Picks to win this year’s Wyndham Championship

Note: Wyndham Clark withdrew from the tournament since this story was written

Who’s going to win this year’s Wyndham Championship?

Does anybody claim to have picked Aaron Rai last year or Lucas Glover the year before?

TriadGolf.com will give it a shot, or at least a prediction of likely contenders. I had to make some adjustments. Chris Gotterup was my pick before he withdrew over the weekend while cementing his FedEx Cup position with a strong performance at the 3M Open.

1. Ryan Fox: The 38-year-old Kiwi has two victories this season, chipping in to win a playoff at Myrtle Beach, and winning on the fourth extra hole at the Canadian. A PGA Tour member for only two years, he’s hot and still hungry.

2. Andrew Novak. The Raleigh native has had a great season, rising to No. 12 in the FedEx Cup points race. With just two more chances to earn top 10 bonus money, he has a lot of incentive. Greensboro has a long history of winners with N.C. connections.

3. Wyndham Clark: Could there be a more appropriately named winner? Clark is hot — three straight top 12s in July.

4. Cameron Young: A Wake Forest product (N.C. connections), Young makes a great argument for the LIV Tour’s positive impact on pro golfers. He’s amassed more than $19 million in official earnings since 2022 — without a PGA Tour victory. He made eight straight cuts — including two T4s — before missing the cut at Royal Portrush.

5. Akshay Bhatia: The 23-year-old Triangle resident is disappointed in his season despite ranking No. 44 in the FedEx race. He’s played well in his last four outings despite disappointing final rounds at the Travelers and 3M Open. He ranks seventh on the Tour in birdie average per round, which bodes well for Sedgefield.

——————————————————-

Players to Avoid

1. Jordan Spieth: He’s 50th in FedEx points so has he some work to do in the next two weeks. He finished second in 2013, but has missed the cut here multiple times, including a third-round collapse in 2019 to miss the Tour’s last 54-hole cut.

2. Robert MacIntyre: Temperatures may be too high this week for the Scot coming off tournaments in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

3. Keegan Bradley: The pressure is on for the U.S. Ryder Cup captain. If he can’t move from No. 10 in Ryder Cup points into the top six in the next three weeks, he’d open himself to scrutiny by taking a captain’s pick.