While the Rocket Mortgage Classic isn’t one of the PGA Tour’s designated events this season, this year’s lone tour stop in Michigan still features plenty of star power. That’s good news for the golf-crazed state, which boasts the most public courses of any in the country.
Defending champion Tony Finau returns to Detroit Golf Club — he said this week he’ll “be back for many years to come” — and he’s the betting favorite at several mobile sportsbooks across Michigan. BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings, and FanDuel all list Finau at +1400 to win the tournament, while Barstool Sportsbook and BetRivers have him at +1200.
Finau has won twice this season, although he’s struggled with putting in recent weeks. He’s not letting the slump get to his head this week, where he’ll need plenty of one-putts to win.
“Shooters shoot, and I’ll continue to shoot,” Finau said Tuesday.
Fowler in fine form
Rickie Fowler figures to draw large crowds in Detroit, and there may also be a crowd of bettors wagering on the fan favorite to secure a win. He’s the co-betting favorite this week at BetMGM, BetRivers, DraftKings, and FanDuel, matching Finau’s odds.
While Fowler hasn’t won a PGA Tour event since 2019, he’s in tremendous form. Fowler has finished inside the top 20 at nine of his last 10 events, including a recent fifth-place finish at the U.S. Open.
Collin Morikawa (+1400) is also a co-betting favorite across numerous mobile sportsbooks, including DraftKings and FanDuel.
Justin Thomas (+1600 on BetMGM), Hideki Matsuyama (+1800), Max Homa (+1800), and Sungjae Im (+1800) are all considered contenders as well. Tom Kim (+2000) and last week’s winner, Keegan Bradley (+2800), are other top names headlining the betting odds.
DraftKings includes a “Big Guns vs. The Field” prop, which allows bettors to pick between the field winning the event (-500) or either Finau, Thomas, Morikawa, or Fowler (+300) to prevail.
Expect a birdie fest
Whoever wins this week will need to make birdies in bunches. Finau shot 26-under par last year at the event, and Bryson DeChambeau shot 23-under par in 2020 to win. Cam Davis, the 2021 winner, was 18-under par. Davis is +3500 to win this year’s event, while DeChambeau is not in the field since he’s now a LIV Golf member. (The proposed PGA-LIV merger is still quite a way’s off from consummation, if it ever actually happens.)
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the winner reach 20-under or better again this week, as the course sets up fairly easily for professional players — and it’s playing even easier after recent rain and heavy storms softened the course and took out a few trees.
“This may be a week where you’re gonna have to go 30-under because of the conditions being so soft,” Finau said.
Finau leads all players in the field this season in birdie average, making 4.43 per round. Homa is close behind, averaging 4.36 birdies per round. In previous years, length off the tee proved to be an advantage at Detroit Golf Club, as DeChambeau and Finau are two of the longest hitters in the game.
A few under-the-radar players with length include Gordon Sargent (+8000 on DraftKings) and Will Gordon (+11000 on DraftKings). Sargent is an uber-talented amateur with remarkable swing speed, while Gordon hasn’t quite lived up to his potential this year but is one of the longer drivers in this week’s field.
Ludvig Aberg may draw the attention of die-hard golf fans and bettors. The highly touted player turned professional earlier this year and has finished in the top 25 in each of his two events since turning pro. He’s +4500 to win on DraftKings and +230 to finish in the top 20.
Photo: Stacy Revere/Getty Images
