Justin Thomas became a Major champion at Quail Hollow in the 2017 US PGA Championship and the Kentucky man will be relishing his return there this week for the Wells Fargo Championship.
World number two Thomas is 9/1 favourite after producing a supreme ball-striking performance in the Valspar Championship last week. He finished 13th in the Valspar, due to struggling on the greens, but could take enormous long-game confidence from Florida to North Carolina.
Thomas won the Players Championship at Sawgrass in March by dominating the ‘Fifth Major’ from tee to green – he did not need to putt well to claim the trophy – and there must be a chance that the difficulty of Quail Hollow allows him to do the same this week.
This layout is the longest par-71 track on the PGA Tour – and there has been plenty of rain falling in the area in the build-up – so long, straight hitting will be essential. Thomas is arguably the best equipped of anyone in the field for this mission.
DeChambeau Eager to Put Masters Behind Him
The last two editions of the Masters may have put a dent in the confidence of Bryson DeChambeau, who has finished 34th and 46th when widely touted as a leading contender. The confident Californian is therefore desperate to draw a line under Augusta and get back among the birdies.
A soft Quail Hollow could be a perfect venue for DeChambeau to forget his Masters misery and blast his way to more silverware. The 14/1 for DeChambeau will be juicy enough to tempt many, given he finished fourth at Quail Hollow the last time he teed up there.
Prior to the Masters, DeChambeau won the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, then finished third in the Players Championship at Sawgrass.
He has been extremely popular with punters ever since winning the US Open at Winged Foot by six shots in September – one of the most dominant Major performances in history.
Hovland Can Surge Into World’s Top-10
Viktor Hovland has never been higher in the world rankings than his current position of 11th – and it is a brave man who backs against the brilliant Norwegian youngster penetrating the top-10 this week.
Hovland is making his Wells Fargo debut, but the course sets up perfectly for him and he has arrived in fantastic form. The long, soft Quail Hollow is a track made for strong drivers – and Hovland has been awesome with the Big Dog in hand lately.
He was third for strokes-gained off-the-tee in the Valspar and he is fourth in the PGA Tour’s strokes-gained tee-to-green seasonal statistics.
A final-round 65 in the Valspar, during which he made seven birdies on a tough layout, has sent Hovland to North Carolina bursting with confidence.
The 23-year-old has quickly claimed two PGA Tour titles and he seems set to go close to completing a hat-trick on Sunday. The 18/1 for Hovland should be popular.
*All odds correct at time of writing