Abraham Ancer, 7 others to bet on for PGA’s Travelers Championship

Jon Rahm isn’t playing this week’s Travelers Championship after winning his first major at the U.S. Open on Sunday, but many of the PGA Tour’s best are in the field.

Bryson DeChambeau and Dustin Johnson are the co-favorites at 14-1 at the Westgate for the Travelers, which starts Thursday in Cromwell, Connecticut. Patrick Cantlay is next at 16-1, followed by Paul Casey and Brooks Koepka at 20-1.

Handicapper Wes Reynolds (@WesReynolds1), co-host of VSIN’s “Long Shots” golf betting show, had a winner last week with 11-1 favorite Rahm, but he is looking further down the odds board this week.

Here are his selections, with comments on each:

Abraham Ancer, 30-1

“He checks every box this week. He has finished eighth and 11th in the last two years here. While he has missed his last two cuts, including at last week’s U.S. Open, Ancer is not that far removed from excellent form where he finished fifth at the Valspar, second at the Wells Fargo and tied for eighth at the PGA Championship in three consecutive starts.”

Joaquin Niemann, 40-1

“The form has cooled from earlier in the season; nevertheless, this looks like a good spot for him. He finished fifth here two years ago.”

Keegan Bradley, 50-1

“He finished runner-up here two years ago to Chez Reavie. The ball-striking stats have been near the top of the entire tour of late, including fifth for shots gained tee to green over the last 24 rounds.”

Bubba Watson, 50-1

“The three-time Travelers champion was tied for fifth after 36 holes last week at the U.S. Open. … Watson has always thrived on this track since it allows many ways to attack it, and it plays to what is still the strength of his game: creativity.”

Rickie Fowler, 66-1

“Had to sit on the sidelines last weekend, as he did not qualify for the U.S. Open. However, his game has shown some life with an eighth at the PGA Championship (his first top 10 in a major since the 2019 Open Championship) and an 11th at the Memorial.”

Francesco Molinari, 83-1

“Returned from a six-week break to finish tied for 13th at the U.S. Open and likely would have finished higher had he not lost 3½ strokes putting for his Friday round.”

Emiliano Grillo, 95-1

“Has never been better than 19th here in four career starts. However, he leads this week’s field for shots gained on approach and shots gained on par 4s of 400 to 450 yards over the last 24 rounds.”

Will Gordon, 200-1

“Finished third here last year to earn special temporary membership on the PGA Tour, which he turned into full-time status.”

Contact Jim Barnes at jbarnes@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0277. Follow @JimBarnesLV on Twitter.