Golf best bets: Outright picks for the 3M Open

A chaotic weekend at the British Open ended with Xander Schauffele hoisting his second major championship trophy of the season. Unfortunately, we didn't have him on our outright card at Royal Troon Golf Club.

The PGA Tour shifts back to the United States this week for the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities, and we're eyeing up three outright bets to target.

Erik Van Rooyen (+4000 DraftKings )

We're bypassing the top of the odds board this week. Tony Finau, Sam Burns, Akshay Bhatia and Sahith Theegala are all worthy of their low prices, but all four players are traveling back from Scotland and teeing it up a few days later in a much different environment. We want nothing to do with the favorites.

Instead, let's move down to Van Rooyen at 40-1 to begin our card. TPC Twin Cities demands length and accuracy off the tee, and bombers such as Finau, Matthew Wolff and Cameron Champ have won here since 2019. Well, Van Rooyen has gained strokes from off the tee in six straight starts. Driving accuracy is normally one of his weaknesses, but the South African has gained with his accuracy in four of his last five events.

Van Rooyen also ranked sixth in the field in strokes gained on approach in his last start at the Genesis Scottish Open, so he's entering the week with a ton of confidence in his ball striking. He finished T6 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic a few weeks ago, and Detroit Golf Club is a popular comp course for TPC Twin Cities due to its emphasis on total driving.

Rico Hoey (+6500 FanDuel )

Hoey may not be a big name on the PGA Tour, but he's one of the best off-the-tee players in the world right now. The 28-year-old ranks eighth on Tour in total driving, ninth in strokes gained from off the tee and 20th in driving distance.

While the best players in the world were over in Scotland for two weeks, Hoey was grinding out solid finishes back in the U.S. He nearly won the ISCO Championship before hitting his approach shot on the 72nd hole out of bounds and losing in a five-man playoff, then he finished T8 at the Barracuda Championship a week later. He also finished T6 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, giving him three top-10s in his last four starts.

Hoey is a below-average putter, but he's gained strokes from on the green in five straight starts. This is a good course fit and a great price on a red-hot Hoey.

Neal Shipley (+8000 FD )

You probably know Shipley from his impressive performances at the Masters and the U.S. Open, but he's kept up his solid play on the PGA Tour since then. The Ohio State product finished T20 at the Rocket Mortgage Classic and T6 at the ISCO Championship, and he's gained a whopping 11.26 true strokes on approach over his last four starts.

Shipley has a tendency to go ice cold on the greens, but he bombs the ball off the tee and is striking his irons beautifully right now. All we need is a decent putting week from Shipley and he should find himself in contention.