to be another key to success at Sedgefield CC.

Lucas Glover was a decent 15^th on the greens last year, with each of the next three on the leaderboard ranking inside the top-8, including Russell Henley in 2^nd ranking 1^st.

Tom Kim led the field with his putter in 2022; Kevin Kisner ranked 8^th in 2021; whilst each of the top-2 in 2020 ranked high in putting, with winner, Jim Herman ranking 3^rd and runner-up, Billy Horschel ranking 2^nd.

• Driving Accuracy

This is one event where driving accuracy numbers are usually very telling, with many winners and top contenders finding lots of fairways.

Lucas Glover hit more fairways than anyone last year, and the next three on the leaderboard also hit it relatively straight, ranking no worse than 17^th in driving accuracy.

Both 2022 winner, Tom Kim and 2020 champion, Jim Herman ranked 4^th in driving accuracy. Meanwhile, the top-2 in 2019 were the two straightest drivers in the field, with winner, J.T Poston ranking 2^nd in driving accuracy and Webb Simpson in 2^nd ranking 1^st.

• Par 4 Scoring

Finally, this high volume and variety of par 4s makes them the most important holes at Sedgefield and we should look to players who score best on these holes this week.

CORRELATING EVENTS (COURSES)

RBC Heritage (Harbour Town Golf Links)

Harbour Town Golf Links provides a similar test off-the-tee to Sedgefield CC and with the variety of approach distances comparing closely to this week’s host, it looks a strong comp event.

Notable correlating form:

Brandt Snedeker:

Wyndham (1^st, 3^rd, 5^th, 5^th) / Heritage (1^st)

Carl Pettersson:

Wyndham (1^st) / Heritage (1^st)

Webb Simpson:

Wyndham (1^st, 2^nd, 2^nd) / Heritage (1^st, 2^nd)

Kevin Kisner:

Wyndham (1^st) / Heritage (2^nd)

Si Woo Kim:

Wyndham (1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd) / Heritage (2^nd)

J.T Poston:

Wyndham (1^st) / Heritage (3^rd, 5^th, 6^th)

C.T Pan:

Wyndham (2^nd) / Heritage (1^st)

Ollie Schniederjans:

Wyndham (2^nd) / Heritage (3^rd)

John Huh:

Wyndham (2^nd, 3^rd) / Heritage (3^rd)

Kevin Na:

Wyndham (2^nd, 4^th) / Heritage (4^th, 4^th)

Sony Open (Waialae Country Club)

Waialae Country Club is another bermudagrass-covered course of a similar length to Sedgefield CC. With the large greens similarly challenging; serving up a comparably difficult ball-striking test; and requiring approaches from equivalent distances, it can give us plenty of clues this week.

Notable correlating form:

Si Woo Kim:

Wyndham (1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd) / Sony (1^st)

Carl Pettersson:

Wyndham (1^st) / Sony (2^nd, 5^th)

Brandt Snedeker:

Wyndham (1^st, 3^rd, 5^th, 5^th) / Sony (2^nd)

Kevin Kisner:

Wyndham (1^st) / Sony (3^rd, 4^th, 4^th, 5^th)

Webb Simpson:

Wyndham (1^st, 2^nd, 2^nd) / Sony (3^rd, 4^th, 4^th)

Kevin Na:

Wyndham (2^nd, 4^th) / Sony (1^st)

Russell Henley:

Wyndham (2^nd, 5^th) / Sony (1^st, 2^nd)

Byeong Hun An:

Wyndham (2^nd, 3^rd) / Sony (2^nd)

Rory Sabbatini:

Wyndham (4^th, 6^th, 8^th) / Sony (2^nd, 2^nd)

THE PLAYERS Championship (TPC Sawgrass)

TPC Sawgrass ranks closely to Sedgefield CC in most aspects statistically, both in long and short game areas.

Notable correlating form:

Webb Simpson:

Wyndham (1^st, 2^nd, 2^nd) / PLAYERS (1^st)

Si Woo Kim:

Wyndham (1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd) / PLAYERS (1^st)

Sergio Garcia:

Wyndham (1^st) / PLAYERS (1^st)

Henrik Stenson:

Wyndham (1^st) / PLAYERS (1^st)

Kevin Kisner:

Wyndham (1^st) / PLAYERS (2^nd, 4^th)

Lucas Glover:

Wyndham (1^st) / PLAYERS (3^rd, 6^th)

Brandt Snedeker:

Wyndham (1^st, 3^rd, 5^th, 5^th) / PLAYERS (5^th, 8^th)

Kevin Na:

Wyndham (2^nd, 4^th) / PLAYERS (3^rd, 6^th, 7^th)

Cognizant Classic (PGA National)

The coastal location, more exposed nature and usual difficulty of PGA National wouldn’t necessarily make you think of it as a strong comp for Sedgefield. However, with its large and quick bermudagrass greens, short-game difficulty and similar approach PLAY challenge, there’s plenty to tie these two courses together.

Notable correlating form:

Camillo Villegas:

Wyndham (1^st) / Cognizant (1^st)

Lucas Glover:

Wyndham (1^st) / Cognizant (4^th, 4^th)

Sungjae Im:

Wyndham (2^nd) / Cognizant (1^st)

Russell Henley:

Wyndham (2^nd, 5^th) / Cognizant (1^st, 3^rd)

C.T Pan:

Wyndham (2^nd) / Cognizant (3^rd)

Byeong Hun An:

Wyndham (2^nd, 3^rd) / Cognizant (4^th, 5^th)

Rory Sabbatini:

Wyndham (4^th, 6^th, 8^th) / Cognizant (1^st)

Travelers Championship (TPC River Highlands)

TPC River Highlands is another tree-lined course with a very similar tee-to-green challenge as Sedgefield. Also requiring a large number of approaches from 150-175 yards, it should prove a helpful guide this week.

Notable correlating form:

Tom Kim:

Wyndham (1^st) / Travelers (2^nd)

J.T Poston:

Wyndham (1^st) / Travelers (2^nd)

Ryan Moore:

Wyndham (1^st) / Travelers (2^nd, 2^nd, 4^th, 5^th)

Carl Pettersson:

Wyndham (1^st) / Travelers (5^th)

Sungjae Im:

Wyndham (2^nd) / Travelers (3^rd)

Ryan Armour:

Wyndham (4^th, 8^th) / Travelers (6^th)

Shriners Open (TPC Summerlin)

The Shriners Open is another low scoring event where greens are easy to find, scrambling is tough and one which prompts players to hit a high portion of approaches from 150-175 yards.

Notable correlating form:

Tom Kim:

Wyndham (1^st) / Shriners (1^st, 1^st)

Ryan Moore:

Wyndham (1^st) / Shriners (1^st)

Webb Simpson:

Wyndham (1^st, 2^nd, 2^nd) / Shriners (1^st)

J.T Poston:

Wyndham (1^st) / Shriners (3^rd, 4^th)

Lucas Glover:

Wyndham (1^st) / Shriners (3^rd)

Carl Pettersson:

Wyndham (1^st) / Shriners (4^th)

Sungjae Im:

Wyndham (2^nd) / Shriners (1^st)

Kevin Na:

Wyndham (2^nd, 4^th) / Shriners (1^st, 1^st)

Rory Sabbatini:

Wyndham (4^th, 6^th, 8^th) / Shriners (3^rd)

Brett Stegmaier:

Wyndham (5^th) / Shriners (2^nd)

THE FIELD

Our final regular season event before the FedExCup Playoffs has brought together a deep field, though lacking in star power from the very top. World #15, Brian Harman is the top-ranked player in the field and one of 21 from inside the world’s top-50.

Among these is our defending champion, Lucas Glover and he is one of nine former winners, joined by Kevin Kisner (2021), Jim Herman (2020), J.T Poston (2019), Brandt Snedeker (2018, 2007), Si Woo Kim (2016), Camillo Villegas (2014), Webb Simpson (2011) and Ryan Moore (2009).

The top-70 in the FedExCup rankings at the end of this week will make it into our first playoff event next week. Nick Dunlap (#66), Jhonattan Vegas (#67), Emiliano Grillo (#68), Seamus Power (#69) and Brendon Todd (#70) are the five players most nervy in holding their spot in next week’s field, whilst Victor Perez (#71), Davis Riley (#72), Andrew Putnam (#73), Kurt Kitayama (#74) and Luke List (#75) will all be hoping to make their move this week.

*You can get all the up to date and live Wyndham Championship Odds over on betfred.com

SELECTIONS

Market leaders: Sungjae Im 12/1, Billy Horschel 22/1, Si Woo Kim 22/1, Shane Lowry 25/1, Brian Harman 25/1

This is a very open looking contest. However, for a multitude of reasons, Brian Harman looks the clear pick from the top of the betting, and he goes in as the headline selection this week.

1.75 pts Brian Harman each-way (1/5 - 6 places) @ 28/1

Harman has been enjoying an extremely consistent year in 2024. He’s missed just two cuts in 20 events and has finished inside the top-25 in half of those starts, recording a best of 2^nd in THE PLAYERS Championship.

He’s been strong across the board for most of this season and enters this week ranking 5^th in strokes-gained total over his last 50 rounds. His iron play has been a key part of that, ranking 38^th in approach and he has looked especially good from 150-175 yards, ranking 14^th. Complimented by rankings of 14^th in par 4 scoring, 27^th in driving accuracy and 31^st in putting, he has one of the strongest statistical chances in the field.

Having missed his first two cuts at Sedgefield Country Club, he recorded a tournament best of 3^rd in 2013. Though his form in the event has continued to be a little bit of a mixed bag, he again finished inside the top-10 in 2019, finishing 6^th and when everything is clicking, this is clearly a course that suits.

This is something that is evidenced by 2^nd and 3^rd-place finishes in both the Travelers Championship and PLAYERS Championship. A top-5 in the Sony Open and several top-10s in the RBC Heritage strengthen his case further and if Harman brings the best of himself this week, I can’t see anything but a contending performance.

1 pt Luke Clanton each way (1/5 - 6 places) @ 50/1

World #3 amateur, Luke Clanton has been continually impressing in pro events since bursting onto the scene in the US Open. With his combination of power and accuracy off-the-tee a major asset just about anywhere, he has the arsenal to take on this attackable setup.

Clanton’s commendable 41^st-place finish in the US Open at Pinehurst – another Ross track – came as a surprise to many but there were plenty of signs of this youngster’s talents in the buildup to that major appearance.

Entering that week, Clanton had finished no worse than 5^th in his previous six amateur starts, including three victories. One of these came in the prestigious Valspar Collegiate Invitational – an event previously won by Ludvig Aberg and Viktor Hovland in recent years – whilst he also finished 2^nd in the stroke play element of the NCAA D1 Championship.

Following that US Open result, Clanton has had four PGA Tour starts and showed himself to be a player at home at this level. He finished 10^th in the Rocket Mortgage Classic and then followed by finishing runner-up in the John Deere Classic.

He’s looked strong in approach and on the greens across those starts but there’s no doubt where his main strength lies and that’s with the driver, ranking 1^st in this field over his last 18 rounds. He is both very long and remarkably straight, something which he again showed when finishing 37^th in the ISCO Championship despite that lower finish.

Due to his level of ball-striking and putting, it’s been no surprise to see Clanton score so well in these recent low scoring events. With his Florida roots meaning he should be comfortable in this East Coast setting and on the bermudagrass greens, I fancy him to transfer that birdie-making ability to the Wyndham Championship this week.

1 pt Nicolai Hojgaard each-way (1/5 - 8 places) @ 50/1

Sitting at #80 in the FedExCup standings, Nicolai Hojgaard needs a good week to move himself into those playoff places. Coming in off a positive showing in the Olympics, where his ball-striking again impressed, he can serve up that performance on a course at which he performed well on debut last year.

Nicolai had a strong start to his rookie PGA Tour season, finishing 2^nd in the Farmers Insurance Open all the way back in January. Although he hasn’t managed to match that performance since, he’s had a sneakily good season, making the cut in each of the four majors – including a top-20 on his Masters debut – and showed once more what he can do in elite company last week, finishing 7^th at Le Golf National.

He unsurprisingly hit the ball well there, ranking 11^th in ball-striking. This has been a key component to recent performances, as he enters this week ranking 5^th in approach and 28^th off-the-tee across his last 20 rounds and is finally starting to find a little more accuracy with the driver; something he’ll need to maintain this week.

There were also more positive signs with the putter last week, and seemingly taking to these surfaces at Sedgefield Country Club last year when firing four straight rounds in the 60s to finish 14^th on debut – ranking 4^th on the greens – he can pick up where he left off in France.

Hojgaard’s ability from 150-175 yards, a range in which he ranks 35^th on the PGA Tour this season, is another reason as to his suitability to this course and if able to maintain his straight driving from recent weeks, he’d be a lively candidate for success in North Carolina.

1 pt Eric Cole each-way (1/5 - 8 places) @ 50/1

Eric Cole’s approach play has clicked back into gear over recent starts and having performed well here on debut last year, Sedgefield CC looks an ideal spot for him to secure a first PGA Tour win.

After starting the season in good form, recording six top-25 finishes across his first nine starts, Cole hit a poor patch of form but turned that around at the Rocket Mortgage Classic four starts ago.

He finished 6^th there and followed with a second straight top-10, finishing 7^th in the John Deere Classic. Subsequently enjoying a couple of encouraging spins around the links in Scotland on his last two starts, including finishing 31^st in The Open, he’s held his form.

This return to form has been engineered by him rediscovering some consistency with his approach play, gaining strokes in four of his last five starts and ranking 26^th or better in three of those. Ranking top-50 from 150-175 yards and looking comfortable on bermudagrass surfaces, he has plenty in his favour to perform around this layout.

Indeed, we saw how far these two areas can take Cole last year, as he ranked 2^nd in putting and 21^st in approach to record a debut 14^th-place finish in the event. A runner-up finish in the Cognizant Classic and 3^rd-place finish in the Shriners Open strengthen his case and if remaining in the same form as when we last saw him, he should be in the mix this week.

1 pt Brendon Todd each-way (1/5 - 8 places) @ 80/1

Brendon Todd sits precariously in 70^th spot in the FedExCup rankings and will need a good performance this week to secure his spot in the first playoff event. He does come into this after some positive recent performances, including recording his best approach numbers of the season on his last start and with this precise ball-striker hitting the top-10 twice at Sedgefield CC in the last three years, this is clearly a suitable place for him to perform.

Todd had made 17 of his 21 cuts this season, which includes in each of the three majors he’s played. He recorded two top-6s earlier in the season, in the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Texas Open, though had been struggling a little for form entering the John Deere Classic three starts ago.

His 12^th-place finish there was his third-best result of the year, and he played with promise on his following two starts in Scotland, finishing 46^th in the Scottish Open and 31^st in The Open Championship.

That result at Royal Troon was a particular standout, as in ranking 15^th in approach – gaining 1.3 strokes per round – he produced his best iron display of the season. If he can keep that going and combine with his straight driving and putting, areas in which he ranks 6^th and 34^th on tour this season respectively, he can get the result he needs this week.

Todd’s record in the Wyndham Championship was pretty sketchy but he’s improved considerably in recent years. He recorded his first top-10 in the event in 2021, finishing 10^th and following a 36^th-place finish in 2022, he finished 7^th last year. A result that was achieved by his typically straight driving, solid approach play and high-class putting.

1 pt Justin Suh each-way (1/5 - 8 places) @ 175/1

The talented Justin Suh appears to have found something on his last two starts after enduring a generally miserable time this season. Sitting way outside the FedExCup top-70, making it into next week’s field is the least of his concerns and it’s all about surviving on the tour for him now, something he can go a long way towards achieving with a big performance this week.

Prior to the Barracuda Championship two starts ago, Suh had played 18 times this year, missing 13 cuts and failing to record a single top-20. He sprung into life there in California, hitting the ball well and putting competently to record a season’s best 11^th-place finish and carried the confidence he undoubtedly gained there over into his next start, recording his second straight top-20 when 19^th in the 3M Open.

That was a result predominantly engineered by putting and this is the area in which he’s been very reliable in the last two years, ranking 4^th on the greens in 2024. He’s also been driving the ball pretty straight in recent months and looking comfortable in approaches in that 150–175-yard range, he does possess many of the required assets to tackle this test.

Suh didn’t exactly show this last year when missing the cut on debut, though he was in worse form at the time and actually opened with a solid 2-under 68. He does possess some very appealing comp form, having finished 5^th in the Cognizant Classic, 6^th in THE PLAYERS Championship and 8^th in the Shriners Open, and if able to carry the momentum over from those last two starts, he can be a feature of the top of the leaderboard this week.

All our latest Golf Odds can be found over on Betfred.com. 

You can find all Jamie's latest Golf Betting Tips over on our dedicated golf Insights hub.