For the fourth consecutive year, the PGA TOUR heads to Detroit Golf Club to play the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

A Donald Ross design, Detroit Golf Club is a 7,370-yard par 72. The course is extremely flat throughout and features Bentgrass greens. The front and back nines present quite differently with the front being tree-lined and the back being a wide-open layout. The event will very likely be a low scoring affair considering the course has offered very little in terms of resistance in the first three editions of the tournament.

The Rocket Mortgage Classic will play host to 156 golfers this week including Patrick Cantlay, Cameron Young, Max Homa, Will Zalatoris, Tony Finau, Sahith Theegala and Keegan Bradley.

2022 Rocket Mortgage Classic Outright Bets

Cameron Young (+2000, DraftKings):

Cameron Young’s enormous talent was on display for the world to see at the 150th Open Championship a few weeks ago. His second-place finish at St. Andrews was his second top-3 finish at a major championship this season which is extremely impressive for a PGA TOUR rookie.

After taking the week after the Open Championship off, Young now heads to Detroit Golf Club, which is a course that he should be able to pick apart with his power off the tee. In his past 24 rounds, the 25-year-old ranks first in the field in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee and first in the field in Birdie or Better Gained. With the course likely to be play fairly easy, Young’s ability to make plenty of birdies and eagles will give him a major advantage.

Over the course of his career, Young has gained 17.3 strokes on the field per tournament with his driving distance. Detroit Golf Club has fell victim to the power of golfers like Bryson DeChambeau, Matthew Wolff, Joaquin Niemann and Cameron Davis, all of which hit it a long way with the driver.

Driving ability will be of great importance this week, but it isn’t the only factor. To win, Young will need to get hot with the putter as well. If he can gain another 4.0 strokes putting this week like he did at The Open Championship, he should be the golfer to beat in Detroit.

Sahith Theegala (+5000, DraftKings):

Last week was a bit of a disappointment for Sahith Theegala, but I don’t see any reason why he can’t bounce back to perform well at the Rocket Mortgage Classic. With the field this week being only slightly better than what we saw last week, Theegala being roughly double the odds is a massive “missed cut discount” that I feel should be taken advantage of.

I believe in Theegala’s overall talent and believe he still can get his first PGA TOUR win before the season concludes.  With the remaining chances dwindling and few course fits as glaring at Detroit Golf Club left on the schedule, now may be the 24-year-olds last real opportunity of 2022.

The former Haskins award winner hits the ball long off the tee and has a similar skill set to those who’ve fared well at Detroit Golf Club in the past. The fact that he’s now had two near misses to build the sometimes-necessary scar tissue to win on TOUR should only aid him in his efforts at the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

Cameron Champ (+7500, DraftKings):

Cameron Champ has been underwhelming for most of the 2022 season. He has only two top-10 finishes on the season with his best result being a 6th place finish at the Mexico Open.

The 2021 season wasn’t much better leading into this time last year. At that point, his best finish of the season had been an 11th place finish at the John Deere Classic. He then went on to win the 3M Championship the following week.

Champ plays poorly far more often than he plays well, but when he wins, he tends to hint that it’s coming. Last week, we saw glimpses of what the 27-year-old is capable of when he gets hot. After getting off to a horrific start, he rallied to make the cut and gained 2.9 strokes off the tee and 6.3 strokes putting in his final three rounds after losing more than a shot in each of the two categories in Thursday’s first round. Finishing in a share of 16th place after opening his tournament with a disastrous 75 is very impressive and may be a sign of things to come.

It’s no secret that Champ is one of the longest hitters in the world, but he also has positive “spike” putting weeks from time to time. He gained 8.6 strokes with the putter in his win at last year’s 3M Open which shows when his putting stroke is locked in, he can roll it with the best on TOUR.

Troy Merritt (+8000, BetRivers):

Troy Merritt was agonizingly close to getting a victory at Detroit Golf Club last year, losing to Cameron Davis on the 5th playoff hole. He also had a great performance at the course in 2020, when he finished in 8th place.

Bombers have done very well at Detroit Golf Club but putting has been almost equally as important for those who’ve contended here. In his past two starts at the course, Merritt has gained 5.3 and 7.2 strokes putting respectively. There’s clearly something about these greens that the 36-year-old has figured out.

Last week at the 3M Open, Merritt did just about everything right besides putt well, which is extremely uncharacteristic. The perplexing performance on the greens (-5.6 SG; Putting) marked the first time in his past eight measured starts where he’s lost strokes putting. Therefore, it’s more likely than not that the dismal putting effort was an outlier.

In terms of off the tee and approach play, Merritt had one of his best performances ever at TPC Twin Cities. His 8.5 Strokes Gained: Ball Striking marks his highest total since his victory at the 2018 Barbasol Championship. If his putting stroke can return to its baseline, Merritt should find himself in contention once again in Detroit.

Taylor Pendrith (+8100, bet365):

Another golfer who fits the mold of bombers who can get hot with the putter is Taylor Pendrith. The Canadian seemed poised to have a breakout season in 2022 before injuries derailed his momentum following a 13th place finish at the PLAYERS Championship.

Pendrith finally returned to action at the Barbasol Championship a few weeks ago, and he did not disappoint. The 31-year-old finished in 13th place and gained 5.1 strokes off the tee.

Thus far, Pendrith’s potential has yet to come to fruition, but has all the talent necessary to be a “late-bloomer” on the PGA TOUR. He is one of the longest drivers on the golf ball on the planet and has historically putt very well on Bentgrass greens. Missing the fairway isn’t extremely penal at Detroit Golf Club, so if he can get his wedges dialed in, he should be able to take advantage of the easier setup we’ve seen at the course.

Michael Thorbjornsen (+12500, BetRivers):

There’s no denying that this price feels a bit short for a golfer who hasn’t yet turned professional, but I don’t see Thorbjornsen as a typical amateur.

The 20-year-old All American has proven himself to be one of the top amateurs in the world, and in my opinion, a future superstar. The Wellesley, Massachusetts product has all the tools to be successful, and more importantly for this week, should make him a fit at Detroit Golf Club.

The last time we saw “Thor”, he was deep in contention at the Travelers Championship. The two skills that I am targeting this week are off the tee and putting, and he did both of those things immaculately at TPC River Highlands. Thorbjornsen gained 4.6 strokes off the tee, which was good for a tie for 5th in the field. He also gained 9.6 strokes putting, which led the field.

Thorbjornsen’s 4th place finish at the Travelers Championship was the best finish in a PGA TOUR event by an amateur since 2016. This week, the young star will look to top that by becoming the first amateur to win a PGA TOUR event since Phil Mickelson in 1991.