Jun 23, 2024; Cromwell, Connecticut, USA; Tom Kim hits the ball in the fairway of the eighteenth hole during the playoff round of the Travelers Championship golf tournament at TPC River Highlands. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports
- The Rocket Mortgage Classic begins on Thursday, June 27, at Detroit Golf Club in Michigan.
- Rickie Fowler won the event last year, while Tony Finau holds the tournament record by shooting -26 in 2022. Finau isn’t in the field this year, but Fowler is.
- Check out the section below for our top picks for the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
The PGA Tour descends on Detroit Golf Club this week, following an exciting Travelers Championship that saw Scottie Scheffler take down Tom Kim in a playoff. Rickie Fowler won the Rocket Mortgage Classic in 2023, but he has been struggling so far in 2024. You can find TV coverage of the tournament on the Golf Channel and Peacock on Thursday and Friday, with CBS handling coverage on Saturday and Sunday.
Rocket Mortgage Classic Picks
- Rickie Fowler Round 1 top-10 finish (+800)
- Tom Kim top-3 finish (+500)
Fowler won this tournament last year, as noted above. But he’s struggled mightily in 2024. Still, his first round at the Travelers Championship last week was good enough to have him in the top 10. He then struggled in the last 3 rounds and finished tied for 20th. Even if he can’t consistently put together 4 strong rounds of golf this year, he can still score at an elite level in certain rounds.
Thus, let’s take him to get off to a hot start again on Thursday. I like him to finish in the top 10 in Round 1, which has juicy +800 odds on bet365.
Kim, on the other hand, is coming off a loss to world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler in the Travelers Championship. It went to a playoff before Kim ended up in a sand trap his second time playing hole No. 18. Even going up against the unstoppable force that Scheffler has been this season, Kim didn’t flinch. I don’t think he’ll be impacted mentally by his loss last week. He’ll build off of that momentum and score another top-3 finish this weekend. You can find that pick for +500 at bet365.
Rocket Mortgage Classic Longshot Picks
- Will Zalatoris Round 1 top-5 finish (+1200)
- Rickie Fowler to win (+7000)
Zalatoris has been struggling with his game lately, but like Fowler, he can still put together some incredible rounds. He shot a 64 in Round 1 of the Travelers Championship last week before falling apart in Round 2 with a 72. He finished tied for 42nd.
This is a guy who started the year with a bang, though. He has 3 top-10 finishes on his résumé so far in 2024 and we’ve seen him come through in big spots before. Yes, he missed the cut in the US Open a couple of weeks ago, but he can still swing it with the best of them when he’s on his game. His +1200 odds to finish in the top-5 of a weaker field are too good for me to pass up.
As for Fowler, I already discussed his 2024 season in the previous section. But this is a tournament he won just last year. If he’s going to get his game together at all this season, this is a great opportunity. He has the talent to get off to a hot start in Round 1 and then hold off challengers through the final 3 rounds.
Of course, he could also have another tournament with 1 good round and 3 duds. That’s the risk of betting on Fowler, but at +7000 odds on bet365, I will be putting a small wager on Fowler to defend his Rocket Mortgage Classic crown this weekend in Detroit.
Round 1 tees off on Thursday morning at Detroit Golf Club. Make sure you get your bets in before then to make every shot more exciting this week.
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Adam is an avid college sports fan, covering both football and basketball. During the summer months, he’s all-in on MLB action, favoring pitcher strikeout parlays.