PGA Tour Expert Picks: Frys.com Open
The firs PGA Tour event of the season is about to get underway. It's a pretty good field to kick off the 2015-2016 PGA Tour season.
By
Kyle Porter
•
3 min read
Offseason is over, folks. Hope you rested up over the last few weeks because a new season is upon us, and it starts on Thursday at the the Frys.com Open in California. This isn't going to be a glorified Web.com event, either. Rory McIlroy is involved and the field is actually pretty good, especially coming on the heels of the Presidents Cup and lengthy 2014-2015 season.
Let's preview this event.
What: Frys.com Open
Where: Napa, California
When: October 15-18
How to watch (all times ET): Golf Channel (Thursday-Sunday from 5-8 p.m.)
Participants and odds
Rory McIlroy: 9-2
Justin Rose: 9-1
Brooks Koepka: 16-1
Justin Thomas: 33-1
Robert Streb: 33-1
Tony Finau: 33-1
Brandt Snedeker: 40-1
Kevin Na: 40-1
Emiliano Grillo: 40-1
Field strength: C+
Like I said, it's pretty good at the top. McIlroy, Rose and Koepka are all stars. Thomas, Finau and Streb aren't far behind. It gets pretty ugly after that, but I'm not sure what you expected for a mid-October golf event in California.
Story to watch: The story is whether a Justin Thomas or a Tony Finau or a Daniel Berger can get off to a hot start and steal a win really early on in the season. Those three are all budding stars but none of them have won yet.
I think the future of the PGA Tour is really bright," said Berger this week. "I think the younger guys are getting better and better at a younger age.
"I think the competition in junior golf and amateur and collegiate golf is getting better and better. Everyone wants to be really good so you have to continue to get better or the younger guys are going to pass you."
It's true. And with a good year, one of them will pass a whole lot of folks and be talked about as a potential Ryder Cup player.
Why is Rory playing
That's a complicated question. It involves a trip to Turkey and a promise to the PGA Tour. Here's the best explanation I've seen.
McIlroy is one of eight players who received a waiver from the PGA Tour to participate in the 2012 Turkish Airlines Open, an unsanctioned event that was held opposite the Frys.com Open. As part of the waiver, each player agreed to play in the California-based event at least once in the following three years, a window that will end in 2015.
Past winners
2014: Sangmoon Bae
2013: Jimmy Walker
2012: Jonas Blixt
2011: Bryce Molder
2010: Rocco Mediate
About what you'd expect from a lower-tier PGA Tour event. A South Korean, a Swede, an amateur star and a Champions Tour star. The full gamut.
Let's pick this event.
Expert picks (Kyle Porter)
| Player | Pick | Analysis |
|---|---|---|
 |
Winner | Brooks Koepka finished T8 here last season and had a legitimate chance to win it until the very end. You guys know my Koepka love runs deep. Odds: 16-1 |
 |
Top 10 | Rory McIlroy in a weak-ish field after he noted that he's extra motivated by Jason Day and Jordan Spieth? Yes, please. Odds: 9-2 |
 |
Sleeper | Scott Pinckney finished T31 at this event last year and had a sneaky good season with three top 10s and a T2. Odds: 175-1 |
Expert picks (Robby Kalland)
| Player | Pick | Analysis |
|---|---|---|
 |
Winner | What Koepka is to Kyle, this guy is to me. Hideki Matsuyama is coming off of a solid Presidents Cup performance and finished T3 at last year's Frys.com Open. Odds: 16-1 |
 |
Top 10 | McIlroy is the best player in the field, playing with some motivation to get back into the conversation for being the world's No. 1. Hard to imagine him not being in contention. Odds: 9-2 |
 |
Sleeper | Hudson Swafford finished T8 at the Frys last year and is the kind of ball-striker that can make some noise in a weaker field. I expect to see him lurking in that Top 20 range again this week. Odds: 175-1 |
