There are horses for courses.
That phrase takes on new meaning this week as we turn our attention to the 2022 PGA Championship.
With a stable full of thoroughbreds in the field at Southern Hills, in Tulsa, Okla., you can play conventionally and try to pick an outright winner.
Or you can take a page from the horse track and shoot for a trifecta on Chirp Golf.
Let us explain.
Chirp Golf, which is an affiliate of GOLF.com, is a free-to-play mobile game that features weekly contests, including a $5,000 Jackpot Pick’Em and other live shot-by-shot prediction games. One of those games is a Trifecta contest that calls for users to pick three players: a favorite, a contender and a long shot.
The 9 hottest players entering this week’s PGA Championship
Nearly 1,000 users have already signed up for this week’s Trifecta, a healthy sample size that gives us a sense of where public opinion is leaning.
In the “favorites” category (players ranked 1-20 in the world), Scottie Scheffler has the most support among Chirp contest entries so far, with 26 percent of the vote, followed by Jordan Spieth (12.86 percent) and Jon Rahm (10.06 percent).
Among the “contenders” (ranked 21-60), Max Homa is the current people’s choice. He’s got 18.78 percent of the vote, followed by Will Zalatoris (15.66 percent) and Shane Lowry (15.46 percent).
As for long shots (ranked 61 or higher), look no farther than Sebastian Munoz. He’s got 17.43 percent of the votes, followed by Matt Jones at 8.40 percent and (you might need to Google this name) Rikua Hoshing, who has 8.20 percent of the take. (It’s still early, but Tiger Woods, currently ranked 818th in the world, owns only 6.74% of the long-shot vote)
Want to join the fun? Download the Chirp App here.
Need guidance from our experts? Below you’ll find PGA Championship Trifecta picks from three GOLF.com staffers. (For more PGA betting advice from our staff, click here for picks to win, or click here for sleeper picks.)
PGA Championship picks to win: Here’s who our staff is betting on at Southern Hills
James Colgan, assistant editor:
Favorite: Xander Schauffele (rank: 10). An elite ball striker, entering the week hot, at a venue that should suit his eye? So long as Xander keeps his chipping in check, yes sir!
Contender: Will Zalatoris (30). Another elite ball striker who grows closer by the day to a breakthrough win. It may surprise you to learn that Zalatoris ranks first on Tour in Strokes Gained: Approach in 2022 and second in SG: Tee-to-Green — and already has four (!) top-10 finishes in majors. It’s only a matter of time until Zally nabs a big one, why not at Southern Hills?
Long shot: Davis Riley (130). This will be Riley’s third-career major start in the heart of an impressive rookie season. This could be the week he vaults into the mainstream golf conscious.
Nick Piastowski, senior editor:
Favorite: Jordan Spieth (8). The form is there, and, by all accounts, the course fit is there. This is the week Spieth completes the career grand slam
Contender: Cameron Young (38). Four top 5s this season, including two in his last two starts. He’s a “mid-tier” pick only because of the odds. The public has yet to give him the props he deserves.
Long shot: Cameron Champ (102). A big hitter with a big upside.
PGA Championship sleeper picks to watch: Here’s who might break out at Southern Hills
Jessica Marksbury, senior editor:
Favorite: Scottie Scheffler (1). I know, I know. Not exactly a stretch. But there’s no reason to think that Scheffler won’t get the job done this week. He’s World No. 1, loves Southern Hills, and is on a heater like few others. Sometimes it’s ok to choose the obvious
Contender: Adam Scott (39). At 100/1, he’s not the darkest of dark-horse picks, but he’s the kind of player that Southern Hills should favor from tee to green. If he gets the putter going, he should have a good chance to finally claim the second major his sweet swing deserves.
Long shot: Matt Jones (74). A second and a third on the Aussie’s resume already this season. Plus, the PGA has historically been Jones’ best-performing major, with a T21 in 2015. He was T30 at last year’s PGA, and my money’s on him delivering an even better performance this year.