Travelers Championship 2023 betting guide — Our PGA expert's best bets to win and place

Keith Stewart

Travelers Championship 2023 betting guide — Our PGA expert's best bets to win and place image

There’s no rest for the weary on the PGA TOUR. One week removed from the U.S. Open, we have another designated event on the PGA TOUR schedule. The Travelers Championship has been played at TPC River Highlands since 1984. Boosted by a $20 million purse, the tournament has always attracted a stellar field. One hundred and fifty-six are in Cromwell, Connecticut preparing for the opportunity to get inside the top 65 (and ties) and play the weekend.

Everyone available in the top 10 of the OWGR is in attendance, along with 31 of the top 40. The forecast across the country is vastly different from what we experienced in Los Angeles. Temperatures are predicted to rest in the low 80s, and the breeze will be quite calm at around 10-12 miles per hour. Rain is in the forecast for Friday through Sunday, with a solid 50 percent chance of getting wet. Connecticut has been quite dry in June, only receiving a little over a half-inch of rain this month.

The course can take some water, but the inconvenience of rain gear and umbrellas should be taken into account for any player's game plan. But the weather isn’t the only drastic difference from last week. Each course plays to a par 70, but the skills required to score on each venue are considerably different.

Let's take a look at the odds for the 2023 Travelers Championship, discuss the course and tournament in a little more detail, and then get to our best bets and top props.

Travelers Championship 2023: Live Outright Odds

Odds courtesy of BetMGM. Click here to sign up!

Golfer Odds
Scottie Scheffler +600
Jon Rahm +1000
Rory McIlroy +1000
Patrick Cantlay +1100
Xander Schauffele +1400
Viktor Hovland +1600
Collin Morikawa +2200
Tommy Fleetwood +2800
Matt Fitzpatrick +3300
Rickie Fowler +3300
Tony Finau +3300
Tom Kim +3500
Hideki Matsuyama +4000
Russell Henley +4000
Si Woo Kim +4000
Wyndham Clark +4000
Max Homa +4500
Cameron Young +5000
Jason Day +5000
Sungjae Im +5000
Harris English +5500
Justin Thomas +5500
Min Woo Lee +5500
Sahith Theegala +5500
Shane Lowry +5500
Corey Conners +6600
Denny McCarthy +6600
Adam Scott +8000
Austin Eckroat +8000
Brian Harman +8000
Keegan Bradley +8000
Gary Woodland +10000
Aaron Rai +12500
Andrew Putnam +12500
Byeong Hun An +12500
Ludvig Aberg +12500
Mark Hubbard +12500
Stephan Jaeger +12500
Beau Hossler +15000
C.T. Pan +15000
Emiliano Grillo +15000
Eric Cole +15000
Justin Suh +15000
Lee Hodges +15000
Matt Kuchar +15000
Patrick Rodgers +15000
Seamus Power +15000
Sepp Straka +15000
Taylor Moore +15000
Cam Davis +17500
Christiaan Bezuidenhout +17500
Doug Ghim +17500
Joseph Bramlett +17500
K.H. Lee +17500
Thomas Detry +17500
Adam Schenk +20000
Alex Smalley +20000
Brandon Wu +20000
Brendon Todd +20000
J.J. Spaun +20000
J.T. Poston +20000
Kevin Streelman +20000
Kurt Kitayama +20000
Lucas Herbert +20000
Nick Hardy +20000
Sam Bennett +20000
Tom Hoge +20000
Will Gordon +20000
Chez Reavie +22500
Sam Stevens +22500
Adam Svensson +25000
Billy Horschel +25000
Davis Riley +25000
Kevin Yu +25000
Mackenzie Hughes +25000
Matthew NeSmith +25000
Nate Lashley +25000
S.H. Kim +25000
David Lipsky +30000
Dylan Wu +30000
Garrick Higgo +30000
Harry Hall +30000
Hayden Buckley +30000
Luke List +30000
Matt Wallace +30000
Michael Kim +30000
Michael Thorbjornsen +30000
Ryan Palmer +30000
Taylor Pendrith +30000
Webb Simpson +30000
Andrew Novak +35000
Ben Martin +35000
Carson Young +35000
Charley Hoffman +35000
Vincent Norrman +35000
Carl Yuan +35000
Ben Griffin +40000
Callum Tarren +40000
Cameron Champ +40000
Jimmy Walker +40000
Joel Dahmen +40000
Patton Kizzire +40000
Robby Shelton +40000
Sam Ryder +40000
Scott Piercy +40000
Scott Stallings +40000
Adam Long +50000
Austin Smotherman +50000
Chad Ramey +50000
Chesson Hadley +50000
Danny Willett +50000
Davis Thompson +50000
Doc Redman +50000
Erik van Rooyen +50000
Francesco Molinari +50000
Greyson Sigg +50000
James Hahn +50000
Justin Lower +50000
Kevin Tway +50000
Kramer Hickok +50000
Lanto Griffin +50000
Lucas Glover +50000
Martin Laird +50000
Peter Malnati +50000
Richy Werenski +50000
Ryan Moore +50000
Trey Mullinax +50000
Troy Merritt +50000
Tyler Duncan +50000
Zac Blair +50000
Zach Johnson +50000
Zecheng Dou +50000
Ryan Blaum +50000
Benjamin James +60000
Kevin Kisner +60000
Stewart Cink +60000
Ben Taylor +75000
David Lingmerth +75000
Matthias Schwab +75000
Robert Streb +75000
Russell Knox +75000
Andrew Landry +100000
Andrew Svoboda +100000
Brian Gay +100000
J. B. Holmes +100000
Jason Dufner +100000
Jim Herman +100000
Kelly Kraft +100000
Max McGreevy +100000
Nick Watney +100000
Nico Echavarria +100000
Ryan Brehm +100000
Tyson Alexander +100000
Brett Stegmaier +100000
Paul Haley II +100000
Kyle Reifers +100000

Travelers Championship 2023: Another par-70?

I have heard many call Los Angeles Country Club quirky. I liked the golf course, but I will admit the layout was unique. TPC River Highlands possesses a more standard par-70 scorecard. There are two par-5s, four par-3s, and 12 par-4s. The course stretches to 6,852 yards, 600 less than the North Course of LACC. The second-shortest course on the PGA TOUR, TPC River Highlands has 10 par-4s under 450 yards.

Players will play more for position across Pete Dye’s design. Similar to Harbour Town or other positional layouts, the field must remain safe off the tee. This course is the seventh-toughest test on TOUR from the rough. Due to the overall shorter course length, there should be a penalty for missing the fairway. One cannot miss too often, as scoring is another tremendous turn from last week’s test.

The average winning score over the last five years at the Travelers is 17 under par. If you plan on contending, you must be able to score on a course with only two par-5s. That sounds simple enough with so many short holes, but attacking any Dye layout requires careful risk/reward tactics. Water comes into play on five holes, and 69 bunkers decorate the 18 holes.

Pete Dye has always provided choices to the players. The best angle to attack each hole off the tee always takes on the most risk. TPC River Highlands is classic Dye architecture. Pete places a high value on position, and if you want to win your weekend wagers, you better choose players who value the same philosophy.

Travelers Championship 2023: Target practice

You will need 20 birdies to win this week. Based upon the blueprint of this course, accruing all of those sub-par holes requires a very simple game plan. The first step is finding the fairway. The field favors accuracy over length at the Travelers. The average driving distance falls under the TOUR average (280 versus 283), while driving accuracy is well above (68% versus 62%). Most players will end up in the same positions after the tee shot.

Fifty percent of the approach shots the field will encounter fall between 125-175 yards. You have to be great with a scoring iron in your hand to separate yourself. Proximity from this range reigns, and those who can take advantage of softer/wet conditions due to the forecast will have an edge. The best with a wedge in the field are Jon Rahm, Ben Martin, Tom Kim, Charley Hoffman, and Scottie Scheffler.

Proximity to the hole differentiates the birdie chances. Hitting it inside 15-20 feet on approach is essential to Sunday success. It sounds easy, considering the difficulty these guys faced last week in Los Angeles. But not every player can control the spin and trajectory needed to get it close on these smaller-than-average greens (5,000 sq/ft).

Once they do knock it close, can they fill the cup with the putt? After careful research, when you combine the two skills only two players are ranked in the top 15 in the field for creating those 15-foot birdie chances and strokes gained putting. The first is U.S. Open winner Wyndham Clark. The second? Keep reading to find out.

Travelers Championship 2023: Best Bets

Best bet to win: Patrick Cantlay (+1200 on BetMGM)

(Getty Images)

One player built to play positional golf courses is Patrick Cantlay. His career history at Harbour Town and Pebble Beach are well documented. He ranks in the top 15 in creating scoring opportunities and cashing in with the putter. A perfect compliment for this course, Cantlay is also ranked second off the tee and eighth in par-4 scoring. With no wins to his name in 2023, I think this traveler will be heavily motivated to acquire that trophy come Sunday.

Best bet to finish in the Top 5: Scottie Scheffler (+160 on DraftKings)

Scottie Scheffler
(Getty Images)

Scottie Scheffler has finished in the top five in five straight starts. It has been two months since he has finished outside the top five on TOUR and he has eight top-5 finishes in 13 starts this year. The putter may hold him back from winning, but it won’t stop this streak of top-5 finishes at the Travelers.

Best bet to finish in the Top 20: Tommy Fleetwood (+140 on DraftKings)

Tommy Fleetwood
(Getty)

Speaking of top-5 finishes, Tommy Fleetwood has finished within the top five in three of his last five starts. His 63 on Sunday at LACC caught my attention, and gives us every reason to believe he remains in exceptional form. He’s gaining equally off the tee, on approach, and with the putter — a perfect combination to contend in Connecticut.

For a complete list of my betting predictions covering the Travelers winners, placements, and H2H matchups, please go to Read The Line and subscribe.

Read The Line is the leading golf betting insights service led by 5-time award winning PGA Professional Keith Stewart. Read The Line has 16 outright wins in the last year and covers the LPGA and PGA Tour, raising your golf betting acumen week after week. Subscribe to Read The Line’s weekly newsletter and follow us on social media: TikTok, Instagram, Twitter.

Keith Stewart

Keith Stewart Photo

Keith Stewart is the founder of Read the Line. Over the last two decades, Keith has earned significant recognition from his peers for his perspective covering the business and game of golf. With 5 PGA of America awards to his credit and over 25 award nominations from his colleagues on a national and local scale, Keith has consistently helped make successful choices in this industry.