Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm open as favorites

2022 Memorial Tournament Odds

Odds via FanDuel.

Rory McIlroy opened to FanDuel as a slight betting favorite over Jon Rahm for the Memorial Tournament.

Nine of the world’s top 12 golfers and 13 of the top 17 golfers are in this week’s field, according to the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) on Sunday.

Rahm won that tournament in 2020 and was heading for a back-to-back comeback last year. He had a six-stroke lead after the third round, but was told immediately after his round ended that he had tested positive for COVID-19.

Because of this, Patrick Cantlay and Colin Morikawa went to the playoffs, which Cantlay won. These two players are back on the pitch this week.

Also on the court this week are PLAYERS Championship winner Cameron Smith, Viktor Hovland and Jordan Spieth, all of whom enter the OWGR top 10 this week.

Max Homa and Hideki Matsuyama have each won twice this season on the PGA TOUR and will be in action this week, as will Xander Schauffele and Joaquin Niemann.

Mito Pereira bounced back from his PGA Championship heartbreak with a strong performance last week at the Charles Schwab Challenge. He’s on the court this week, as is Southern Hills runner-up Will Zalatoris.

This could also be the week we see Bryson DeChambeau back in action on the PGA TOUR. DeChambeau was last seen at the Masters, where he missed the cut after two rounds below par. He played WGC-Dell Match Play and the Texas Open before that, having not been in action since late January before that. A wrist injury is the reason for his absence, although he retired late in the past two weeks, indicating he was close to returning.

Past Winners

In recent years, only the elite have won this tournament. Cantlay won last year and in 2019, while Rahm won in 2020 and DeChambeau in 2018.

The three years before DeChambeau saw David Lingmerth, William McGirt and Jason Dufner all win.

Before them, however, there were only big names. From 2009 to 2014, Tiger Woods won twice, while Justin Rose, Steve Stricker, Matt Kuchar and Matsuyama were victorious.

Course overview

Muirfield Village is just under 7,400 yards and plays like a par-72. It’s a design by Jack Nicklaus, which means players will be tested.

Nicklaus did a major overhaul of the course ahead of last year’s tournament. Cantlay won at under 13, although Rahm had been under 18 in three rounds before his positive COVID test.

Prior to that, Rahm had won at 9 under in 2020 and Cantlay at 19 under in 2019. Prior to that, scores were in the mid-teens, with DeChambeau, McGirt and Lingmerth all winning at under 15.

Expect the rough to be particularly penalizing this week, and the greens faster than the usual TOUR stops. Par 5s will be accessible in two strokes for most players, assuming they keep their shots in the fairway, but there are four difficult par 4s between 450 and 500 yards.