Best Bets for the 2021 Barbasol Championship

With the golf community’s primary focus on the action at The Open, bettors should take a moment to scan through odds for the Barbasol Championship. The 132-man field at Keen Trace features a blend of PGA Tour veterans and KFT up-and-comers; we can expect birdies and eagles to be flying around in bunches.

Since this tournament moved to Keen Trace in 2018, the winning score has been -23 and -26, respectively (event canceled in 2020).

Let’s dig into who’s primed to fire some low numbers this week in Kentucky with some Barbasol Championship predictions.

Jim Herman proved that catching lightning in a bottle is a possibility at this venue. Herman strode into the 2019 Barbasol Championship ranked 1,252^nd in the world, having missed 12 of his previous 14 cuts. Across his 23 starts in 2019, Herman’s victory at Keene Trace was his lone top-30 finish.

Just some food for thought for those of you hesitant to back any long shots.

Priced at +5000 at some of the top golf betting sites, Hubbard’s +6600 number at XBet caught my attention. Having connected on five of his last six cuts, including a season-best T13 at the Travelers Championship, the San Jose State product needs to continue making moves to secure his status for next year (currently 151^st in the FedEx Cup standings).

The good news is Mark clocks in 25^th in driving accuracy and 35^th in total putting – he should create plenty of opportunities to post red digits.

Worth noting, Hubbard arrives in Nicholasville, KY, having shot par or better in 11 consecutive rounds. 

Also lurking with a more favorable price at XBet compared to other sportsbooks, Nick Taylor’s +5500 price tag warrants consideration. The 33-year-old Canadian is trending nicely, having played the weekend in six of his last seven starts. Taylor has shot par or better in each of his last eight rounds and is fresh off pacing the field in SG: Around-the-Green at the John Deere Classic.

And let’s not forget about Taylor’s track record at this golf course.

It all adds up to Taylor being one of the top sleeper picks for the Barbasol Championship.

Hossler’s run of three straight top-25 finishes came to a screeching halt at TPC Deere Run; I presume most bettors will be wary of pulling the trigger given his most result. Not me, though.

I’m honed in on the fact that the former standout in Austin has fired 68 or lower in 7 of his last 12 rounds. Beau bookended the Travelers Championship with rounds of 65 and 64 – a poor opening round in Silvis shouldn’t derail Hossler’s momentum.

Quietly ranked 36^th in driving distance ahead of names like Bubba and JT, a solid week from tee to green should comfortably vault Beau into the top-20.

Looking to scoop up some value based on recent form? Here’s a golden opportunity. One of my top Barbasol Championship picks in 2021 is latching onto Cameron Percy at +105 in a head-to-head matchup against Roger Sloan.

Flip the coin, and Percy sizzled on Saturday and Sunday, shooting 67-65.

While Sloan has contributed just two top-50 finishes since the start of April, Percy strolls into Kentucky with his game headed in the right direction.

The 47-year-old Aussie leads the PGA Tour in GIR and finished 7^th in his only appearance at Keen Trace. Sloan has never played here before. 

With four wins on the Korn Ferry Tour and a victory in an opposite-field event (2014 Puerto Rico Open), the Barbasol Championship should be right up Chesson Hadley’s alley. The North Carolina resident has had a month to come to terms with his letdown at Congaree as he’s continued to build off his runner-up performance.

Chesson’s T34 last week at the John Deere Classic doesn’t jump off the page, although a closer look reveals that Hadley was the 18-hole leader following a Thursday 63.

Talk about a man who’s close to putting it all together, Chesson’s +6000 price is rather favorable given the softness of this field. Especially at a golf tournament that could turn into a putting contest.

Sitting 8^th on the PGA Tour in SG: Putting, Hadley’s flat stick is starting to heat up.