The FedEx Cup starts to reach its climax this week with the first leg of the playoffs lined up. The Northern Trust is a long-established event on Tour and, with the nature of the competition restricting entry to the top players only, we know to expect a thrilling and competitive four days.
Much of the field is in solid form coming into Thursday, including the two men who share the favorite’s berth at the very top of the outright betting.
Since golf returned from its unexpected hiatus in June, Bryson DeChambeau (+1200 or 12/1 with Bovada online bookie) and Justin Thomas (14/1) have been the two form golfers. Both men have made their way into the winners’ enclosure in recent weeks and they are at the top of the outright markets with the sports betting sites.
DeChambeau won this event in an incredible run of form two years ago and he has also won on this TPC Boston course so he may have the advantage. Thomas has also tasted victory here and has been in among the trophies over much of this interrupted season.
Just behind the top two are Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm (both 14/1). Both men have enjoyed number one status this season and while they were subsequently deposed, they remain in solid touch.
Rory has been more consistent but, despite making six of his last six cuts, he has only returned one top 30 finish in that time. Rahm sneaked back into that number one world ranking following a tie for 13th at the PGA Championship but that consistency has been lacking from his game.
Then comes Dustin Johnson, Xander Schauffele (both 20/1) and our most recent Major winner – Collin Morikawa – marginally further back at 22/1. DJ is a dual winner of the Northern Trust and has delivered a profit for USAbetting this season but his recent back injury leaves him in mid-range prices. Morikawa starts as the number two seed following his PGA Championship victory while Schauffele has returned incredible stats this year without ever quite getting over the line.
Also in the chasing bunch are Webb Simpson (28/1), Brooks Koepka (33/1), Tony Finau (33/1) and Patrick Cantlay (28/1). Simpson led the FedEx race for many weeks and was in good touch last time out while Koepka, in contrast, missed the cut on Friday. All four could be in contention and their odds from +2800 onwards underline the strength of the field. It would be hard to quibble with anyone who took their Northern Trust predictions from that talented group of players.
Heading up the outsiders for TPC Boston are Hideki Matsuyama (33/1), Tiger Woods (40/1) and Paul Casey (50/1). This is a rare tournament for Tiger as he has yet to win it although he has finished as runner up in 2009 and again in 2013. Casey pushed Morikawa all the way for his first Major while Matsuyama finished further back in a tie for 22nd.
Viktor Hovland’s promise has faded a little after a positive start and he is lingering out at some tempting odds of 66/1 ahead of Thursday’s first tee time. Others to consider in a crowded outside bunch include Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton, Rickie Fowler, Gary Woodland, Justin Rose and Scottie Scheffler. The nature of this playoff series guarantees this type of field so let’s move on and see what it takes to claim this prize with our 2020 Northern Trust predictions and betting picks for this preview.
Northern Trust Golf Predictions, Course & Betting Trends with Picks Verdict
This tournament began as the Westchester Classic in 1967 and, having been held at the Westchester Country Club for many years, it now operates on a rotational basis. Taking hosting duties in 2010 is TPC Boston which plays at a par 71 at a fraction over 7,300 yards.
While the course plays host to this tournament for the first time, TPC Boston was the venue for the Dell Technologies Championship for ten years. Many of the players, including Bryson DeChambeau, who was the last winner here, will therefore be familiar with the surface.
There are just three par 5s so, while the distance hitters will hold an advantage in places, it is not the biggest course on Tour. At the other end from the tee box, the greens aren’t exactly ‘postage stamp’ size but, with a relatively small surface area averaging at around 5,200 square feet, Greens in Regulation could be a key stat. Those surfaces are likely to come in at around 12.5 on the Stimp so this could also end up as a battle with the flatstick.
One player that always interests us is Dustin Johnson and his mid-range price suggests that the odds setters aren’t taking him too seriously. Concerns over that troublesome back may have played their part but DJ is underrated here in an admittedly tough field.
We think he has the all round game for success at TPC Boston and are happy to commit to Johnson this week. Add in the top 10 finish picks and we’ll hopefully be lining up a profitable start to the FedEx playoff series. So these are our Northern Trust predictions 2020 against the bookmakers:
- Dustin Johnson to win @ best odds of +2000 with Bovada.
- Take DJ, Webb Simpson, Viktor Hovland and Matthew Wolff for top 10 finishes. Bovada, BetOnline and Intertops will all have odds for this shortly.
Matt Harris is a golf and soccer expert for USA Betting. His other area of specialist knowledge is cricket. He is well known in sports journalism and contributes articles to a plethora of big-name websites and media outlets. Titles that he writes or has written for include: Betfair, BetVictor, Unibet & Just Bookies.