PGA Picks and Preview for the 50th Memorial Tournament 

The Memorial Tournament 2026 PGA Signature Event is headlined by defending champion and world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who won the last two events at the Memorial with 278 and 280 scores, or -8 and -10 under par. An elite field of 72 golfers will take aim at Jack Nicklaus' masterpiece at Muirfield Village Golf Club - a 7,569 yard Par 72 that features below average size bentgrass greens (5,000 sq. feet) surrounded by thicker rough, more tucked pins on undulating greens, and water hazards in play on 13 holes.

There is a cut after 36 holes with the top 50 plus ties advancing to play the weekend, where a 75+% chance of rain is in the advance forecast on Saturday. Monitor the weather with temperatures in the 80's and any notable winds on Friday and Saturday. 

You can read more of my past coverage of the Memorial Tournament with key stats and information you can bet on below for the Memorial Tournament 2026 event plus player odds, picks and props. Additional details of the 2020 renovation by Nicklaus' and his team at Muirfield Village Golf Club, and an aerial view of all 18 holes at Muirfield Village and hole-by-hole audio descriptions. 

The Par 4's at No. 18 and 10, along with the Par 3 at No. 16 are among the toughest scoring holes at Muirfield Village. Other golf stats and metrics to monitor (link) include the highest "Missed Fairway Penalty" and "Rough Penalty" on Tour, and among the tougher courses on Tour to gain Off the Tee, and tougher collection of Par 5's since 2020 renovation. 

The Memorial at Muirfield Village GC
⛳️Par 72, 7,569 yds
⛳️Small field, Signature Event, 36-hole cut - top 50/ties/within 10 shots
⛳️Jack Nicklaus design, 2020 renovation
⛳️Seven par-4s 455+, 3 of 4 par-3s 200+, Four par 5s are 7th toughest on Tour
⛳️2nd most difficult non-major… pic.twitter.com/2sVU6eTcli

— Ron Klos (@PGASplits101) June 1, 2026

Last year's top finishers at the Memorial Tournament were Scheffler (win), top 5 Griffin, Straka, Taylor, McNealy, Henley, top 12 Spieth, Fowler, Bradley, English, Pendrith, Burns, Cantlay, top 20 Aberg, Fleetwood, Sungjae Im, Bhatia, MacIntyre. A number of players have multiple top 15 finishes at Muirfield since the renovation in 2020: Scheffler, McIlroy, Fitzpatrick, Schauffele, Spieth, Fowler, Cantlay, Horschel, Si Woo Kim, Sungjae Im, Sam Burns, Straka and Theegala.

I'll update more stats and strokes gained leaders, including at Muirfield Village. Leading golf analyst John Hasslbauer, who I featured in Forbes years ago, notes that top golfers who are above-average players in terms of Stokes Gained Approach, Off the Tee, Around the Green and Par 5 scoring are Scheffler, McIlroy, Aberg, Young, Fitzpatrick, Cantlay, Spieth, Scott, and Smalley. 

With just over 50% of approach shots coming from 175+ yards at Muirfield Village, top long-iron players to target include McIlroy, Aberg, Alex and Matt Fitzpatrick, Scott, Straka, Knapp, Yellamaraju, Sungjae Im, and Ryo Hisatsune.   

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Memorial Tournament 2026 Golf Odds

Leading favorites and contenders golf odds from BetOnline other leading online sportsbooks refresh periodically and are subject to change, including on props and live/in-game betting. Odds adjust during and following rounds. 

+335: Scottie Scheffler
+1400: Rory McIlroy
+1600: Ludvig Aberg
+1900: Cameron Young
+2200: Xander Schauffele, Si Woo Kim, Russell Henley
+2500: Matt Fitzpatrick
+3300: Tommy Fleetwood
+3500: Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay
+4000: Hideki Matsuyama, Ben Griffin, JJ Spaun
+5000: Jordan Spieth, Min Woo Lee
+5500: Sepp Straka, Chris Gotterup, Alex Smalley
+7000: Robert MacIntyre, Rickie Fowler, Sam Burns
+7000: Adam Scott, Justin Rose
+8000: Maverick McNealy, Harris English, Akshay Bhatia
+8000: Kurt Kitayama, Nicolai Højgaard 
+9000: Gary Woodland
+10000-13500: Rai, Lowry, Clark, Noren, N. Taylor, Hisatsune,
Gerard, Bradley, Reitan, Day, Bridgeman, Conners, Reitan 

72-hole winning score: Over/Under 278.5 (Par 71) 

Additional outright win betting odds are available without including Scheffler. So top players like McIlroy (+1000), Aberg (+1200), Young (+1400), Schauffele, Fitzpatrick, Henley and Si Woo Kim (+1800), Fleetwood (+2500), Canlay and Thomas (+2800) provide other betting opportunities. 

Tournament Matchups And Props

BetOnline and BookMaker (BM) offer an extensive range of 72-hole head-to-head player tournament matchups each week, along with select round-by-round matchups. Here are some of the notable tournament matchups and players to watch at the 50th Memorial Championship PGA Signature Event. 

- Scheffler (-232) vs. McIlroy (+190)
- Schauffele (-131) vs. Young (+101) BM
- Aberg (-126) vs. Fitzpatrick (-104) BM
- Henley (-150) vs. Cantlay (+125)
- Si Woo Kim (-151) vs. Fleetwood (+121) BM
- Griffin (-115) vs. Matsuyama (-105)
- Min Woo Lee (-115) vs. Burns (-105)
- MacIntyre (-133) vs. Fowler (+103) BM
- Thomas (-132) vs. Spieth (-110)
- A. Scott (-115) vs. Gotterup (-105)
- McNealy (-110) vs. English (-110)
- Spaun (-148) vs. Kitayama (+123)
- Staka (-110) vs. Lowry (-110)
- Smalley (-146) vs. Rose (+116) BM
- N. Hojgaard (-120) vs. Bhatia (+100)
- Woodland (-110) vs. Clark (-110)
- Sungjae Im (-124) vs. McCarty (-106) BM
- Noren (-144) vs. Day (+120)
- Conners (-127) vs. Reitan (+106)
- Cauley (-115) vs. Harman (-105/-125 BM)
- Cole (-110) vs. Stevens (-110)
- Alex Fitzpatrick (-135) vs. Fox (+105)
- Meissner (-127) vs. Coody (+106)
- Pendrith (-125) vs. McCarthy (+105)
- Rai (-165) vs. Yellamaraju (+137) 

Fairway’s Forecast and PGA tournament matchups started the year 3-0 and are now 18-9, including 9-7 in Majors and Signature Events posted at OSGA with a best week of 4-0 in the Cognizant Classic.  

Memorial Tournament 2026 Picks

Fairway’s Favorites: Scheffler, Aberg, Fleetwood, Fitzpatrick
Fairway’s Longshots: Thomas, Griffin, Spieth, Smalley     
Fairway’s Flyers: Burns, McNealy, Conners, Taylor

McIlroy, Fitzpatrick, Young, Schauffele, Cantlay Si Woo Kim and Henley rate out well in most models this week, along with the favorites I've chosen above. 

Note: I don't bet heavy favorites to win pre-tournament below 10/1 like Scheffler. Other live/in-game betting options during event, and focus on matchups and other props including finishing position. 

Tournament matchups:  Aberg (-126) over M. Fitzpatrick
Fleetwood (+121) over SW Kim
Fowler (+103) over MacIntyre
Top 20: Fleetwood (+100) 
Check back or updates on X for any round-by-round matchups. 

As you're following golf, NBA and Stanley Cup playoffs, MLB and other sports and betting opportunities, be sure to check out the OSGA betting scene. Off Shore Gaming Association provided a Bad Bet Alert to Jazz Sports and affiliates for confiscating customer funds. Stay away from those scammers and cover your ASSets by doing you're due diligence. 

Next week it's the Canadian Open followed by the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills and the final Signature Event of the year to close June at TPC River Highlands for the Travelers Championship. More golf betting opportunities and ways to win plus player profiles ahead for more majors. 

You can bet on it. 

FairwayJay is a leading sports betting industry analyst, handicapper, content creator, writer, reporter and poker player based in Las Vegas. He's been covering major sports including the PGA Tour from a betting perspective for two decades. FairwayJay is also on the scene for major sports and poker events plus industry conferences as a credentialed media member. Follow @FairwayJay on X and OSGA for more betting insights and information you can bet on.