Memorial Tournament Betting Tips
Sink the winning putt with top tips and Betsafe
The Memorial Tournament is played over the course the great Jack Nicklaus built at Muirfield Village in his hometown of Columbus Ohio. An invitational event, it’s one of the season’s most prestigious competitions and it’s a title the world’s best want on their CVs. Leading golf website and Betsafe tee-off again with top betting tips to help you make it a winning weekend at Muirfield Village.
David Lingmerth wins in third playoff hole at the 2015 Memorial Tournament
Muirfield Village an iconic golf course designed by the great Jack Niklaus
Format
The Memorial Tournament is one of just five events on the PGA Tour to be given invitational status. As such the field is reduced to 120 from the standard 156.
The field is made up of: those available from the top-50 on the Official World Golf Ranking on the Friday prior to the tournament, the top-70 from the prior year’s FedEx Cup points list, previous Memorial winners, Major winners and other significant tournament winners of recent years, plus sponsors’ exemptions, amateur invites and members of the last Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup teams.
As with most tournaments on the main world tours, it’s contested over 72 holes of strokeplay. 120 will start and the top-70 and ties after 36 holes will go on to play the final two rounds. The man with the lowest score at the end of four rounds will be the champion. In the event of a tie, there will be a sudden-death playoff starting on the 18th hole.
There’s a prize fund of $8,500,000 with the winner picking up more than $1,500,000. It is, then, one of the richest tournaments of the year and as a result it attracts one of the strongest fields of any PGA Tour event.
Another significant prize on offer during the week of The Memorial is a three-year exemption on the PGA Tour. Regular tour events offer the winner a two-year exemption on the circuit but, as of 2015, this event has moved in line with the World Golf Championships, the Tour Championship and the Arnold Palmer Invitational in offering three-year exemptions.
One of the features of this tournament is the yearly induction ceremony, honouring past golfers who have made a significant contribution to the game. A plaque for each person honoured is installed near to the clubhouse. Bobby Jones was the first person inducted, back in 1976 and, since then, many greats of the game have received a plaque. In 2015 it was Johnny Miller.
Course
Designed by Jack Nicklaus, the objective for Muirfield Village was to create Ohio’s answer to Augusta National. As such, it’s always presented in immaculate condition with fast and testing greens.
The fairways are narrow, demanding precision from the tee while trees, bunkering and water hazards provide protection.
The 1st hole is relatively gentle, but the test starts properly on the 455 yard 2nd. With a creek down the right side of the fairway and around the right and rear of the green, this is a hole that demands two solid strikes.
The closing stretch provides maximum excitement. The 15th is a relatively short par-5 that generally plays as the easiest hole on the course. Most will be able to reach in two, so securing a birdie here is important for those in contention. The 16th is a challenging par-3 measuring over 200 yards with a tee shot that demands a long carry over water.
The penultimate hole is a long and difficult par-4 and the last is the toughest on the course – a creek and heavy bunkering await an errant tee shot and even one down the middle leaves a long and tough second. The green surrounds provide a natural amphitheatre and 20,000 spectators could pack round the putting surface on Sunday afternoon.
Muirfield Village was host venue for the 1987 Ryder Cup matches, in which a US side captained by Jack Nicklaus lost for the first time on home soil to a European team led by Tony Jacklin and inspired by Seve Ballesteros and Jose Maria Olazabal.
The track was also used for the the 1992 US Amateur Championship and the 1998 Solheim Cup.
Leading competitors
Let’s look at five guys who have consistently performed well in this event over the last five years.
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA
Hideki Matsuyama – The 2014 winner clearly enjoys the layout at Muirfield Village. He’s one of the best ball strikers in world golf and an extremely accurate iron player – these skills are of paramount importance over this layout. He finished tied for 5th last year
KEVIN NA
Kevin Na – He was tied for 13th last year and lost in a playoff to Matsuyama the year before. He’s another man who enjoys playing precise golf and this is of key importance at Muirfield Village.
JUSTIN ROSE
Justin Rose The Englishman likes it when the course gets tough and demands powerful and accurate play – see his memorable U.S. Open win at Merion. He also has a good record in this tournament. Eighth in 2012, tied eighth in 2013 and he lost in a playoff to David Lingmerth last season.
BILL HAAS
Bill Haas – Tied 18th last year and tied 4th in 2013, Haas is a man who can turn on the style when he gets on a roll. This looks to be an event that should suit his game and he’s definitely one to keep an eye on.
MATT KUCHAR
Matt Kuchar – The 2013 winner is one of the most consistent performers in world golf and when he finds a course he enjoys he tends to play well on it year in and year out. He was tied second in this event in 2011, winner in 2013, tied 15th in 2014 and tied 26th last year.
Betting tips
If picking an outright winner, refer to our golf betting strategy here. Check current form but also consider past performances on this course. As it’s always played at the same venue, it’s fairly easy to find players who consistently perform well. Try to find someone coming into a bit of form who has a good record at Muirfield Village.
Other than the pre-tournament, outright winner market, consider the in-tournament betting options. Betting within three balls using the same criteria as laid out in the betting strategy (link above) can yield profits. Or, wait to see who shows form in the first couple of rounds before trying to choose an outright winner. Although the odds of those in contention will be reduced after one or two rounds, there will still be good prices on offer. This is a course that will find out a player not on his game so it might be worth delaying to check that your potential selections are on form.
History
The tournament began life back in the mid 1970s, the brainchild of the great Jack Nicklaus. The Golden Bear wanted to give back to the community of Columbus Ohio, where he grew up and learned the game of golf by hosting an annual tournament attracting the world’s best players. The course at Muirfield Village Golf Club was constructed in the early 1970s, opened in 1974 and the first Memorial Tournament was contested in 1976.
LRoger Maltbie was the inaugural champion, coming through a thrilling playoff against Hale Irwin. Nicklaus won his own tournament twice, in 1977 and 1984, and Tom Watson took the title in 1979.
Greg Norman was twice a winner in 1990 and 1995 before Tom Watson secured his second win, his first PGA Tour victory for almost 10 years, in 1996.
Tiger Woods won the event three years in a row from 1999 to 2001 and he won again in 2009 and 2012. In total, Woods won Jack’s tournament on five occasions.
Kenny Perry was a three-time winner, firstly in 1991 lastly in 2008. He played for the last time in 2015 – his final regular PGA Tour event.
For the last two seasons the event has been decided by a playoff. In 2014, Hideki Matsuyama came through against Kevin Na and last year, it was Sweden’s David Lingmerth who triumphed over Justin Rose.
Also worthy of note in last year’s tournament was Tiger Woods’s third round of 85: the worst score of his professional career.
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