19th Hole

Vincenzi’s 2024 Tour Championship betting preview: East Lake specialist to chase down leaders

Published

2 years ago

Aug 26, 2024

The 2024 PGA Tour season will come to an end this week at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta with the Tour Championship. The top 30 players that remain in the FedEx Cup standings will compete for the FedEx Cup Championship and the huge $25 million payday that accompanies it.

East Lake Golf Club is a par-70 layout, measuring 7,319 yards with Bermudagrass greens. A Donald Ross design, the difficulty this week for players will be managing the fast and undulating putting surface. That said, golfers with varying skill sets can compete at East Lake.

Top 10 on the Leaderboard

1.) Scottie Scheffler -10

2.) Xander Schauffele -8

3.) Hideki Matsuyama -7

4.) Keegan Bradley -6

5.) Ludvig Aberg -5

6.) Rory McIlroy -4

7.) Collin Morikawa -4

8.) Wyndham Clark -4

9.) Sam Burns -4

10.) Patrick Cantlay -4

Past Winners at East Lake Golf Club

2023: Viktor Hovland* -27(started at -8)
2022: Rory McIlroy* -21 (started at -4)
2021: Patrick Cantlay* -21 (started at -10)
2020: Dustin Johnson* -21 (started at -10)
2019: Rory McIlroy* -18 (started at -5)
2018: Tiger Woods -11
2017: Xander Schauffele -12
2016: Rory McIlroy -12
2015: Jordan Spieth -9

*Strokes-based bonus in effect.

The 2019 campaign marked the first year in which the PGA TOUR introduced a “strokes-based bonus” that gives players with the most FedEx Cup points a stroke advantage relative to the field at the beginning of the tournament.

With the added complication of the handicapped scoring system, the challenge for bettors will be identifying who can get into contention considering where they are beginning the week on the leaderboard. It will take an exceptional week from any golfer to catch the big names at the top of the leaderboard starting with a stroke advantage.

In this article, I’ll be using the Rabbit Hole by Betsperts Golf data engine to develop my custom model. If you want to build your own model or check out all of the detailed stats, you can sign up using promo code: MATTVIN for 25% off any subscription package (yearly is best value).

Key Stats For East Lake

Let’s take a look at several key metrics for East Lake to determine which golfers boast top marks in each category over their last 24 rounds.

Identifying the most predictive measures for player performance this week will be crucial in determining who will claim the FedEx Cup when all is said and done.

Strokes Gained: Approach

SG: Approach is the most predictive statistic at East Lake Golf Club. Success in this event has come in the form of many different types of golfers, but one of the consistent factors is the winners are putting their approach shots close.

SG: Approach over Past 24 Rounds:

Xander Schauffele (+1.64)
Scottie Scheffler (+1.44)
Corey Conners (+1.07)
Tom Hoge (+0.97)
Rory McIlroy (+0.82)

Good Drive Percentage

In the past, we have seen some of the best drivers of the golf ball play well at East Lake. Being a long hitter isn’t a requirement, as it’s far more important to hit fairways. The golfers who put the ball in play most often should have a strong chance to compete in Atlanta.

Good Drive Percentage over Past 24 Rounds:

Collin Morikawa (88.2%)
Aaron Rai (86.7%%)
Sepp Straka (86.1%)
Tommy Fleetwood (85.4%)
Scottie Scheffler (85.1%)

Strokes Gained: Putting (Bermudagrass+Fast)

The difficulty of East Lake will be the speed of the greens. Donald Ross designs are known for having different levels on a sloping green, which makes finding the correct place to land the ball challenging. To be successful, golfers must excel at putting on Bermuda greens with fast speeds.

SG: Putting (Bermuda+Fast) over Past 24 Rounds:

Ludvig Aberg (+0.97)
Sam Burns (+.82)
Wyndham Clark (+.67)
Mathieu Pavon (+.66)
Robert MacIntyre (+.65)

Course History

Over the years, course history has played a large role at East Lake.

Course History over Past 36 Rounds:

Xander Schauffele (+2.10)
Rory McIlroy (+1.32)
Justin Thomas (+1.32)
Viktor Hovland (+1.29)
Russell Henley (+1.07)

Strokes Gained: Donald Ross Designs

We have seen the same golfers thrive on Ross designs season after season. The requirement for strategic ball placement combined with the undulating greens seems to catch the eye of specific players. It’s important to note the players in this field who play their best golf on Ross designs.

SG: Total Donald Ross Designs over Past 36 Rounds:

Xander Schauffele (+2.21)
Rory McIlroy (+1.91)
Russell Henley (+1.89)
Viktor Hovland (1.84)
Aaron Rai (+1.79)

Tour Championship Model Rankings

Below, I’ve compiled overall model rankings using a combination of the five key statistical categories previously discussed — SG: Approach (28%), Good Drive Percentage (23%), SG: Putting: Bermuda Fast (18%), Course History (15%), and SG: Donald Ross (15%).

Xander Schauffele
Russell Henley
Viktor Hovland
Rory McIlroy
Ludvig Aberg
Collin Morikawa
Tony Finau
Scottie Scheffler
Tommy Fleetwood
Aaron Rai

Tour Championship Picks

(With Starting Strokes)

Rory McIlroy +2000 (DraftKings)

There isn’t a golfer on TOUR who can compare to Rory McIlroy when it comes to success at the Tour Championship. In his past nine trips to East Lake, he has finished outside the top seven only twice. The 35-year-old now has three Fed Ex Cup Championships on his résumé and is the only player besides Tiger Woods to have won the FedEx Cup more than once.

In the field, Rory ranks 2nd in Strokes Gained: Total per round at East Lake and ranks 2nd in Strokes Gained: Total per round at Donald Ross designs. The first two legs of the FedEx Cup were questionable course fits for the four-time major winner at best. There’s no doubt that East Lake is a course fit for Rory.

McIlroy will start the week at -4 and has a lot of work to do to catch Scottie Scheffler at -10 under par and Xander Schauffele at -8 under par. It will be difficult, but McIlroy has shown twice in the past that he’s up to the challenge. In 2019, McIlroy won the Tour Championship despite starting at -5 for his score. In fact, he won by four strokes that season. In 2022, he won despite starting at -4 for the week.

McIlroy has struggled to win majors over the past ten seasons, but winning FedEx Cup events has never been an issue for the Northern Irishman. In an event that is difficult to bet and stripped of value, McIlroy is one of the few bets on the board that has the ability to cash at reasonable odds.

19th Hole

How much each player won at the 2026 Masters

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Rory McIlroy made it two wins in as many years at Augusta National, seeing off the challengers on a dramatic Sunday to slip on the green jacket once again. The victory earned Rory a whopping payday of $4.5 million, with Scottie Scheffler his closest challenger earning $2.43 million for his sole runner-up finish.

With a total prize purse of $22.5 million up for grabs, here’s a look at how much each player won at the 2026 Masters tournament.

For players that did not make the cut, they still earned $25k for their efforts at the year’s opening major.

1: Rory McIlroy, $4.5 million
2: Scottie Scheffler, $2.43 million
T3: Tyrrell Hatton, $1.08 million
T3: Russell Henley, $1.08 million
T3: Justin Rose, $1.08 million
T3: Cameron Young, $1.08 million
T7: Collin Morikawa, $725,625
T7: Sam Burns, $725,625
T9: Xander Schauffele, $630,00
T9: Max Homa, $630,00
11: Jake Knapp, $562,500
T12: Jordan Spieth, $427,500
T12: Brooks Koepka, $427,500
T12: Hideki Matsuyama, $427,500
T12: Patrick Reed, $427,500
T12: Patrick Cantlay, $427,500
T12: Jason Day, $427,500
T18: Viktor Hovland, $315,000
T18: Maverick McNealy, $315,000
T18: Matt Fitzpatrick, $315,000
T21: Keegan Bradley, $252,000
T21: Ludvig Aberg, $252,000
T21: Wyndham Clark, $252,000
T24: Matt McCarty, $182,083
T24: Adam Scott, $182,083
T24: Sam Stevens, $182,083
T24: Chris Gotterup, $182,083
T24: Michael Brennan, $182,083
T24: Brian Campbell, $182,083
T30: Alex Noren, $146,250
T30: Harris English, $146,250
T30: Shane Lowry, $146,250
T33: Gary Woodland, $121,500
T33: Dustin Johnson, $121,500
T33: Brian Harman, $121,500
T33: Tommy Fleetwood, $121,500
T33: Ben Griffin, $121,500
T38: Jon Rahm, $105,750
T38: Ryan Gerard, $101,250
T38: Haotong Li, $96,750
T41: Justin Thomas, $92,250
T41: Sepp Straka, $87,750
T41: Jacob Bridgeman, $83,250
T41: Kristoffer Reitan, $78,750
T41: Nick Taylor, $74,250
46: Sungjae Im, $69,750
47: Si Woo Kim, $65,250
48: Aaron Rai, $61,650
T49: Corey Conners, $57,600
T49: Marco Penge, $57,600
51: Kurt Kitayama, $55,250
52: Sergio Garcia, $54,000
53: Rasmus Hojgaard, $52,650
54: Charl Schwartzel, $51,300

19th Hole

CBS’s Sunday Masters coverage slammed by golf fans

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

While Sunday was a dramatic day at the Masters, many golf fans were left feeling frustrated by the CBS final round coverage.

There were plenty of moments that golf fans took to social media to air their frustrations on Sunday over, including a lack of shots being shown throughout the day, being behind the live action, confusion over the approach shots of the final group on 18, and providing an angle for the winning putt where the cup couldn’t be seen.

Here’s a look at some of the criticisms that were directed at the CBS coverage throughout the day on X:

This has been a brutal broadcast for CBS. When the folks from Augusta sit down with them this year, you can bet they’ll talk about this 15 seconds where we have no idea where Rory’s ball went, and Dottie moans. #TheMasters pic.twitter.com/ak3mkpIN7V

— Ryan (@PossiblyRy) April 12, 2026

It’s rare criticism coming in for CBS, who are usually heavily praised for their Masters coverage each year.

19th Hole

The surprise club Tommy Fleetwood says is key to his Masters chances

Published

1 month ago

Apr 7, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Tommy Fleetwood goes in search for the first major victory of his career again this week, with the Englishman proving to be a popular pick at Augusta National.

Fleetwood’s best showing at Augusta came back in 2024 where he finished T3, and while speaking at his pre-tournament press conference, the 35-year-old emphasized the importance of his 9-wood in his pursuit of the green jacket.

Speaking on Tuesday to media, Fleetwood said:

“It’s a great 9-wood golf course. I think it’s always been — I can’t remember when I first put like a 9-wood in or a high lofted club, but it’s a perfect like 9-wood golf course. I’ve had that in the bag for a few years.”

The Englishman continued, revealing that his strategy for the week won’t just be to hit driver off the tee as much as possible:

“Yeah, it’s funny really because I know Augusta is probably associated with being fairly forgiving off the tee in a way, so you think you can whale around driver a little bit. But I don’t necessarily think that’s always the play for me. I think there’s holes that set up really well where I can draw it with the mini driver if I’m feeling less comfortable with the driver and things like that.”

That strategy he believes will make his TaylorMade Qi10 9-wood extra critical this week in Georgia:

“The biggest thing is the 9-wood for me. If I can put myself in position on the par-5s or the 4th long par-3, like it — for me, I can’t really hit that high 4-iron, so 9-wood helps me a lot.”