2019 PGA Championship Preview

2019 PGA Championship Preview

The 2019 PGA Championship will be played at Bethpage Black, Farmingdale, New York.  This will be the first time the course has hosted this tournament but not the first time it has seen a major.  Bethpage Black hosted the U.S. Open in 2002 and 2009, with the former being won by Tiger Woods.

This will be the 101st edition of the PGA Championship and the second major event of the year.  The tournament will be played between the 16th and 19th May and it will be the first time it has been contested under the new golfing calendar.

The question is, who will succeed?

Defending Champion

The winner of the 2018 PGA Championship was Brooks Koepka who came out on top at Bellerive Country Club in Town and Country.  It was the third major title of his career and his first PGA Championship.

Brooks Koepka
Brooks Koepka

Koepka has good memories of major golf in this region of the United States having won at Shinnecock in 2018.  He is also coming off the back of a T2 at The Masters and fourth place in the Byron Nelson.

The American looks well set to stage a good fight and is 10/1 with William Hill to successfully defend his title.

The Favourite

It seems every tournament Dustin Johnson enters this year he is the favourite and that’s no different for the 2019 PGA Championship.  The current world number one has stated his liking for the course and how important driving will be this weekend.

Johnson posted his best ever finish at The Masters this year and finished third in the last tournament he played at Bethpage Black.  He has finished in the top ten in over 50% of his last 50 starts and that alone makes him a contender.

Johnson is the favourite to win the 2019 PGA Championship at 9/1 with Ladbrokes.

Tiger Woods

Koepka may have won the event last year but much of the talk after the tournament was about Tiger Woods.  The legendary American golfer finished in second place having hit the best final round score of his career.

Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods tees off the sixth hole

Woods has already won The Masters this year, which was a fantastic achievement but has yet to return to the golf course since his victory at Augusta.  Driving is going to be key and players must hit it straight because the rough is punishing. The course is going to play long and in cold conditions, Woods could find it physically tough.

You can back Woods at 11/1 with Betfair.

Other Contenders

Rory McIlroy has won this event twice although his recent performances at the PGA Championship have not been great.  The course should be playing long and soft, which will play nicely into the hands of the Northern Irishman. McIlroy is a good bet to win the tournament at 12/1 with Ladbrokes.

Rory McIlroy
Rory McIlroy – PGA Winner 2014

Looking a little further down the betting and this tournament is a personal favourite of Jason Day. The Australian has a win, second and T9 in three of his last four attempts, was T5 at Augusta this year and finished fourth on this course at the Barclays in 2016.

Day is available at 22/1 with William Hill to win the 2019 PGA Championship.