Travelers Championship tips and predictions
The Punter's Preview: Poston can putt his way to victory
Steve Rawlings: I did wonder if the recent Memorial Tournament winner, J.T Poston, might slide out to as big as 100.0 but it doesn't look like he will and nor should he.
Fresh off his gutsy victory at Muirfield Village, where he birdied the 72nd hole to get into a playoff with Ryan Gerard, Poston made a run at the US Open title on Sunday, trading at as low as 20.0 before he ran out of steam at the end.
He played his last six holes in one-over-par but his four-under-par 67 on Sunday was bettered by only three men in the field so he's clearly in good form and, as it so often is with the four-time PGA Tour winner, his recent run of form is largely down to his brilliant putting.
As highlighted above, a good week with the flatstick is imperative at TPC River Highlands so the fact that Poston has ranked third for Strokes Gained: Putting in each of his last two starts bodes very well indeed.
Back J.T Poston
Dave Tindall's E/W Tips: Bhatia can strike for the lefties
Dave Tindall: One weird stat that never came under threat at Shinnecock is that no left-hander has ever won the US Open.
That's a different story here. Bubba Watson won twice at a venue where you would have thought his big hitting would have been negated while Phil Mickelson is also a two-time champion.
Akshay Bhatia is the one who can step up this year and he should have some confidence after a solid 17th at Shinnecock where he shot over par just once in his four rounds.
And if 17th doesn't sound too overwhelming, it was just his second top 20 in 12 majors starts (his best is 16th). Bhatia hasn't yet come good in the majors but he will.
A brilliant winner at Bay Hill in March, he's already shown he can beat an elite, Scottie Scheffler-led field and the only surprise is that the Californian hasn't built on it.
But Bhatia is no ordinary player as three PGA Tour wins at the age of 24 highlights.
The reassuring news is that he's already shone at TPC River Highlands. That was on the first of his two starts here in 2024 when he shot 64-65-64-69 to finish fifth - four shots short of the playoff.
Shooting a 69 in the final round was probably no surprise given that it was his seventh straight week of competitive action.
With an emphasis on short game, his rankings of 9th for Putting and 30th Around The Green put him right up there and 10th for Birdie or Better Conversion Percentage and 13th for Birdie Average suggest he should take his chances.
Back Akshay Bhatia each-way (5 Places)
First Round Leader Tips: Cole can light up day one
Dave Tindall: It's tempting to play very early starters given that lack of almost any wind for the first few hours and Eric Cole fits the bill.
The 38-year-old is enjoying a great run of form after four top eights in his last six starts and comes in fresh having not qualified for the US Open.
Cole actually didn't make the weekend in Canada last time out but at least he joined that cult club of players who held the first-round lead but missed the cut (64-76).
But it's that day one score that interests us most and we have to go back fewer than 20 starts to find Cole's previous first-round lead.
That came at the Sanderson Farms and it was his second FRL of the 2025 season after he'd set the pace with a 64 in the Sony Open.
At this week's course, TPC River Highlands, Cole was fifth after 18 holes (and fourth after 36) on debut in 2023 while he also sat ninth at halfway last year before withdrawing after round three.
Back Eric Cole each-way for FRL
Course and current form stats
Course Form Selection: The defeated US Ryder Cup captain is a two-time winner at this event, taking the title in 2025 and 2023. With course form like that, you cannot rule out Bradley.
Keegan Bradley
Italian Open tips and predictions
The Punter's Preview: Back Bernd to double up at 47/148.00
Steve Rawlings: Given past winners have a great record, that veterans have fared well at this venue, that he has form at the course, and that he's won recently, Austria's Bernd Wiesberger is an obvious selection.
The 40-year-old, who won the Italian Open back in 2019, finished 23rd at this venue in 2013 and sixth in 2014, and he arrives in fair form this time around.
After his victory at the China Open at the end of April, he finished 13th in Turkey and Spain before missing the cut at the US PGA Championship and although he finished only 21st last time out in the KLM Open, that slightly disappointing performance can be excused given it immediately followed his fourth place finish in his national Open.
Back Bernd Wiesberger
Find Me a 100 Winner Tips: Campillo can get back to business
Steve Rawlings: Jorge Campillo can't be described as a consistent type of player.
It's far from unusual to see him contend one week and miss the cut the next and vice versa so his missed cut last time out in the KLM Open following his second-place finish in the Soudal Open, when he was a column selection at 110.0109/1 doesn't put me off.
He won the Qatar Masters back in 2020 a week after missing the cut in Oman and the fact that he turned 40 on June may also explain his lacklustre performance last time out.
With any lingering possible hangovers now gone, Campillo can get back to business and draw inspiration from his latest significant birthday in an event he's quite enjoyed over the years.
The Spaniard has finished inside the top 10 in three of his last nine appearances in the Italian Open and he also finished second sixth in Italy on the HotelPlanner Tour 15 years ago.
His second-place finish in Belgium last month was his second runners-up finish this year, as he also finished second in China in March, and the fact that he's played here previously, in both editions held here, in 2013 and 2014, may also be advantageous, although he finished only 23rd and 54th.
Back Jorge Campillo (2Us)
Place order to lay 8 Us @ 10.09/1 and 12 Us @ 2.01/1
Form stats for Turin
Current Form Selection: The American missed the cut at the US Open but was T10 at the US PGA Championship and T12 at the Masters. With more points accumulated than any other player taking part in the Italian Open, Reed will be disappointed if he isn't a contender in Turin.
Patrick Reed