Rocket Mortgage Classic 2022
Overview
Dates: July 28, 2022 to July 31, 2022
Location: Michigan, USA
Course: Detroit Golf Club
Course Par: 72
Course Length: 7350 yards
Prize Purse: $8400000
Reigning FedEx Cup champion Patrick Cantlay leads the field in Detroit as the PGA Tour inches closer to crowning the champion of this season’s FedEx Cup.
Results
Second place for Cameron Young was the highlight for us, albeit a fair distance behind Tony Finau, who out of nowhere has clearly figured out how to win. I can’t deny that it’s frustrating that having picked him for the Open, where he performed respectably, he then went on to win on his next two outings. Timing is everything.
While our headline selection gave us a good run for our money, 4 MCs from our other picks was disappointing, albeit several of them were speculative plays at big prices. But only a small loss on the week thanks to Young’s performance.
Preview
The less said about last week, the better. Despite all bar one of our picks making the cut, it was only JT Poston that threatened a return for us and a poor last 11 holes put paid to what had looked like a decent opportunity to get our stakes back for the week. The tour moves to Detroit for the Rocket Mortgage Classic, where the field is again fairly weak, but perhaps a little stronger than the 3M Open.
There are only three years of data to look at from Detroit Golf Club, but putting has been a key indicator of success during that period, with very few of the top 20 each year having been able to attain that result without being in positive strokes gained territory on the greens. Winning scores have been between 18 and 25 under par, and you’ll likely need to be 5 or 6 under just to make the weekend, so this certainly isn’t an event for grinders.
Outrights
| Player | Points | Type | UK Odds | Places | Outright US Odds |
| Cameron Young | 4 | each way | 20/1 | 8 | +1800 |
| Denny McCarthy | 2 | each way | 40/1 | 10 | +4500 |
| Kevin Kisner | 2.5 | each way | 35/1 | 8 | +3700 |
| Patrick Rodgers | 1.5 | each way | 100/1 | 8 | +11000 |
| Michael Thorbjornsen | 1.5 | each way | 100/1 | 10 | +12500 |
| Michael Gligic | 1.5 | each way | 100/1 | 10 | +15000 |
After a superb display at the Open, proving again that this lad belongs at golf’s top table, I can’t leave Cameron Young (4pts each way, 20/1, 8 places) out this week – his maiden victory simply can’t be long in coming. I had been starting to think that Young would be most interesting on super-tough courses where his spectacular long game would come into its own, but it was notable at St. Andrews that he showed another side to his game in an ability to contend in an elite field where scoring is low. My sense is that his putting is gradually improving, I like the fact that he’s had a short break to recharge since the Open and the price is enough to feel like we are getting a shade of value. He looks like the most solid option in the field.
When putting skills are near the top of the list of requirements Denny McCarthy (2pts each way, 40/1, 10 places) must always come into consideration. Topping the putting stats on tour, he’s been trending the right way with some improvements in approach play leading to better recent results. This ought to be a great layout for him to thrive on and it’s easy to see another big week coming.
Kevin Kisner (2.5pts each way, 35/1, 8 places) is perhaps a rather obvious choice, but he’s shown himself to be a relatively easy player to predict, so perhaps we should look to take advantage. Easily ruled out on courses that are just to long for him these days, he’s proven that on courses that suit he can show up and perform year after year. Two top 10s on his two visits to Detroit suggest that he will have marked this week out as a key target for a big performance. The price is nothing to get too excited about, but he looks a solid option.
Patrick Rodgers (1.5pts each way, 100/1, 8 places) is worth a small investment on value grounds – having made the cut here in each of the last two years, he arrives in better form this season. In recent months all aspects of his game appear to be in decent nick other than around the greens, which may well be less of a factor than usual.
We’ll complete the picks with a couple more longshots that have fair prospects of a big week in Michael Thorbjornsen (1.5pts each way, 100/1, 10 places) and Michael Gligic (1.5pts each way, 100/1, 10 places). The former is another new recruit to the tour, comes with a big reputation and has already shown enough glimpses of ability to suggest his name will pop up on leaderboards from time to time at the very least. As we know from our recent failed attempt to get an early first win out of Chris Gotterup, it’s a risky business with these recent graduates, but at this price we can afford to take another chance on a very promising rookie. Gligic has been around longer and it’s his performance trend that interests me. Over the last six months he’s lost a quarter of a stroke per round, but this improves to a gain of over half a stroke in the last three months. That’s some level of improvement, and with the putter being a particular strength, he looks well worth taking a chance on.
Others that were seriously considered are Matt Kuchar, who has been posting decent numbers all season and could easily go well again, and Troy Merritt (two previous top tens at this venue). And having concluded that maybe Chris Gotterup isn’t quite ready to win yet, I’m already mentally preparing myself for him to do so in a week when we’re not on his side!
Second place for Cameron Young was the highlight for us, albeit a fair distance behind Tony Finau, who out of nowhere has clearly figured out how to win. I can’t deny that it’s frustrating that having picked him for the Open, where he performed respectably, he then went on to win on his next two outings. Timing is everything.
While our headline selection gave us a good run for our money, 4 MCs from our other picks was disappointing, albeit several of them were speculative plays at big prices. But only a small loss on the week thanks to Young’s performance.