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It feels a little as if we’re at a new venue but this will be the eighth year that the Sanderson Farms Championship heads to the Country Club of Jackson in Mississippi. Perhaps it’s just Covid – or perhaps the dizzying effect of the golf calendar which seems to swing by faster and swifter every single year. The track, designed by John Fought, is a par 72 that weights in at 7,441 yards and has rapid Bermuda greens. It’s also true that the sticky Bermuda on the fairways and in the rough is a factor. In fact it’s an event where golfers with connection to the south (raised there, living there, contending there) have tended to excel. Sergio Garcia, the defending champion, might appear to be an exception to that, but the conditions are not entirely unlike Spain. He was also an anomaly based on previous champions who were all big surprises (although coming off three missed cuts so was he). Every winner at Jackson was tasting their first ever PGA Tour win and when Peter Malnati triumphed in 2015 some got him at 500 on the exchanges. It’s not a strong field with many of the big names resting after busy summers and/or getting ready for future events in the final few months of the season. Cam Champ, past winner here, has said that the rough is nasty, with the ball settling deep in the roots. Charley Hoffman backs that up: “You've got to be in the fairway to put yourself in the right position on the green because you're playing big-time defence if you don't hit it in the fairway. You've definitely got to know where to putt from on these greens. They're rolling a good 13, 14. I expect them to speed up and firm up and get even more challenging.” As we will see, both those factors come into play with the stats. Brandt Snedeker added: “I've done a lot of research on it and realize it’s a great golf course for me. It sets up really well. It’s kind of an old-school, more of a putting contest where the greens are perfect.”
Angles to consider 1/ Putting All seven winners here, plus the man who lost a play-off in 2019, ranked 11th or better for Putting Average. That backs up what Hoffman and Snedeker said. 2/ Long game Those seven winners? Six of seven of them ranked top 10 for Strokes Gained Tee to Green. 3/ Off the Tee The last three winners (and play-off losers in that spell) all ranked top 10 for SG Off the Tee. So did rank outsider winner Cody Gribble in 2016. 4/ Comfort in conditions It’s Mississippi. It gets hot and humid. That effects the players, the air and the course. The latter is sticky. Look for guys who can cope with that from the fairways, from the rough, chipping around the green, and then putting on them.
Selections The above angles have been used to create a shortlist from which the following players are selected. Sungjae Im Last year he ranked 16th for SG Off the Tee, 39th Tee to Green and he was the man who lost the play-off in 2019. The course superintendent likes to suggest that there is a Donald Ross vibe about his layout and that would explain Snedeker’s fondness. Im is very good on Ross. Six starts, six cuts made, three top 10s. He’s also putted well here, gaining over four strokes in his last two starts. Also finished second in Tennessee. Cameron Davis The Aussie ranked 32nd Off the Tee last year and he fond his groove on the course last year. He was T28th in 2019, but tied sixth last year, putting well and plotting the ball nicely tee to green. He was actually the 54 hole leader and he can back up that effort. He ended last season on a real high, making 12 of 14 cuts and winning at Detroit – which just happens to be a Ross design. A KFT winner in Tennessee. Denny McCarthy He’s made four starts at Jackson and, after a missed cut to start, has loved it. He was seventh in 2018, T18th in 2019 and sixth last year. He’s topped the SG Putting and his long game stats have improved every year. T15th at Sedgefield, a nice warm-up for this week: Ross design, a smart tee to green game and a hot putter required.
Tips: 0-3; -6.00pts 1.5pt e.w. Sungjae Im at 22/1 (William Hill 1/5 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8) 31st 1pt e.w. Cam Davis at 35/1 (William Hill1/5 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8) mc 0.5pt e.w. Denny McCarthy at 125/1 (William Hill, P Power, BF Sportsbook 1/5 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8) 17th
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