6 picks that our gambling expert likes

Welcome to our weekly PGA Tour gambling tips column, featuring picks from GOLF.com expert prognosticator Brady Kannon. A seasoned golf bettor and commentator, Kannon is a host and regular guest on SportsGrid, a syndicated audio network dedicated to sports and sports betting, and is a golf betting analyst for CBS Sportsline. You can follow Brady on Twitter at @LasVegasGolferand you can read his picks below for the 2025 RSM Classic, which begins Thursday in St. Simons, Ga. Along with Kannon’s recommended shows, you’ll also see data from Chirp Golf, a mobile app featuring free and daily fantasy golf contests where you can win money and prizes with every round and tournament.

If we were trying to break into the top 100 in the FedEx Cup rankings, we would certainly have achieved our goal. We had the runner-up in Utah, fourth and eighth in Cabo San Lucas and two thirds last week in Bermuda. While our tour card for 2026 would certainly be secure, cashing in on that ever-elusive outright winner remains just barely out of our reach.

To the island of St. Simons and “Glory’s Last Shot.”

RSM Classic in Sea Island it’s the last stop in 2025 FedEx Cup Fall AND last chance for players to be in the top 100 in the rankings, which secures their full PGA Tour status for 2026. This is essentially a block party for a number of players in this week’s field as they either live in or near the immediate area or practice regularly at Sea Island facilities.

These are two difficult situations to handicap. Do we want to reach a player who is on the bubble to the top 100, thinking that he will have enough motivation to play well this week? Or is it too much pressure to deal with? Can someone just “flip a switch” and suddenly be playing at a higher level because of what’s at stake? For the locals, is it just a casual day of golf, close to home, on a course they are extremely familiar with?

Personally, I didn’t pay much attention to either of these situations. I am fortunate enough to have played the Seaside Course at Sea Island a few years ago and have a feel for what it takes here, regardless of one’s place in the rankings or residence. It’s a shorter, par 70 course, just a hair over 7,000 yards. Three of the four rounds will be played on this side, while one round for each player on Thursday or Friday will take place on the Plantation course, the easier of the two, a short par 72, more inland, away from the coast.

The main defense here is the wind that will often kick in off the Atlantic coast, but this week’s forecast doesn’t call for anything over 10 mph on any of the four days. Golf oddsmaker Jeff Sherman at the Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas has the winning score proposition bet at Under/Over 260.5, which is 21.5 under par.

In terms of skill sets, it’s all about finding the right spot on these relatively wide fairways, getting a good approach angle to these larger-than-average greens, and digging a few bogeys on what should be another Fall Swing birdie fest. Approaching the game from 100-175 yards will be key. Accuracy off the tee, Closeness to the hole from this distance and scoring on the 12th par 4 will be the most important, in my opinion.

I feel the connection to the related courses is strong this week. Bermuda based, shorter, coastal courses. Courses where accuracy trumps distance, hitting greens in regulation and negotiating potential wind conditions. We tend to see many of the same names appear on the leaderboards at all of these courses. Specifically, I looked Sedgefield Country Club (Wyndham Championship), Water cc (Sony Open), Colonial BC (The Charles Schwab Challenge), Harbor city (RBC Heritage), Port Royal (Bermuda Championship) and Pebble beach.

Here’s to the golf gods shining down on us this week and finding that winner among so many close calls of late. I stayed away from any favorites this week as 50-1 is the shortest price I’ve played.

Nico Echavarria (50-1)

Already a two-time winner on Tour in his young career, Echavarria is one of the top players in the field and has recent finishes at the Sony Open and here at Sea Island in 2024. He is very consistent in all the stats I’ve considered and over the last 24 rounds, ranks 35th in Greens in Regulation. In two of his last three starts, he finished 14th and ninth.

Seamus Power (65-1)

The Irishman is one of those players currently out looking at 130th in the FedEx Cup rankings. He has made seven straight cuts and finished 11th last week in Bermuda, a tournament he won in 2022. I like the short approach game for Power as he ranks in the top 5 in the field for closeness to holes from 100-150 yards. He has two top-5 finishes here, was third at Colonial, sixth and 12th at Harbor Town and ninth, 15th and 17th at Pebble Beach.

Mac Meissner (70-1)

It’s been a good run for the young player from Charleston, SC, as he hasn’t missed a cut since July. During that span, he finished second at the Wyndham Championship in August and was 12th there in 2024. He also owns a fifth-place finish at the Colonial and a 21st at the Sony Open. His approach game is excellent, ranking sixth in the field for SG: Approach over the last 24 rounds, third in Greens in Regulation Won and fifth in Proximity to Holes from 125-150 yards.

Stephan Jaeger (100-1)

Maybe it’s the coastal connection because otherwise there aren’t many similarities between Sea Island and Torrey Pines in La Jolla, California, but it’s interesting that the last two RSM Classic winners, Maverick McNealy and Ludvig Aberg, went 2-1 respectively at the Genesis Invitational earlier this season when it was held in Torrey. Jaeger is another guy who has done very well at Torrey Pines – and he’s done so on some of the interlocking courses this week as well. He’s been top 30 here at Sea Island twice, top 20 at Harbor Town and Bermuda, top 15 at Wyndham and was third at the Sony Open starting 2025. Over the last 24 rounds, he ranks in the top 40 in the field for best Par 4s, Hole Proximity from 100:00-17.

Chris Ventura (100-1)

Sitting at No. 121 in the rankings, Ventura is another player who is difficult to crack the top 100 ranking line. He has finished 21-11-27-34 in his last four FedEx Cup Fall events and was fourth earlier this season at Torrey Pines. He makes a bunch of birdies, hits the greens OK, is a great putter and ranks in the top-45 on the course for proximity to holes from 100-175 yards. Ventura finished 16th at the Colonial in May of this season.

Lee Hodges (105-1)

An Alabama player, Hodges is quite familiar with golf in this part of the country and with Bermudagrass. He is also on the edge of the FedEx Cup rankings, ranking 103rd in the event. He finished fifth here last year and was also 12th at the Charles Schwab in 2024. Earlier this season, Hodges finished 10th at the Sony Open. He’s very accurate off the tee, hits the greens in regulation, and over the past 24 rounds, Hodges ranks in the top 25 in the field for proximity to holes from 100-175 yards.

Who Chirp Golf players are choosing

To make your Chirp picks and win amazing prizes, download the app here.