After a runners up in the Masters last week, Niall Lyons has four selection from this week's RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links in Georgia.
RBC HeritageSee All Odds
The RBC Heritage 2025 will be held at Harbour Town Golf Links, Hilton Head Island, Sea Island, Georgia.
This event has a distinct profile when it comes to the type of golfers who have won here. In the last 20 years we have winners here like Brian Gay, Jim Furyk, Brandt Snedeker, Graeme McDowell, Matt Kuchar, Branden Grace, Webb Simpson, Stewart Cink, Jordan Spieth and Matt Fitzpatrick.
These guys have all been ball striking experts, and for the most part extremely accurate off the tee.
Five of the top 5 and ties last year ranked inside the top ten for strokes gained tee to green. Five of the first six home in 2023 were inside the top 10 in the same category.
Similar has played out in previous years also. Here we have to look to those who make their gains from tee to green, but not necessarily by longer hitting off the tee.
They are small targets around here and scrambling comes into the equation more so than what it does on your average PGA Tour course.
RBC Heritage Winners
- 2024 - S.Scheffler (-19)
- 2023 - M.Fitzpatrick (-17)
- 2022 - J.Spieth (-13)
- 2021 - S.Cink (-19)
- 2020 - W.Simpson (-22)
- 2019 - CT Pan (-12)
RBC Heritage Tips
- 1.75pts each-way J.Spieth 40/1 (1/4 5) Betfred, Starsports, PricedUp
- 1.75pts each-way S.Straka 40/1 (1/5 6) General
- 1pt each-way J.Rose 60/1 (1/5 8) Bet365 8 place market
- 1pt each-way T.Finau 80/1 (1/5 6) General
Paddy Power
- Trusted parent company
- Industry leader in promotions/marketing
- Competitive pricing
Jordan Speith at 40/1 (Five Places)
Scheffler turned up here last year around the 3/1 to 7/2 mark and similar plays out again this time around. He was coming off the back of a Masters win last year and many thought he'd be too mentally drained to win the following week. Think again, this is Scottie Scheffler. This year though he hasn't cut the same figure and the field is very much what it was last year. We have seen no real drift in his price and for that reason he is worth taking on as some of his invincibility appears to be waning.
The winless streak for Cantlay and Thomas continued last week and I'm by no means tempted to back either at the prices given there is a fair chance here that their best golf is behind them. That may be harsh but we shall see how the next year or two plays out.
It is sods law that when Jordan Spieth finds some really hot form with the putter that his iron play somewhat deserts him. That was the case last week and he could have been a real danger at Augusta had he managed better figures on approach.
83rd and 93rd in the field with the irons over the first two days curtailed his progress but ranking inside the top 25 in that statistic over both Saturday and Sunday was a better sign and further improvement in that department could lead to a big week.
5 under par over the weekend at Augusta matched McIlroy, beat Scheffler by two and was five better off than Bryson over the same period.
Those scores may have been largely down to no pressure out the back of the field at halfway but it can't be ignored now he lands in Harbour Town, scene of his last victory and where he has a win and runner up finish in two of his last three efforts here.
I'm unsure whether Spieth is going to find the magic to win again this season, but there aren't many better venues for him other than this and the signs were very positive over the weekend.
1.75pts each-way J.Spieth 40/1 (1/4 5) Betfred, Starsports, PricedUp
Sepp Straka at 40/1 (Six Places)
In a season that continues to be dominated by the Europeans I'm quite content to stay on that train, especially at Harbour Town, by selecting Sepp Straka at 40/1.
Straka has elevated himself almost into the games second elite status and a missed cut last week is of little concern to me as I don't believe Augusta is a suitable fit for his game. Coastal golf certainly is and he can show his credentials for this type of test once again.
Two top 5 finishes in his last three appearances here bodes well given that course history often translates consistently here year on year. His iron play was still in fine shape last week at Augusta and instead it was off the tee and his short game that cost him a place for the final two days.
He won't be hitting many drivers here and we can look to his ultra consistent approach play (5th on tour this season) as to the main reason why we can get behind him here.
Betfred
- Huge range of regular promotions
- 24/7 live chat service
- PickYourPunt builder for custom bets
Justin Rose at 60/1 (Eight Places)
I see little or no reason to desert Justin Rose this week and on a venue that doesn't require length off the tee the Englishman can continue a fine run of form at Harbour Town.
3rd at Pebble Beach, 8th at the Arnold Palmer and then runner up last week is a sign of how Rose is going up the gears when the field strength increases.
Maybe these events are where his attention lies as he is determined to make the Ryder Cup squad in September.
You'd be a brave man to bet against him being there now but there won't be many more venues between now and then where Rose will have a better chance.
As I mentioned last week his distance off the tee has increased this year and that's part of the reason why I gave him a better chance than previous years at Augusta. This week he doesn't need it and hopefully he can gain a shade more accuracy as a result.
He really hit form on Sunday and I think the bookmakers haven't quite taken that into account and he remains one to keep on side.
Tony Finau at 80/1 (Six Places)
I didn't think I'd be tipping Tony Finau this week but here we are at 80/1 in a limited field and I just can't leave him out.
Finau missed the cut last week entirely due to a nightmare on the greens. Although his long game hasn't quite reached the heights of a few years ago lately it is still solid enough and the main problem for him is the putter.
This can change at any moment and we must not forget how Spieth won here in 2022 losing strokes to the field on the greens.
This may be a venue on which Finau can get away slightly with a weaker putter and if he manages any sort of upturn in that department there is a huge upside to betting him at these prices.
It may seem unlikely but it's difficult to turn down this sort of price having made his last four cuts here with a best finish of 12th place coming last year.
Last year was his best effort on the greens here in five appearances and his long game has usually been exemplary at Harbour Town.
With Homa finding form from seemingly nowhere and Hovland winning recently, Finau may just feel his turn is around the corner.
RBC Heritage Odds
| Golfer | Odds |
|---|---|
| Scottie Scheffler | 4/1 |
| Collin Morikawa | 11/1 |
| Ludvig Aberg | 13/1 |
| Xander Schauffele | 14/1 |
| Patrick Cantlay | 20/1 |
| Justin Thomas | 20/1 |
