The PGA Tour continues on this week as it visits Colonial Country Club for the 2023 Charles Schwab Challenge. Designed by John Bredemus and Perry Maxwell in 1936, Colonial Country Club will play as a Par 70, 7,209 yard layout this week. Colonial Country Club will play host to the Charles Schwab Challenge for the 76th time, making it the longest-running non-major event host on the PGA Tour. Last year’s edition was won by Sam Burns, who came from 7 strokes back on the final day and holed a 38 foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to beat Scottie Scheffler for the win.
Player to Fade:
Justin Lower started the season off strong, with 2 top 10’s and 3 top 20’s in his first 4 starts, but has been ice cold of late, missing the cut in 11 of his last 16 starts. Lower will be making his debut at Colonial Country Club this week, but his game has much to be desired, ranking outside the top 100 in 5 of the 6 major Strokes Gained categories. You really have to have great ball control to work your way around Colonial Country Club and Lower just doesn’t have it right now. A missed cut looms for Lower this week.
Dark Horse:
Ranking 49th in the FedEx Cup Standings, Brendon Todd has quietly put together a solid campaign, with 4 top 10 finishes and 12 made cuts in 18 starts this season. Todd has had past success in this event, with 3 top 10’s in 7 career trips to Colonial, including top 10 finishes here each of the last two years. Todd’s game hinges on his short game prowess, ranking 3rd in Strokes Gained: Around-the-Green and 10th in Strokes Gained: Putting. A win isn’t improbable, but a top 25 finish certainly seems doable for Todd this week.
Top 10:
A bit of a risk this week due to his recent wrist injury, Jordan Spieth is still having an excellent season, with 5 top 10’s and 7 top 25 finishes in 14 starts, highlighted by a runner-up finish to Matt Fitzpatrick at the RBC Heritage a few weeks back. Spieth has been lights out at Colonial in his career, with 1 win, 8 top 10’s, and 0 missed cuts in 10 career starts. Spieth’s game is pretty solid throughout the bag, ranking 20th in Strokes Gained: Total. Spieth is a threat to win anytime he tees it up here and even with his recent injury, he is still going to have enough good mojo to finish in the top 10 this week.
Winner:
Prior to a missed cut at the PGA Championship, Sungjae Im was on a bit of a heater, with 6 straight top 20 finishes, including 3 straight top 10’s. Colonial Country Club has proven to be a mixed bag for Im, with 2 top 15 finishes and 2 missed cuts in 4 career starts. Im’s ball striking has been pretty solid this season on tour, ranking inside the top 15 in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, Off-the-Tee, and Total. Im last won on tour at the 2021 Shriners Children’s Open and is long overdue for a victory, which we predict he will find this week at the Charles Schwab Challenge!