2021 PGA Tour Barracuda Championship Odds and Picks

• The Barracuda Championship from Truckee, CA tees off Thursday, August 5th
• Branden Grace and Maverick McNealy are +1600 co-favorites at this opposite field event to the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational
• We’ve narrowed down the golfers with the best chance of emerging victorious and provided the best value bets below

With the top players in the game competing at the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational, the rest of the golfers who didn’t qualify are competing at the Barracuda Championship. There are still some well known players teeing it up, like 2019 US Open winner Gary Woodland, Matt Kuchar and tournament co-favorite Branden Grace.

This is always a fun championship due to the altered format, which uses the Modified Stableford Scoring System. Players are rewarded two points for birdies, five for eagles and a whopping eight for an albatross. A par is worth zero, and you lose one point for a bogey and three for a double bogey or worse. It’s the one event where you want to see a plus-score beside your name.

This event was long contested at Montrêux Golf and Country Club outside Reno, Nevada. It moved to Tahoe Mountain Club’s Old Greenwood course last year, where Richy Werenski won his first PGA Tour title.

2021 Barracuda Championship Odds

Odds as of August 2nd

Troy Merritt Loves This Format

The last two years, Troy Merritt has come oh-so-close to winning this title, having finished runner-up in both 2019 and 2020, at two different golf courses. To say that he loves this format would be a major understatement. He’s a player that runs hot and cold week-to-week, as he has two missed cuts and a pedestrian T-39 in his last outing.

The tournament before that, however, he was in a playoff at the Rocket Mortgage Classic before dropping it on the fifth hole of sudden death. That week he gained a whopping seven shots on the field on the greens, which is his calling card. In eight of his last ten tournaments, he’s gained strokes on his competitors in that category.

Troy Merritt's first career ace brings home this week's #ULTRAMoment! 🎯 https://t.co/9lCRuZj9Nc pic.twitter.com/GsBwjnRpkG

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 6, 2021

It’s mildly surprising that four golfers have shorter odds than him, given his success the last two years in this format across two different venues, so that’s where you can grab some extra value on him.

Last Five Barracuda Championship Winners

*2016-19 events were held at a different golf course

2021 Barracuda Championship Best Value Picks

1. Gary Woodland (+2800): In his last start two weeks ago, Gary Woodland was in contention just a shot back after 54 holes, before finishing T-11. He’s won this tournament before in 2013 and was a runner-up in 2016, so he clearly excels at this format.
2. Pat Perez (+5500): Like Woodland, the streaky Pat Perez was also T-11 at the 3M Open, his third top-15 in his last five starts. He’s been a runner-up in his career at this tournament. It’s been the season of the 40-something year old veterans winning, and Perez would fit that bill.
3. David Lingmerth (+20000): If you want a huge shot in the dark dart throw at amazing odds, David Lingmerth is a great option. The 2015 Memorial Tournament winner has seen something of a renaissance in his game the last two times teeing it up. He’s had a pair of top-30’s, including a T-11 at the Barbasol Championship. In those two tourneys, he’s gained nine shots on the field tee-to-green.