PGA Championship First Round Leader Tips

pga championship - tiger woods golf
pga championship - tiger woods golf

The 104th showing of the PGA Championship is just days away with the best golfers on the planet all heading to Southern Hills Country Club in Oklahoma in an attempt to win the 2022 PGA Championship.

We have some exclusive PGA Championship betting tips for SportsLens readers which you can check out by clicking the link, but this article is all about the first 18 holes. Who do you think will be the first round leader at the end of play on Thursday? Without any further ado, here is who we fancy to be at the top of the leaderboard after their opening 18 holes.

PGA Championship Preview

This week is the turn of the second major of the year; The PGA Championship. All of the world’s best golfers are heading to Oklahoma this week in a bid to win the Wanamaker Trophy, in what should be an entertaining, spine-tingling and exciting week at Southern Hills Country Club.

Some notable names such as world number one and Masters champion, Scottie Scheffler, two time PGA Championship winner, Rory McIlroy, and the 2020 champion, Collin Morikawa all feature this week for the 104th PGA Championship.

One name we haven’t yet mentioned who is expected to tee it up on Thursday for the first time since The Masters, is 15-time major championship winner and golfing legend, Mr Tiger Woods.

Taking a look at the course itself, Southern Hills Country Club is a masterpiece. It was originally designed in 1936 by Perry Maxwell, with Gil Hanse renovating the course just three years ago. It is a par 71 and is almost 7,500 yards in length. The last time the PGA Championship was hosted at Southern Hills, a certain Tiger Woods triumphed in 2007. Could he defy the odds and win again here in Oklahoma?

With this week bringing us the second major of the year, there is a truly mouth-watering prize fund to play for as you may well expect. The prize money for this event is staggering. The prize pot is a tasty $12 million, with the winner taking home a tidy $2,160,000.

Back to the point in question, who will be sitting pretty at the top of the leaderboard after their opening 18 holes of golf? Here is who we think has the best chance of being right up at the top of the leaderboard come Thursday night after Round 1.

As a valued SportsLens reader, we have teamed up with several bookmakers to provide you with the best betting offers and golf free bets ahead of the second major championship of the year this week. Check out the best PGA Championship betting offers and free bets by clicking here!

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PGA Championship Round One Leader betting tips

Odds are correct at time of publishing and are subject to chance

PGA Championship Tip 1: Xander Schauffele to lead after Round 1 @ 35/1 with Bet UK

One of the most consistent players on tour and one who is more than capable of going low on the opening day of the 2022 PGA Championship.

Xander Schauffele has finished inside the top 5 in all of the major championships, bar this one. That will serve as a big incentive for the American superstar, who is familiar with his name being at the top of leaderboards quite often.

He has led after day one in both the US Open and The Open, but is yet to convert these quick starts into wins so far in his still young yet fruitful career.

Here at SportsLens we think this could be a course that suits Schauffele, and we can see him getting off to a flying start to give himself the best opportunity that he possibly can to claim his maiden major championship victory here at Southern Hills Country Club.

Certainly one capable of going low in the first round at a great price of 35/1 with Bet UK.

PGA Championship Tip 2: Corey Conners to lead after Round 1 @ 66/1 with Bet UK

Canadian Corey Conners has quickly asserted himself as one of the most underrated and stellar golfers on the PGA Tour circuit. He is a class act, and has one of the best iron games of any golfers in recent memory.

His astute iron game therefore gives him an abundance of chances of making birdies, and if the putter is hot for the world ranked 31st golfer, he will be shooting up that PGA Championship leaderboard brave and quick.

Conners hasn’t performed overly well in the two previous PGA Championships that he has feature in, but this course on paper should suit him far more than the previous two.

It is tough to predict who will come out of the blocks quickly and who will progressively make more birdies as the days progress. But Corey Conners is certainly one to keep an eye on who will make tonnes of birdies, and hopefully he gets going early on Day 1 of the 104th PGA Championship from Southern Hills Country Club, Oklahoma.

Certainly one capable of going low in the first round at a great price of 66/1 with Bet UK.

First Round Leader Markets (Top 10)

Golfer (To lead after Round 1) Highest Odds Bookmaker
Scottie Scheffler 22/1 BetUK logo
Jon Rahm 25/1 BetUK logo
Justin Thomas 28/1 BetUK logo
Rory McIlroy 30/1 BetUK logo
Jordan Spieth 30/1 BetUK logo
Collin Morikawa 33/1 BetUK logo
Patrick Cantlay 33/1 BetUK logo
Dustin Johnson 35/1 BetUK logo
Xander Schauffele 35/1 BetUK logo
Cameron Smith 35/1 BetUK logo

Odds are correct at the time of publication and are subject to change.

Other notable mentions

Although Schauffele and Conners are our biggest fancies to be at the top of the the leaderboard after the first 18 holes are complete, here are some other notable players who we think have a good chance of a hot start at a great price:

Jordan Spieth @ 30/1, Will Zalatoris @ 40/1, Joaquin Niemann @ 50/1, Abraham Ancer @ 80/1 and Sebastian Munoz @ 80/1. All prices are with Bet UK.

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