Travelers Championship - PGA Tour: Preview
Course form makes Patrick Cantlay one to watch this weekFour of the world's top six players are in attendance for the Travelers Championship, so most of the elite have turned their nose up at the idea of taking a week off after a gruelling US Open.
Matt Fitzpatrick, who lifted the US Open trophy on Sunday after a tight battle with Will Zalatoris and Scottie Scheffler, is skipping the Travelers.
Scheffler is going to post, though, and he is joined by Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Sam Burns, Xander Schauffele and Jordan Spieth.
| What | Travelers Championship |
| Where | TPC River Highlands, Cromwell, Connecticut |
| When | 23rd-26th June, 2022 |
| How to Watch | Sky Sports Golf and available to follow on bet365's Live Golf Tracker |
| Odds | Rory McIlroy 10/1, Scottie Scheffler 11/1, Justin Thomas 12/1, Patrick Cantlay 14/1, Xander Schauffele 20/1 |
McIlroy, who finished fifth in the US Open a week after winning the Canadian Open, is available at 10/1 to end this busy period with Travelers Championship glory. The tournament is usually one of the noisiest of the PGA Tour season, with thousands of spectators cramming into TPC River Highlands to follow the action.
Scheffler, who had to settle for second place in the US Open, is an 11/1 chance to go one better in the Travelers. The Texas-based slugger has finished in the top two in six of his last 11 tournaments, winning the Phoenix Open, the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the WGC-Match Play and the Masters.
Thomas, the US PGA champion, bogeyed the final two holes of the Canadian Open to finish third there, before failing to contend in the US Open. The Kentucky man is 12/1 for the Travelers. Each-way terms of a quarter the odds, the first five are available.
Travelers Championship course details
TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut, is a 6,852-yard, par-70, with only two par-fives. Jim Furyk famously carded a round of 58 in the 2016 Travelers Championship.
The Pete Dye design has hosted this event since 1984, but was redesigned in 1989, its name changing from TPC Connecticut to TPC River Highlands.
Both the par-fives – the sixth and 13th – always play well under par and represent the best birdie chances on the course.
The 296-yard reachable par-four 15th is also there for the taking. The 487-yard fourth, the tenth, 16th and 17th are the most difficult holes, but this is generally a doddle for Tour pros, and there is no wind in the forecast this week.
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Travelers Championship previous course winners taking part
Stewart Cink (twice), JJ Henry, Marc Leishman, Kevin Streelman, Russell Knox, Jordan Spieth, Chez Reavie, Harris English
Three to follow
Patrick Cantlay
Rounds of 72, 71, 70 and 69 showed a gradual improvement from Patrick Cantlay in the US Open last week, and his share of 14th place was a solid effort in the third Major of the season. It followed third spot in the Memorial Tournament and Cantlay appears to have found form at the perfect time to be a serious threat in Connecticut.
In the 2011 Travelers Championship, the cool Californian carded a round of 60, dazzling in only his second PGA Tour start. He returns this week as a vastly more experienced Tour campaigner, with six titles under his belt, as well as the FedEx Cup. With form figures of 15-15-11-13 from his last four Travelers starts, Cantlay could prove the man to beat this week, and 14/1 may be popular.
Denny McCarthy
Holing putts has never been a problem for Denny McCarthy - he is a flat-stick wizard who has been prominent in the putting stats ever since gaining promotion to the PGA Tour - but this year the Maryland man has significantly improved his ball-striking.
The 66/1 about McCarthy for the Travelers Championship is eyecatching given the way his game seems to have become more complete. The 29-year-old finished seventh in the US Open on Sunday, following fifth place in the Memorial. He has won on the Korn Ferry Tour and appears ready for success in the higher grade.
Maverick McNealy
Former world number one amateur Maverick McNealy is another outsider who could upset the market leaders this week. The 90/1 chance is a superb putter who seems to thrive on short courses. River Highlands certainly fits into that category and he also gets his favourite putting surface - poa annua.
McNealy's best PGA Tour efforts have come when he is putting on poa annua - like at Pebble Beach, Silverado, Riviera and Torrey Pines - and the greens at River Highlands should be to his liking. Expect a strong week from the two-time PGA Tour runner-up.
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