CJ Cup Byron Nelson Betting Tips: Scottie Scheffler to bounce back after PGA setback

Last week’s PGA Championship proved a painful one for our betting tips as 150/1 outsider Aaron Rai stunned the golfing world with a remarkable victory to become the first Englishman in more than a century to lift the Wanamaker Trophy.

Our selection Scottie Scheffler shared the lead after round one but never got the putter going at Aronimink, and that ultimately cost him any realistic chance of defending his title. 

Tee-to-green, the world number one was still elite — ranking inside the top 10 for both Strokes Gained Off the Tee and Approach — but a cold week on the greens saw him lose nearly two shots to the field with the putter. 

By Scheffler’s standards, it was poor. Yet he still finished tied 14th, which says everything about the level he consistently operates at.

The good news for Scheffler fans? He returns home to Texas this week for the PGA Tour's CJ Cup Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch, where he dismantled the field 12 months ago with a tournament-record 31-under-par total and an eight-shot victory.

The 7,414-yard, par-71 TPC Craig Ranch is of Tom Weiskopf design, and it's a layout that is very much built for low scoring, reflected by last year's scoring average of just over 69. 

Wide zoysiagrass fairways, minimal rough and receptive bentgrass greens mean birdies are there for the taking, while Rowlett Creek winds throughout the property to provide some risk-reward drama.

Winning scores here have consistently pushed beyond 23-under-par since the tournament moved to TPC Craig Ranch, and Scheffler’s 31-under par score last season showed just how vulnerable the layout can be when conditions are calm.

While our PGA Championship selections missed the mark, GolfMagic Editor and expert tipster Andy Roberts has still produced outright winners at odds of 35/1, 22/1 and 12/1 over the last few months, with top-five finishers regularly keeping each-way punters profitable.

This week, Andy is keeping things simple.

CJ Cup Byron Nelson Betting Tips

Scottie Scheffler - WIN 

Best Odds: 9/5

Yes, the price is painfully short. But it’s impossible to ignore how perfectly the CJ Cup Byron Nelson sets up for Scheffler.

Despite the disappointment at the PGA Championship, his long game remained in outstanding shape. 

The putter was the only thing holding him back, and historically that’s the easiest part of Scheffler’s game to bounce back quickly.

Back on home soil in Texas, sleeping in his own bed and returning to a course where he completely dominated last year, this feels like an ideal reset week for the world number one.

He will have no simpler opportunity to land a second PGA Tour title this season. 

Scheffler has admitted he plans to rest up on Monday and then spend plenty of time sharpening up on the greens ahead of Thursday’s opening round.

Even an average putting week should be enough for him to contend here given the gulf in class between him and much of this field.

When you look down the betting market, there simply aren’t many players arriving with both elite form and consistency. 

Jordan Spieth, Brooks Koepka and Si Woo Kim are among the nearest challengers, but none have shown the relentless week-to-week level Scheffler has maintained over the past two seasons.

Prior to finishing tied 14th at last week's PGA Championship, Scheffler strung together three straight runner-up finishes on the PGA Tour. 

His sole win of the season to date came a few months back in his first start of 2026 at The American Express. 

Even if PGA champion Aaron Rai decides to tee it up after last week’s major triumph, history shows how difficult it is emotionally and physically to back up a career-defining win just seven days later, so I am prepared to look past the Englishman if he does still rock up here. 

Scheffler doesn’t even need his absolute best golf to win this tournament. If he brings anything close to his A-game — or even B+ golf — he’s still comfortably the man to beat.

The 20-time PGA Tour winner and four-time major champion arrives at TPC Craig Ranch with the best scoring record at the venue over the last 16 rounds too, averaging a remarkable 66.44. 

That statistic underlines just how comfortable he is on this layout, particularly with the course rewarding elite iron play and aggressive birdie-making — two areas where Scheffler consistently thrives.

The only player to come close statistically is fellow Texan Jordan Spieth, who owns a strong average of 66.86 across 14 rounds here.

Spieth’s creativity and comfort on home soil have regularly translated into low scoring here, but Scheffler’s combination of power, consistency and tee-to-green dominance gives him the edge heading into this week.

Given Scheffler dismantled the field by eight shots with a tournament-record 31-under-par total last season, it’s no surprise the odds continue to point heavily in his favour at a venue that clearly suits his eye.

He also finished fifth here in 2023. 

The 9/5 pre-tournament price feels more like peak Tiger Woods territory than a modern PGA Tour event, but that’s simply where Scheffler sits right now in relation to this field.

He will also be eager to build momentum ahead of next month’s U.S. Open, where another major title opportunity awaits and a chance to become the seventh player in history to complete the career grand slam. 

Expect a focused response after last week’s frustration, and another dominant win. 

Verdict

This is a straightforward play, and I'm not looking at other each-way opportunities. 

Scheffler loves the golf course, thrives in Texas conditions and arrives with his tee-to-green game still firing. 

If the putter behaves even modestly better than it did at the PGA Championship, he should be extremely difficult to stop.

At just under 2/1, it’s not glamorous betting — but sometimes the obvious pick is the right one.

As always please gamble responsibly.

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