Ian Poulter to enjoy another solid week is one of David John's three bets from the US PGA Championship specials markets.
Recommended bets: US PGA Championship specials
1pt Ian Poulter to finish in the top 20 at 18/5
1pt Mackenzie Hughes to be Top Canadian at 10/3
2pts Daniel Berger to beat Charley Hoffman over 72 holes at 5/6.
Ian Poulter has his swagger back this summer and I like the chances of the spiky Englishman to add to a string of good performances in this week’s US PGA Championship at Quail Hollow.
Without going back over what is already a well-trodden path, Poulter was facing the dire prospect in the spring of losing his PGA Tour card until a previously undiscovered clerical error saved the day.
Handed a lifeline, he has been pretty spectacular since with a superb second place in the PLAYERS Championship the catalyst for a run of excellent results which included top 20s in Scotland and the Open Championship before a recent third-place finish at the RBC Canadian Open.
"I'm gaining more and more confidence," he said after a closing 64 to finish one shot outside of the play-off at Glen Abbey.
"That's all I can do is continue to put myself in position. The more I put myself in position, the more the old fun feelings of trying to win golf tournaments are going to flood back.
"You know, hopefully I can capitalise on those chances."
Poulter will never back down then in an argument over whether he can at last clinch a major title or whether he will even become a winner again on the PGA Tour such is the level of competition from the a new generation of golfing superstars he now faces.
The 41-year-old probably does lack that little extra gear these days but resilience and determination can count for plenty if the physical skills are slightly on the wane and you can be certain Poulter will not give up on a cause if there are still holes left to birdie.
He is really bouncing currently and the quality of his play is marvellous - winning would be a surprise but a top-20 finish at 18/5 looks a gift too good to turn down having enjoyed a timely week to freshen up.
There is not a huge gulf in class between the players going to post in the Top Canadian market and my temptation is to plump for Mackenzie Hughes, the outsider of three at rather inflated odds.
I put him up last week at a huge price in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational but after a hint of early promise on the opening day, he pretty much sunk without trace and spent the rest of the week out with the washing.
A closing two-under 68 with no pressure attached was a little bit more encouraging but something to take forward to Quail Hollow nevertheless as he prepares to tee it up for just his second career start in a major championship.
That last statement means he has plenty of inexperience to overcome at this lofty level for a player still in his rookie season on the PGA Tour but what makes him a bit more intriguing is he is currently based just down the road from the course in Charlotte.
That local connection was enough of an inspiration to help him Monday qualify for the 2016 Wells Fargo Championship when he zipped around Gaston Country Club in 64 blows to make it into the main event.
That was as good as it got as he fired 73-81 to miss the halfway cut but just over a year on, Hughes has already turned himself into a PGA Tour winner and I see no obvious reason why such a consistent player won’t put his best foot forward in familiar surroundings - that connection really does count for something.
He has to get the better of Adam Hadwin and Graham DeLaet with the former favourite to come out on top of the trio.
This has been Hadwin’s breakout campaign with an historic 59 at the CareerBuilder Championship in January and a gritty maiden success at the Valspar Championship in Florida.
He very much looks the one to beat after bouncing back to form with a T5 at Firestone last week following three missed cuts on the trot while DeLaet got no further than his fourth hole in round three of the Barracuda Championship in Reno before pulling out with a back problem.
I am sure the latter has been having some intensive treatment to get the issue sorted out but it hardly inspires confidence if fancying a bet so Hughes gets the vote to overcome the likeable Hadwin.
A final selection this week is for Daniel Berger in a 72-hole match bet against Charley Hoffman.
It is hard to crab Hoffman at the moment when it comes to consistency but perhaps a little like Poulter, when push comes to shove down the stretch, actually getting over the line and completing the job seems just beyond his grasp.
From the US Open onwards, his form figures read 8-3-39-20-2-3 with him coming closest two starts ago in Canada when denied in sudden death by Jhonattan Vegas.
He looked pretty shell-shocked afterwards as a golden opportunity slipped through his fingers but he was very much back on point again in Akron with a third place - to be fair to him, no-one on the planet was going to get in the way of Hideki Matsuyama’s final round charge for glory.
My issue is that Hoffman has been to all the dances lately and I just wonder when the mental fatigue might start to kick in and this extremely productive spell comes to a crashing halt.
Quail Hollow could be the answer as it has never been a very good venue for Hoffman over the years and that sort of trend tends keep playing out for a golfer even if he is at the top of his form.
The rapidly-improving Berger is a fine alternative to pick up the pieces if Hoffman does blow out.
His current form is just as impressive, he already has a far more positive record from two attempts at this venue while he would not be that much of a wild pick from left-field either to be in the hunt for the title come Sunday afternoon.
Posted at 1250 BST on 08/08/17.
Related links
Sky Bet paying EIGHT places on the US PGA Championship
Ben Coley's US PGA outright preview
Quail Hollow round one and two tee times
