The Memorial – Betting Preview

The PGA Tour heads to one of its most prestigious annual stops this week for the 2026 Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio. Widely regarded as the crown jewel of Jack Nicklaus‘ course design portfolio, Muirfield Village has long stood as one of the most demanding and respected non-major championship venues in professional golf. Affectionately known throughout the golf world as “Jack’s Place,” the course represents Nicklaus’ vision of creating a tournament and venue that would stand alongside the most respected events on TOUR.

Muirfield Village is a bold, demanding championship test that consistently rewards the most complete tee-to-green performers in the field. Jack Nicklaus‘ design places a premium on precision at every stage, with penal rough, strategically placed hazards, and small, firm, undulating bentgrass greens punishing even slight mistakes. Players who miss fairways or find themselves out of position with their approach shots often face an uphill battle just to save par.

The challenge doesn’t end upon reaching the greens, either. Muirfield Village routinely demands elite scrambling and touch around the putting surfaces, ranking as the second-toughest course on the PGA Tour to gain strokes around the green behind only Augusta National. From driving and iron play to short-game execution, the course leaves little room for weakness and consistently identifies the most complete golfer in the field.

As a Signature Event, the Memorial annually attracts one of the strongest fields in golf and remains one of only three Signature Events that features a 36-hole cut. Unlike most elevated events, players must survive one of the toughest examinations on Tour, with only the top 50 players and ties advancing to the weekend. The combination of an elite field, a demanding cut line, and a championship-caliber golf course creates a tournament atmosphere that feels remarkably similar to a major championship.

After toughening the course in 2020, Nicklaus described his philosophy on the renovation and Muirfield Village in general. “My belief is that tournament golf should be a test to find out who is the best golfer that week. Far too many tournaments have eliminated the rough and firmness of greens, and that is just not my idea of what the game of golf should be. So I’m going to stick with my old-fashioned beliefs about how the game of golf should be played and the way golf courses should be set up. The whole gamut of all shots is what the game of golf is all about. The game should challenge every facet of every club in the bag.”

The Field

For the third straight year, The Memorial is a Signature Event containing only 72 players. It is one of three player-hosted tournaments, along with the Genesis Invitational” and the Arnold Palmer Invitational that feature a 36-hole cut to the top 50 and ties, plus any player within 10 shots of the lead. With a total purse of $20 million, the winner receives $4 million and 700 FedExCup points.

Muirfield Village typically hosts one of the strongest fields on Tour, and this year is no different with only the best players qualifying. Every eligible golfer within the top 40 in the world rankings will be in attendance with the exception of Collin Morikawa and Viktor Hovland. Scottie Scheffler returns to Muirfield Village with a chance to become the first player since Tiger Woods to win the Memorial Tournament in three consecutive appearances. Given his elite ball-striking and proven success on one of the PGA Tour’s most demanding venues, he once again enters the week as the player to beat.

Past Winners & Odds

Most Important Stats For Success at Muirfield Village GC

*In order of importance

• SG: APP
• Scrambling (Rough)
• Good Drive % (Rough)
• SG: Par 5 %
• Proximity 175+ yds
• Bogey Avoidance
• Distance From Edge of Fairway
• SG: Putting (Bentgrass)
• Driving Distance
• SG: Course History + Other Difficult T2G Courses

The Memorial – Final Model

In each preview article and on Discord, I present my final model, which gives a detailed player ranking of the most important stats and splits for the week. My modeling is based on the PGA’s Strokes Gained data, which is categorized into SG: Off the Tee (OTT), SG: Approach (APP), SG: Around the Green (ARG), and SG: Putting (P). Learn more about Strokes Gained and why it can be so useful in analyzing the past and predicting future performance. Many of these specific metrics and conditions can be found in “The Rabbit Hole“, with my final model exclusively published here and in the Discord for subscribers.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RH035fLqinNjzoUPHMqJZtCxl1TCvT2eNhv_JZAe9YM/edit?usp=sharing

Outright Betting Selections

For the most up-to-date picks, check out my Twitter and subscribe to our Discord at BetspertsGolf.com.

w/o Scheffler

• Young +1300 (1.8u) – FD
• Fitzpatrick +1800 (1.3u) – Rivers
• Straka +5500 (0.42u) – Fanatics
• Rose +6600 (0.35u) – Rivers
• Woodland +6800 (0.34u) – DK

This article is intended for entertainment purposes and adult users only. Call 1-800-GAMBLER if you have a gambling problem.

Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images