The Sanderson Farms Championship allows some of the lesser lights of the PGA Tour to take centre stage this week. With some of the biggest and best players in the world teeing it up half way around the world at the WGC event in Shanghai, we’ve got a very intriguing tournament on our hands in Mississippi. The Country Club of Jackson is the host for the second year having had a solid debut last year when Nick Taylor’s 16 under par was enough to claim the title.
The Sanderson Farms Championship has been moved around quite a bit on the PGA Tour schedule but it has always been played as an opposite event – sometimes to the Open, sometimes to the Ryder Cup but it seems fixed now in place opposite the HSBC Champions. Still, there have been some high profile winners in the shape of Bill Haas, Luke Donald and Chris Kirk so all those in the field this week can use the event as a springboard to further success.
The par 72 course plays a challenging 7,354 yards which means that this is going to be a week for those who can hit the ball a long way. The course is actually a composite of nine holes from two of the courses at the incredible facility so expect a variation in scoring between the front and back nines which is something to keep an eye on if you are getting involved in-play.
This season on the PGA Tour has been all about the rookies. There have been just three events, two of which were won by players in their first full season as PGA Tour players while Justin Thomas’ win last week was the first of his career. That trend could well continue as eight players have claimed their first victory at the Sanderson Farms Championship.
Jason Bohn is the clear favourite with the bookies this week and he does look to have a great chance of winning his second PGA Tour win. The 42-year-old will have to cope with the length of the course as he is by no means the longest hitter in the field but he makes up for that with his accuracy and enviable short game. Bohn is also a great putter and on a course that will provide scoring opportunities he’ll take many of them so back him at 12/1 with Ladbrokes.
Shawn Stefani may not be the youngest player about at 33 but he is still looking for his first PGA Tour win. He’s a proven winner on the Web.com and has shown he’s capable of competing with some of the best players in the world. He’ll need to keep the ball out of trouble but this could be his time at odds of 70/1 with Bet365.
The final player to back this week is Ollie Schniederjans. The 22-year-old only turned pro towards the end of last season following a stellar college career. Schniederjans made his mark on the game at the Open Championship and he’s got a great game around the greens will help no end. At 40/1 with Coral Schniederjans could add his name to that list of rookie winners.