Horses for Courses: Ball-strikers, birdie chasers key at Sanderson Farms

The Country Club of Jackson, host of the Sanderson Farms Championship for an 11th consecutive season, demands birdies and ball-striking if a player wishes to prevail at the Sanderson Farms Championship.

The 2023 champion Luke List (+6600) posted 18-under to win a five-man playoff. The runner-up on 16-under in 2016 also posted 16-under to cash T17 in 2021. Making the weekend five times from eight visits, the big hitter has cashed T28 or better four times and has posted 23 of 26 rounds at par or better for a 69.73 scoring average. No player has won the event in back-to-back seasons or multiple times at The Country Club of Jackson.

Birdie or Better Conversion Percentage

Players listed are in the field this week; 2024 season stats.

Turning approach shots into circles on the card is the formula for success this week. Champion Bermudagrass greens check in at 6,200 square feet and provide ample targets for approach shots. The separation occurs with holing putts for birdies and saving pars. In 2014, the inaugural event provided the highest winning score in the previous 10 events on 16-under. Multiple days of dialed-in putting is required on these familiar surfaces. The tournament scoring record is 22-under, and the course record is 61.

One of three co-favorites at BetMGM, Mackenzie Hughes (+2200), is back on site of his second win on TOUR. The 2022 champion missed the weekend in defense last year as his 70-70 (-4) was not good enough to play the final 36 holes. In 14 career rounds, the Canadian Presidents Cup performer has posted rounds in the red 12 times, including seven in the 60s, and owns a 69.03 scoring average.

Par-5 Scoring

The par 5s at The Country Club of Jackson make up one of the most challenging quartets on TOUR. Ranking inside the top 12 in five of the last six seasons, three of the four chances extend more than 580 yards, but the shortest of the bunch, the 15th at 554 yards, did not play the easiest. All four holes averaged 4.7 or tougher. Players who can overpower the two-and-a-half inches of Bermuda/Zoysia and get it up and down will have extra scoring chances.

Henrik Norlander (+6600) has turned the Sanderson Farms Championship into his playground over the last four seasons. Finishing runner-up in the five-man playoff a year ago, he bested his pair of T4 paydays from 2021 and 2020 for his top paycheck. Still looking for his first victory on TOUR, the Swede has signed for 16 consecutive rounds under par at The Country Club of Jackson. Making his eighth start, he will try to restart the streak of first-time winners at the event. The first six events featured winners for the first time on TOUR, but the last four have been proven champions.

Ball-Striking

Over the last decade, seven of the 10 winners have ranked in the top 15. Power, accuracy, and pegging greens in regulation in a shootout are the first steps to going low. The Country Club of Jackson added half of an inch of rough to try and slow down the scoring for the 2024 edition. After dodging Hurricane Helene, the course has only had half an inch of rain over the last seven days. The ball rarely runs out in the rough, the five holes with water penalty areas, and the 56 bunkers protect the fairways and greens.

Winning by four shots, Cameron Champ (+5000) secured his first win of three on TOUR at the Sanderson Farms Championship in October 2018. Posting T28 in defense, the power player from Northern California returned last fall and found another top 10 (T9), his second in two starts. Posting all 12 rounds at par or better, eight rounds have been in the 60s, and he holds a career scoring average of 68.17 at The Country Club of Jackson.

Oddsmaker’s extras

Peter Malnati (+15000): Playing for the 10th time in 11 seasons, the 2015 winner on debut has only missed the weekend once. The 2020 runner-up is on a streak of five consecutive cuts made at The Country Club of Jackson.

Ben Griffin (+3300): Opening with 63 last year, the man from North Carolina led after every round except for the most important one. With a miss from just under 10 feet on the 72nd hole, he forced a five-man playoff and ended up sharing second place after cashing T24 on debut in 2022. In eight rounds, he’s posted five at 68 or better and owns a 68.63 scoring average.

Mark Hubbard (+5500): Looking for his first win on TOUR, the 54-hole leader in the 2022 edition posted 74 and was beaten by five shots in the final pairing by eventual champion Hughes. Undaunted, he returned in 2023 to post four more rounds in the 60s and miss the five-man extra holes by a shot. He’s 30-under in his last eight rounds at The Country Club of Jackson and makes his seventh start.

Garrick Higgo (+8000): Circling 24 birdies in the 2022 edition pushed him onto the podium in solo third. An additional 19 birdies in 2023 saw him cash T16. The lefty is 28-under in his last eight rounds with a 75 on the card.

Matt NeSmith (+12500): Making his sixth consecutive appearance, the South Carolina native who thrives on ball-striking challenges on Bermudagrass will be looking for his second top-10 result and fourth inside the top 25. After cashing T17 in 2020 and T9 in 2022, he returned last year for T25.

Other past champions in the field this week include:

• Ryan Armour (+50000)
• Cody Gribble (+40000)

-Odds courtesy of BetMGM-

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