Procore Championship 2024 Tips: 125/1 shot one of six for Silverado

The PGA Tour returns this week with the newly-named Procore Championship at Silverado Resort’s North Course in Napa, California. Signalling the beginning of the all-important FedExCup Fall.

As always, here are Jamie Worsley’s Procore Championship Tips, as well as his usual long-read preview.

WHAT IS THE FEDEXCUP FALL?

The PGA Tour rebranded these end-of-year events as the FedExCup Fall last year, introducing a new format that sees them carry even more significance than previous.

With the top-50 in the regular-season FedExCup race securing their playing rights for next season, as well as entry into the lucrative Signature Events, it’s time for those at #51 and below to lock in their status for next year.

Players ranked inside the top-50 are still eligible to play but will pick up no further FedExCup points.

Those ranked 51-70 are safe in the knowledge that they’ll return to play in the full-field events next year but must now fight to win their spots in those Signature Events, with the 10 players ranked 51-60 at the end of the FedExCup Fall getting into the first two in 2025: the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the Genesis Invitational.

Whilst making it into those Signature Events would be nice, for those sitting outside the top-70 – especially players just in, around or outside the top-125 – performing in these events is even more important than that.

At the conclusion of the RSM Classic in November, all players inside the top-125 in the FedExCup will have guaranteed PGA Tour status next year. For those outside, conditional status will be granted for numbers 126-150, although a trip to Q-School still awaits for them and the rest.

TOURNAMENT HISTORY

The Procore Championship – formerly the Frys.com Open, Safeway Open and most recently, the Fortinet Championship until last year – made its debut on the PGA Tour in 2007. It has taken place every year since and has called Silverado Resort’s North Course home since 2014.

Mike Weir won that first edition and was followed by eight different champions until Brendan Steele went back-to-back in 2016/17. Max Homa achieved the same feat in 2022, backing up his one-shot victory over Maverick McNealy in 2021 by seeing off Danny Willett by the same margin.

Last five winners:

• 2023 – Winner: Sahith Theegala (-21); runner-up: S.H. Kim (-19)
• 2022 – Winner: Max Homa (-16); runner-up: Danny Willett (-15)
• 2021 – Winner: Max Homa (-19); runner-up Maverick McNealy (-18)
• 2020 – Winner: Stewart Cink (-21); runner-up: Harry Higgs (-19)
• 2019 – Winner: Cameron Champ (-17); runner-up: Adam Hadwin (-16)

Last year’s renewal was a special one for Sahith Theegala, as he recorded his breakthrough PGA Tour victory in his home state. He shot a 4-under 68 in the final round to maintain the two-shot lead he entered with, beating Korea’s S.H. Kim by two shots.

THE COURSE

Ben Harmon designed the original Silverado North Course in 1955 before it was redesigned by Robert Trent Jones in 1966.

Two-time major winner, Johnny Miller then performed his own redesign in 2011 – having recently taken up part-ownership of the resort – where he removed trees, widened fairways and performed a complete revamp of the bunkers.

This traditional, tree-lined course plays as a par 72 and measures a diminutive 7123 yards. It contains 10x par 4s (360-458 yards), 4x par 5s (538-575 yards) and 4x par 3s (182-212 yards).

The course provides a solid test and has only produced a winning score below -20 on two occasions. It can play tough if the wind gets up and the fairways run firm, represented by an average winning score of -17.1 across the 10 renewals of this event here.

This well-conditioned course has some of the narrowest fairways on the PGA Tour, which rank as the toughest to find over the last five years. Most of the holes dogleg and overhanging trees can obstruct approaches into the greens, however, with rough that doesn’t usually cause too many problems and a lack of strategic fairway bunkering, it also ranks as one of the least penal driving courses on tour when players do stray from the short grass.

Some moderate elevation changes add another dimension to approaches into the fairly small (5400 sq. ft. on average) poa/bent mixed greens. The breaks on them – some subtle and others more obvious – perplex many players and can be tricky to read, whilst in contrast to the fairways, they are well protected by often deep greenside bunkers. Both the greens and their surrounds offer a robust challenge.

Water only comes into play on the two par 3s on the back nine, protecting the right-hand side of the 189-yard 11^th and 182-yard 17^th.

The routing of the course is altered for the event, resulting in us having three par 5s on the back nine and two of them on the final four, finishing with the 575-yard 18^th. This makes for an exciting end to the round and means it’s possible for someone to make up plenty of ground late on.

THE WEATHER

The forecast looks perfect this week, with sunny, warm and dry conditions predicted throughout the event. However, gusty winds of up to 25mph should be enough to keep players on their toes.

KEY STATS

• SG: Off-the-Tee
• Driving Distance

With these narrow fairways and the lack of punishment aside them, this is a course on which strong and lengthy drivers have thrived.

S.H. Kim was 11^th off-the-tee when 2^nd last year and each of the top-3 ranked inside the top-25 in driving distance.

Max Homa drove the ball strongly when winning in 2022, ranking 9^th and was 17^th in driving distance, whilst Danny Willett in 2^nd ranked top-20 in both areas.

Homa put up similar driving stats in 2021, ranking 6^th OTT and 10^th in driving distance. His two closest challengers there also drove it well, with runner-up, Maverick McNealy ranking 4^th OTT and 6^th in driving distance, and Mito Pereira raking 11^th OTT and 26^th in driving distance.

The theme goes back even further, with 2020 champion Stewart Cink ranking 18^th OTT and 7^th in driving distance; 2019 winner, Cameron Champ was 1^st OTT and 3^rd in driving distance; and 2017 victor, Brendan Steele, rankied 1^st OTT and 22^nd in driving distance.

• SG: Approach
• Greens-in-Regulation
• Proximity from 100-125/125-150

A strong all-round ball-striking performance is usually a necessity and there is rarely a contender who doesn’t fire with their irons.

Sahith Theegala was 18^th in approach when taking the title last year and runner-up, S.H. Kim ranked 3^rd.

Max Homa ranked top-20 in both approach and greens-in-regulation during each of his two victories; Stewart Cink ranked 1^st in GIR and 8^th in approach when he won; Cameron Champ was 10^th in GIR and 13^th in approach; whilst 2017 winner, Brendan Steele and 2014 champ, Sangmoon Bae, ranked top-10 in each area.

In addition, this is a course where the wedges carry most importance, and we should focus on players who especially excel between 100-125 yards; the 125-150-yard range also carries some weight.

• SG: Putting (poa or poa/bent mix)

These greens can be tough to read and may be particularly tough to putt if the dry, warm and breezy conditions allows them to firm up. With poa already one of the more demanding surfaces to get the hang of, players with proven experience on similar surfaces should have the advantage.

It’s no surprise to see Californian’s go well here, as poa is prominent in the state. Indeed, Sahith Theegala ranked 2^nd on the greens when he won in 2023 and fellow Californian, Max Homa, ranked top-15 in putting for both of his successes.

• Par 5 Scoring

Finally, with the positioning of the three par 5s on the back nine, along with the relative simplicity of them, it’s vital that players make the most of the scoring chances that are presented on them.

CORRELATING EVENTS (COURSES)

Genesis Invitational (Riviera Country Club)

I’m going to begin with a couple of other events in California, starting with the Genesis Invitational at Riviera. Whilst typically a more formidable challenge, its narrow, tree-lined fairways possess similar driving accuracy percentages to Silverado, while the short-game demands on and around the poa greens also compare closely.

Notable correlating form:

Max Homa:

Procore (1^st, 1^st) / Genesis (1^st, 2^nd)

Sahith Theegala:

Procore (1^st) / Genesis (6^th)

Sangmoon Bae:

Procore (1^st) / Genesis (8^th, 8^th)

Kevin Na:

Procore (2^nd) / Genesis (2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th)

Adam Hadwin:

Procore (2^nd) / Genesis (4^th, 6^th)

Ryan Moore:

Procore (2^nd) / Genesis (4^th)

Maverick McNealy:

Procore (2^nd) / Genesis (7^th)

Marc Leishman:

Procore (3^rd, 4^th) / Genesis (4^th, 5^th)

Pebble Beach

Located just a couple of hours south of Napa, Pebble Beach is one of the most iconic venues in golf. Host of the annual AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and several major championships, it has more prestige than this week’s course but with small poa greens, elevation changes, a comparable reliance on strong wedge play and a somewhat similar short-game challenge, it can act as a good comp.

Notable correlating form:

Brandt Snedeker:

Procore (2^nd) / Pebble Beach (1^st, 1^st)

Maverick McNealy:

Procore (2^nd) / Pebble Beach (2^nd, 5^th)

Kevin Na:

Procore (2^nd) / Pebble Beach (4^th, 5^th)

Chez Reavie:

Procore (3^rd) / Pebble Beach (2^nd, 3^rd)

Kevin Streelman:

Procore (3^rd) / Pebble Beach (2^nd)

Nick Taylor:

Procore (6^th, 9^th) / Pebble Beach (1^st)

Brendon Todd:

Procore (6^th, 9^th) / Pebble Beach (2^nd)

Troy Merritt:

Procore (4^th, 7^th) / Pebble Beach (4^th, 8^th)

Sanderson Farms Championship (Country Club of Jackson)

The Country Club of Jackson offers a similar ball-striking test to Silverado, with narrow fairways that aren’t too costly should you miss, which has allowed powerful drivers to thrive.

They rank close to one another in greens-in-regulation percentages and short-game difficulty, and with strong wedge play a necessity in each event, the Sanderson Farms Championship should prove an informative guide this week.

Notable correlating form:

Cameron Champ:

Procore (1^st) / Sanderson (1^st)

Emiliano Grillo:

Procore (1^st) / Sanderson (5^th)

Patton Kizzire:

Procore (2^nd) / Sanderson (4^th)

Chesson Hadley:

Procore (3^rd) / Sanderson (2^nd)

Kevin Streelman:

Procore (3^rd) / Sanderson (4^th)

Brian Stuard:

Procore (3^rd) / Sanderson (4^th)

Nick Taylor:

Procore (6^th, 9^th) / Sanderson (1^st)

Travelers Championship (TPC River Highlands)

TPC River Highlands is a short, tree-lined course with similar greens-in-regulation percentages to this week and necessitates a proficient wedge game to contend, with approaches between 125-150 yards especially prevalent.

Notable correlating form:

Stewart Cink:

Procore (1^st) / Travelers (1^st, 1^st)

Sahith Theegala:

Procore (1^st) / Travelers (2^nd)

Brendan Steele:

Procore (1^st, 1^st) / Travelers (5^th, 6^th)

Kevin Tway:

Procore (1^st) / Travelers (5^th, 6^th)

Ryan Moore:

Procore (2^nd) / Travelers (2^nd, 4^th)

Patton Kizzire:

Procore (2^nd) / Travelers (6^th)

Marc Leishman:

Procore (3^rd, 4^th) / Travelers (1^st, 3^rd)

Chesson Hadley:

Procore (3^rd) / Travelers (5^th)

Tyrone Van Aswegen:

Procore (3^rd) / Travelers (5^th)

Zac Blair:

Procore (4^th) / Travelers (2^nd)

Patrick Rodgers:

Procore (6^th, 6^th) / Travelers (3^rd)

Wyndham Championship (Sedgefield Country Club)

Sedgefield Country Club is another classic, tree-lined course with a closely-matched approach challenge to this week.

Notable correlating form:

Ryan Moore:

Procore (2^nd) / Wyndham (1^st)

Brandt Snedeker:

Procore (2^nd) / Wyndham (1^st, 1^st)

Kevin Na:

Procore (2^nd) / Wyndham (2^nd, 4^th)

Doc Redman:

Procore (3^rd) / Wyndham (3^rd)

Martin Laird:

Procore (3^rd) / Wyndham (4^th)

C.T Pan:

Procore (6^th) / Wyndham (2^nd)

THE FIELD

Wyndham Clark is the highest-ranking player in this week’s field at #6. He is followed by defending champion, Sahith Theegala at #12 and a further three from inside the top-50: Max Homa (#22), Corey Conners (#38) and Min Woo Lee (#42).

Theegala and Homa are two of seven former winners in attendance, joined by Stewart Cink (2020), Cameron Champ (2019), Kevin Tway (2018), Sangmoon Bae (2014) and Mike Weir (2007).

Current #1, #4 and #5 amateurs, Luke Clanton, Wenyi Ding and Benjamin James, will all make an appearance, and watch out for sponsors invite, John Keefer. The former #24 amateur has been on fire on the PGA Tour Americas since turning pro a few months ago, winning once, finishing second on four occasions and recording eight top-5s overall in just 10 starts.

Procore Championship Odds

*Please click on the link above to be taken to the main Procore Championship market on betfred.com (or app) for all the live betting prices on this tournament.

SELECTIONS

Market leaders: Wyndham Clark 12/1, Sahith Theegala 12/1, Corey Conners 14/1, Min Woo Lee 22/1, Luke Clanton 22/1, Max Homa 22/1, Maverick McNealy 22/1

The top of the betting is fairly strong but isn’t the most appealing to my eye, and I’m going to avoid it this week. Though two-time winner, Max Homa was of some interest and could go well if able to build on his good approach display in the BMW Championship.

This new phase of the season can often give players a new lease of life, which will be reflected in a couple of my selections. However, I’m going to begin with a player who sits comfortably inside that FedExCup top-50 and should be able to play these fall events with plenty of freedom, Tom Hoge.

1.5 pts Tom Hoge each-way (1/5 – 8 places) @ 35/1 

Hoge has had a super-consistent year to date, missing just four cuts in 25 starts and has amassed 11 top-25 finishes. The best of these came when he finished 3^rd in the Travelers Championship back in June and he’s shown some positive signs among his more recent starts, finishing 13^th in the BMW Championship two starts ago.

He was the best iron player in the field there and that has again been the driving force of his year, ranking 4^th in approach. He’s performed incredibly with the wedges, ranking 1^st between 125-150 yards and 2^nd from 100-125, which will be a huge help this week, as will his ability to putt poa.

Hoge’s only tour win came at Pebble Beach back in 2022, and he finished 6^th there last year, putting excellently both times. He’s also putted competently here in the past, which helped him to a best of 12^th in 2022 and with that 3^rd in the Travelers rating as another handy piece of form, I expect him to be among the main contenders this week.

1.5 pts Eric Cole each way (1/5 – 8 places) @ 35/1 

Eric Cole was in good form prior to missing out on the Tour Championship, ranking 12^th in this field in strokes-gained total over the last three months. His approach play has looked especially strong and possessing a 4^th-place finish here on his last visit, he can finally make that well-earned tour breakthrough this week.

Cole has made his last eight cuts on the spin and recorded three top-10 finishes across those starts, finishing 6^th in the Rocket Mortgage Classic, 7^th in the John Deere Classic and 7^th in the Wyndham Championship.

He’s looked good in most areas during this time, ranking 20^th in putting and 24^th in approach in this field for the last three months. Coming from California, it’s no surprise that he’s comfortable on poa surfaces and as one of the strongest wedge players around, ranking 7^th between 100-125 yards, he is a good statistical fit for the test.

Cole missed his cut here on debut in 2022 but returned to finish an excellent 4^th last year. Several top-15 finishes in the Wyndham Championship and at Pebble Beach, along with a 10^th in the Genesis Invitational earlier this year, is a strong selection of comp form from only limited starts and suggests he can get over the line on this setup.

1 pt Rico Hoey each way (1/5 – 6 places) @ 60/1

Philippines-born Rico Hoey grew up, went to college and lives in California. He can use that comfort factor to continue his recent form and earn a first PGA Tour win in the process.

Hoey had a difficult start to his rookie season but really found his stride prior to the FedExCup Playoffs, and currently sits at #100 in the rankings. He’s made each of his last six cuts and recorded three top-10s over this period, finishing 2^nd in the ISCO Championship, 6^th in the Rocket Mortgage Classic and 8^th in the Barracuda Championship.

It’s a run of form that means he ranks 10^th in this field in strokes-gained total over the last three months. He’s especially excelled on the greens in this time, but it’s with the driver that he thrives, ranking 8^th off-the-tee and he fits the bill of previous winners as a lengthy 25^th in driving distance. A ranking of 2^nd in par 5 scoring is another plus here, as is his solid 30^th in proximity from 100-125.

Hoey has little in the way of comp form due to his small amount of time on the tour, but we do find something of interest when looking at his win on the Korn Ferry Tour last year. That came in the Knoxville Open at Holston Hills, a course at which former Silverado runner-up, Harry Higgs won earlier this year. That’s provides us with an added bit of confidence and gives us more than enough reason to expect a bold showing in Napa.

1 pt Michael Thorbjornsen each way (1/5 – 6 places) @ 70/1

Former #2 amateur, Michael Thorbjornsen’s form slipped after a runner-up finish in July. However, he’s had over a month off to reflect on that, and he looks worth chancing at a fairly big price in relation to his talent, in the hope he’s found something in the time off.

Thorbjornsen turned pro back in June following a stellar amateur career that saw him win the US Junior in 2018 and the 2021 Western Amateur among other successes. He finished 2^nd in the John Deere Classic on his third professional start, but this wasn’t the first time we’d seen his potential at this level, as he finished 4^th in the Travelers Championship back in 2022 and he was 11^th earlier this year in the Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour.

He has quality right throughout his bag though it was the driver that had previously looked like this big-hitters primary weapon. That club indeed shone when he finished 2^nd in the John Deere, ranking 5^th, but he’s been a little erratic recently – which has culminated in a run of form that reads MC-61-MC-MC on his last four starts – and that’s something he’ll want to rectify this week.

Course and comp form is obviously scarce, but he did record that excellent 4^th in the Travelers a couple of years ago and having attended Stanford just a couple of hours away from here, he should be comfortable in this week’s surroundings.

1 pt Daniel Berger each way (1/5 – 8 places) @ 90/1

This year has been a struggle for Daniel Berger since returning from injury and with his winner’s status set to run out at the end of 2024, he’s facing the prospect of losing his card next year, currently sitting 138^th in the FedExCup. That being said, the four-time winner is one of the classiest players in this field and with some appealing course and comp form, I’m taking a punt on him bursting into life this week.

Berger has missed 10 cuts in 19 starts this year and only recorded the two top-25s. However, the second of those did come courtesy of a 21^st-place finish at a brutally difficult Pinehurst in the US Open.

He has actually hit the ball well for most of the year, ranking 34^th in greens-in-regulation and top-50 in approach/off-the-tee. Whilst his ranking of 21^st in in proximity from 125-150 yards is another positive. The short game has been the main issue, though he does come here after a couple of encouraging putting displays and I’m optimistic he may have found more improvements intermediate.

Berger missed the cut on his debut at Silverado in 2014, though returned to finish 17^th the following year and added another top-25 when finishing 23^rd in 2019. As a former winner at Pebble Beach and recording a runner-up finish in the Travelers Championship, he has some appealing comp form that indicates this course can help get him back on track.

1 pt S.H Kim each way (1/5 – 8 places) @ 125/1

S.H (Seonghyeon) Kim did little wrong in defeat when runner-up to Sahith Theegala last year. Though arriving here in poor form, his prior performances last year were no better, and he looks an attractive price for a repeat of that effort at Silverado.

Kim has been relatively consistent this year, missing just seven cuts in 25 PGA Tour starts, but he’s failed to threaten the top of the leaderboard too often, recording a solo top-10 when 4^th in the CJ CUP Byron Nelson. He did finish 17^th in the Barracuda Championship four starts ago, though has followed with a missed cut in the 3M Open, 66^th-place finish in the Wyndham Championship and missed the cut in the Shinhan Donghae Open back home in Korea last week.

That being said, he did so by just the single shot, bouncing back from a poor 75 in round one with a 67 in round two, and having recorded five missed cuts in his six starts prior to that performance here last year, including in Korea the previous week, I’m not too concerned about those results.

The Korean is a player that has shone with both the driver and putter, but it’s the putter doing most of the hard work this year, ranking 9^th. Although, he has been better with the driver over recent months and able to use his length to take it to the par 5s, ranking 12^th in par 5 scoring, he has many stats in his favour.

Kim was a positive 36^th on debut in 2022 before that runner-up finish last year, and he has putted these greens well on both occasions. He sits inside the top-125 on the FedExCup at #111, a position he’ll need to consolidate in these year-ending events, and he can take major strides towards doing so this week.

You can access all our latest Golf Odds over on Betfred.com

You can find all Jamie’s latest Golf Betting Tips over on our dedicated golf Insights hub.