Puntacana Championship Matchups Picks: Asia To Reign Supreme

Sangmoon Bae vs Sebastian Cappelten

Sangmoon Bae hasn’t had the best season, but the 34-year-old has competed at a high level throughout his career.

The South Korean is a two-time PGA Tour winner and he owns 15 professional wins. It’s an impressive record, but it was derailed by military service in 2015.

Bae hasn’t recovered since leaving the Tour, but we believe he can get the better of unheralded Sebastian Cappelten.

The Danish pro missed the cut at the Honda Classic last week and at the Puerto Rico Open the tournament prior. It’s not good form coming into this week and we thought the online sportsbook would have him at longer odds.

Cappelten is paying -105 to beat Sangmoon Bae, but we don’t see that happening.

Pick: Sangmoon Bae -115

Kiradech Aphibarnrat vs Graeme McDowell

It wasn’t long ago when Kiradech Aphibarnrat was picked to be the best best Asian golfer, but he’s worth having on your ticket this week.

The Thai superstar plays on all the major tours around the world and although yet to fully realise his potential, the ability is there.

Kiradech Aphibarnrat not the hero we deserve but the hero we need pic.twitter.com/vq4DCUjk5O

ziregolf (@ziregolf) April 12, 2019

He comes off a solid performance at the Honda Classic and although his best form comes on the European Tour, he’s not facing an overly tough field at the Puntacana Championship.

He faces Graeme McDowell in this matchup. The 2020 U.S. Open winner has missed the cut at his last three tournaments, including last week at the Honda Classic.

It’s not great form for the one-time major champion, whose best form is well and truly behind him.

Aphibarnrat should do enough to get past the Northern Irishman this week.

Pick: Kiradech Aphibarnrat -130

Brandon Wu vs Brandon Hagy

It’s Brandon vs Brandon this week, and we’re favoring the inexperienced Brandon Wu.

The former Stanford Cardinal comes off the Korn Ferry Tour where he won the Tour Championship. It’s not an easy tournament to win and expectations are high for the American.

He turned pro in 2019 and has recorded one win and five top 10 finishes. It’s a good record for a player with plenty of upside.

Brandon Hagy comes off a second place-finish at the Honda Classic, which was an incredible performance for the 30-year-old.

It was a huge turnaround in form after missing the cut at the Puerto Rico Open, but we don’t think his success will last.

Wu has a three-shot better scoring average than Hagy and golf betting markets have taken that into account.

Pick: Brandon Wu -130

K.J. Choi vs J. J. Spaun

K.J. Choi doesn’t play as much as he used to, but he still has ability. The South Korean finished 11th in the Cologuard Classic on the Senior Tour in February.

It wasn’t on the PGA Tour, but he made the cut at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, which was a good result.

J.J. Spaun shot +9 when missing the cut at the Honda Classic, so he’s a player that needs to regain his best form. He only narrowly made the cut in Puerto Rico, which followed three consecutive missed cuts.

Despite getting on in life, our confidence is with Choi. He has been playing well enough and he only needs to make the cut to have a chance.

Pick: K.J. Choi +120