After a brutal test of skill at the U.S. Open, the PGA Tour has an easier exam in store this week at the 2022 Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands.The field at Brookline for the U.S. Open was clawing just to get below par, so they will welcome some relief. The layout in Cromwell, Conn. this week will be the second-shortest the PGA Tour golfers have seen this season behind Pebble Beach. The average winning score since the tournament moved to River Highlands in 1984 is 14 under par. Top players in the 2022 Travelers Championship field like Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Sam Burns will aim to go really low after mixed results at Brookline last week. Scheffler tied for second and McIlroy finished T-5, but Burns tied for 27th in the U.S. Open.
McIlroy is the 10-1 favorite in Caesars Sportsbook's latest 2022 Travelers Championship golf odds, just ahead of Scheffler (11-1). The only other golfers shorter than 25-1 in the Travelers Championship 2022 field are Patrick Cantlay (16-1), Sam Burns (18-1) and Xander Schauffele (20-1).
Will Burns ($10,400) rebound this week and be a strong foundation for your 2022 Travelers Championship Fantasy golf picks? Or would you be better off paying even bigger money for Scheffler ($11,200) or McIlroy ($11,000)? Before you lock in any Fantasy golf rankings or make any bets on the 2022 Travelers Championship, be sure you check out the Fantasy golf projections from SportsLine fantasy expert Riley Gates.
Gates is a writer for 247Sports and has covered a range of sports for nearly five years. He has followed golf closely for much longer and has a profound knowledge of the sport. He also knows what it takes to win, on the course and in fantasy sports.
Gates has been crushing his golf picks all season. Before the U.S. Open, he said Scheffler was well worth the high price to have him as the anchor for your Fantasy picks. And he was, as the Masters champion tied for second and was the second-highest fantasy scorer of the week behind winner Matt Fitzpatrick.
At the Memorial Tournament, five of Gates' nine picks finished in the top 15, including Will Zalatoris, who tied for fifth. His biggest sleeper pick of the week, Brendan Steele -- priced at just $6,600 at DraftKings -- posted a top-10 finish.
And at the Wells Fargo, four of his top six players finished in the top five, including winner Max Homa, a 40-1 long shot. Anyone who has followed Gates is way up.
Now, Gates has ranked his top golfers for the 2022 Travelers Championship (see tickets at StubHub), and you'll really want to see what he has to say. You can only see his Fantasy golf rankings and Travelers Championship picks at SportsLine.
2022 Travelers Championship Fantasy golf expert picks
McIlroy might have fallen short in his bid to break his major drought, but Gates isn't hesitating to back him this week. The Northern Irishman still tied for fifth, his third top-10 major finish this year. McIlroy has two victories, including two weeks ago in Toronto, and was the Masters runner-up while cracking the top 10 in seven of his 11 tour events. The 33-year-old leads in scoring average (68.657), is 10th in total driving (distance plus accuracy) and 31st in strokes gained putting. He has played the Travelers three times and hasn't finished worse than 17th.
On the other hand, recent reports of Brooks Koepka's involvement with LIV Golf gives Gates even more reason to avoid him. That distraction, on top of his already poor play, makes the four-time major champion a definite fade this week. Koepka looked healthy at the U.S. Open but showed a lot of rust in tying for 55th at Brookline. He posted the same finish at the PGA and missed the cut at the Masters. He is 177th in driving accuracy and 148th in greens in regulation, so he has no idea where the ball is going, so don't let the big name sucker you into picking him.
How to set your 2022 Travelers Championship Fantasy golf rankings
For this week's tournament at TPC River Highlands, Gates is backing an emerging player who is priced at just over $7,000 on DraftKings. This golfer has been reeling off top-25 finishes and has a few impressive top-10's, and he should be just the golfer you need to build a balanced lineup. You can find out who it is, and check out all of Gates' top Travelers Championship golf picks, at SportsLine.
Who wins the 2022 Travelers Championship, and who are the top PGA Tour players to target for your Fantasy picks? And which overlooked players can help you win your league this week? Visit SportsLine now to get Riley Gates' Fantasy golf rankings for the 2022 Travelers Championship, all from the fantasy expert who has been on fire with his picks, and find out.
