The RSM Classic 2024 FRL Tips: Four looking for fast start

The RSM Classic begins at Sea Island in Georgia on Thursday and in addition to his outright tips, our resident Golf expert Jamie Worsley has taken a look at the First Round Leader market.

Read on for his RSM Classic 2024 FRL tips.

The RSM Classic begins tomorrow and with so much at stake, players will be desperate to get off to a fast start at Sea Island.

The field over the first two days will be split into two, with each half rotating across the Seaside and Plantation courses, which means we get two first-round leader markets.

Tee times across these first two days are reasonably congested, with the first players teeing off at 08:50 and the last at 11:12. This reduces the possibility of any kind of pronounced draw bias developing and allows us to pick freely across the tee times on what is forecast to be a consistently breezy opening round.

I’m going to focus on those players who need a good week to secure their status for next season, as they’ll be more desperate for a fast start than anyone and have come up with one selection from the Plantation Course and three from Seaside.

0.75 pts Tyler Duncan each-way (1/4 – 5 Places) @ 70/1 (Plantation)

My solo first-round leader selection at Plantation is 2019 RSM Classic winner, Tyler Duncan. He currently sits way down at 169^th in the FedExCup, which right now means that he won’t even retain conditional status on the tour next season. Although, he’s found some solid performances of late and having gone low at the Planation Course before, he can begin a huge week in earnest on Thursday.

Duncan’s form figures for this season possess more letters than numbers, with just three top-25 finishes. The latest of those did come four starts ago in the Black Desert Championship, where he finished 25^th and he’s made two of his next three cuts following that, including finishing 29^th last week in Bermuda.

He’s been typically neat and tidy off the tee, but his approach play has fallen off a cliff. However, he has started to find something on the greens in recent starts and as someone who often does his best work on bermudagrass, he can keep those improvements coming this week.

Duncan finished 25^th here on debut in 2017, before then winning the 2019 edition. He missed his next three cuts following that but was superb when third last year, and with two 65s to his name at Plantation, we know he can go low at his starting course.

0.5 pts Brandon Wu each-way (1/4 – 5 Places) @ 80/1 (Seaside)

My first of three selections at the Seaside Course comes in the shape of Brandon Wu. He’s in 143^rd position in the FedExCup and with some promising performances lately, I expect him to make a good fist of keeping his card, something he can give himself a great chance of doing if starting well tomorrow.

Wu’s problem this season has been consistency. There have been some solid performances, such as his 10^th-place finish in the ISCO Championship, though any positives have tended to be followed by a string of missed cuts or underwhelming displays. Although, he has made four of his last six cuts and comes into this week after finishing 30^th and 23^rd on his last two starts, shooting several low rounds.

His game hasn’t been all that far away this year. He’s had strong periods of form in approach and with the short game but has failed to blend it all together too often. That being said, the driver has been an issue, with short and inaccurate a combination that isn’t going to work well anywhere. He should benefit from the generous fairways here and as a short course, he’s not as disadvantaged by a lack of length.

Wu missed the cut on his debut here in 2021, but he has made his last two, and has looked very good at Seaside, firing five out of his last six rounds there in the 60s. He can put those experiences to good use tomorrow to get off to a much-needed fast start

0.5 pts Will Gordon each-way (1/4 – 5 Places) @ 90/1 (Seaside)

Will Gordon has had a difficult season, which has resulted in him sitting in 197^th place on the FedExCup. He needs a big week here and as a Sea Island resident, I’m hoping the comfort factor will spark him into life and indeed, a strong opening round at the Seaside Course.

Gordon has played 15 times on tour this season and made just six cuts, recording no finish inside the top 30. He has found a little something in the fall, making three of his last five cuts and only narrowly missed out on making the weekend at the Shriners Open.

He actually made a good start in the World Wide Technology Championship two starts ago, firing a 3-under 69 in breezy conditions to sit 12^th after the opening round. Which gives me confidence he can handle the wind tomorrow.

Gordon finished 10^th on his debut in the RSM Classic in 2019 and has recorded results of MC-15-39 on his next three starts in the event. Over that time, he’s record eight rounds in the 60s at the Seaside Course, including a superb 63 last year.

0.5 pts Troy Merritt each-way (1/4 – 5 Places) @ 90/1 (Seaside)

At 146^th in the FedExCup, Troy Merritt is facing the prospect of dropping off the PGA tour for the first time since 2013. He responded well to this adversity last week, finishing 12^th in Bermuda after missing his last eight cuts in a row and with some good rounds under his belt at the Seaside Course, he can make a positive start to his quest to remain on tour.

His tee-to-green game has been solid enough this season, with the putter the main cause for concern. Although, he has often putted the greens well here. He’d also been doing little in the opening rounds of events but was 15^th after round one last week, shooting a 3-under 68.

Merritt has recorded a couple of top 25s here, finishing 22^nd in 2021 and 23^rd in 2018. He missed the cut last year but did shoot a 64 at Seaside, with further rounds of 64, 65 and 66 in recent editions. Combined with his upturn in form last week, he looks a lively contender to be among the early leaders in the RSM Classic tomorrow.

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