PGA Picks: 2023 BMW Championship Predictions and Golf Odds

It is Lucas Glover’s world, and we are all just living in it. A few weeks ago, he was outside the Top 70 in the FedEx Standings. However, after reeling off back-to-back wins, including the first playoff event last week in Memphis, he is all the way up to fourth in the standings. This week, we head 25 miles south of Chicago to the BMW Championship, the second leg of the FedEx Cup Playoffs. The field is composed of the top-50 PGA Tour golfers in the standings following the conclusion of last week’s event. It will once again be a no cut event, and the top-30 in the standings after this weekend will advance to the FedEx Cup finale at East Lake. Rory Mcllroy is the favorite heading into Illinois at +650 odds, followed by Scottie Scheffler at +700 odds, and John Rahm at +900 odds. Patrick Cantlay will look to become a three-time winner after winning this event in both 2021 and 2022. Can anyone stop the Big Three or dethrone Cantlay? We will break it down below for this week’s BMW Championship.
Get sports picks for every league and nearly every matchup on Doc’s free picks page.
A Look at the Field
Here is a look at the Top 12 and ties with the lowest golf odds to win it all at online sportsbooks
Rory Mcllroy +650 – Scottie Scheffler +700 – Jon Rahm +900 – Patrick Cantlay +1000
Xander Schauffele +1600 – Viktor Hovland +1600 – Tommy Fleetwood +2000 – Tyrrell Hatton +2200
Max Homa +2200 – Collin Morikawa +2500 – Jordan Spieth +2800 – Rickie Fowler +3000
Course Characteristics of Those Who Can Win or Secure Winning Golf Bets
Olympia Fields is a tree-lined, parklands course in Olympia Fields, Illinois, roughly 25 miles south of Chicago. It contains two courses on site, and this week’s event will be played on the North Course. It plays as a par 70, measuring 7,336 yards on the scorecard. It features very narrow fairways and water comes into play on three holes. Both par 5s measure over 600 yards, and the 15th hole barely plays under par. Distance and accuracy off the tee is crucial to succeed here as well as long iron play.
Scottie Scheffler +700
The advantage that Scottie has over the field on a week-to-week basis due to his elite ball striking should be heightened even further at a course like Olympia Fields. Even though he is coming off back-to-back finishes outside the top 20, including a 30th-place last weekend, he remains the number one driver of the ball and the number one iron player in this field by a healthy margin. Scheffler is elite around the green, which will be huge at a course that boasts such a low greens in regulation percentage. Olympia Fields is a perfect spot for him to secure his seventh PGA Tour victory.
Viktor Hovland +1600
Hovland has always been a phenomenal ball striker and has recently turned his biggest weakness, around the greens, into a strength. Olympia Fields is like Muirfield Village, in my opinion, and Hovland won there earlier this season. He played well at the Open Championship and was in contention at the FedEx St. Jude Championship before some untimely double-bogeys. He ended up finishing T13 last week, and I see him continuing momentum in Illinois.
J.T. Poston +7000
I was really disappointed in Poston’s finish to the weekend as it looked like another Top 10 after Friday. Despite a T24 last week, his ball striking on approach and his elite short game are hard to ignore. He still has four finishes of T7 or better in his last six starts and only one outside the Top 25 in that span. If the driver is accurate, look for Poston to be in contention this weekend at the BMW Championship.
Emiliano Grillo +7000
Looking at value again with this pick since the field is trimmed down to 50 players. He still had a top-20 finish last weekend and figured out the putter. He has played well at tough golf courses all year, and we know how good his ball striking can be. Grillo has won this season as a longshot before, and I’m backing him again to contend at Olympia Fields.
Golf Picks - Who to Consider This Week:
To win: Scheffler, Hovland, Poston, Grillo
Top 10: Poston and Grillo each at +450
Get expert sports picks on every game, or if you want our very best bet premium picks by the experts, sign up for your free $60 account with a guarantee.