The Bay Hill Preview
Arnold Palmer was no ordinary man, he lived life how he wanted, swung the golf club how he wanted and truly left his own mark on the game of golf. That mark carries on in many ways but specifically at Bay Hill Golf Club. The course will be covered in his umbrella logo, Arnold Palmer drinks will be served, and there will be memories of him shaking the winners hand after the 18th hole. There is a reason Tiger won the API tournament 8 times and that is because he loved playing in it. It is an important event, especially to the players that looked up to Palmer. Players of the top caliber show up to Bay Hill every year to take in the beauty of both the golf course as well as Arnold Palmer’s legacy. That being said, the actual course at Bay Hill is much different than last week’s Bear Trap-esque course with water on nearly every hole. Bay Hill is a much more true test of golf with long tough par 3s and opportunities for players on reachable par 5s. Players must be able to hit good approach shots, which has been a key skill for players that have won this tournament in the past. It was also a key skill that Loon HQ looked at while debating picks for the week.
Recap of last week:
Last week I got back on the winning track but at what cost? The cost of the blog losing 3 units. Absolutely despise seeing it, I would always rather the blog win than myself. Just a team player that way, always passing the ball, next man up, big fish bigger pond. The lone win last week was Keith Mitchell top 20, an absolute lock thank you Keith. Billy Horschel finished T16 and we needed him top 10 which caused some serious pain. The rest of the guys, Sungjae, Matt Jones and Tommy Fleetwood all missed the cut. Sungjae is nearing uncharted unwagerable territory with our good buddy Corey Conners.
Magz (Golf): Up 2.45 Units last week, Up 41.25 Units this year
Loon (Golf): Down 2.25 Units last week, Down 4.15 Units this year
Before we get into the picks we’ll go through a brief overview of the course. Bay Hill Golf Club is located in Orlando Florida, measures in at 7,409 yards and is a Par 72. It is a very traditional golf course and was originally brought into Arnold Palmer’s life when he won a charity tournament there. Reportedly Palmer won the tournament and went home and told his wife they had to buy the course. The course’s par 3’s average a lengthy 216 yards, making those 4 holes crucial to the overall score of each player. Strokes gained on approach as well as past experience are huge at Bay Hill. Lastly, the greens are bermuda grass and the beer is ice cold. Let’s get to the picks.
Top 20 – Jason Kokrak +155. Kokrak is the play here. He may have “Golf Saudi” on his bag but that doesn’t mean I won’t gamble on him. Kokrak is T8, T18, and T10 in his last three starts at Bay Hill and ranks 63rd in strokes gained approaching the green. Lock it up.
Top 20 – Chris Kirk +225. Another guy that loves to play well at Bay Hill. Kirk went T8 in 2021 and T15 in 2019 with the year off in 2020. He’s coming off a solid performance at The Honda Classic and ranks 18th in strokes gained total.
Top 10 – Matthew Fitzpatrick +250. A true horses for courses pick here, Fitzpatrick ranks second in strokes gained approaching the green and has finished T10, T9, and second here in his last three tries. He’s a good enough par 3 player and a great par 5 player that will make his share of birdies.
Winner – Will Zalatoris +2500. Zalatoris has played here once and finished T10. I’m aware his putting stroke is impossibly hard to watch but the rest of his game is flat out spectacular. Ranking first in strokes gained approaching the green and still looking for his first win, I have to take him this week.
Matchup – Tom Hoge +1.5 vs Cameron Young -125. Hoge ranks 3rd in strokes gained approaching the green and is a better par 3 player than Young. We’re also big Hoge fans here at Loon HQ so the pick makes a lot of sense. The Fargo boy isn’t done winning all of us money yet this season.
Extra winners picks to be released later on for those who like the extra sprinkle on winners. Or for our degenerates out there, responsibly keep it up.
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