PGA Championship 2013: Rory McIlroy, Phil Mickelson and Top Bets at Oak Hill

Rory McIlroy has not been very impressive at the three major tournaments this year but enters the PGA Championship as the defending champion.

McIlroy was outstanding at the PGA Championship last year at Kiawah Island in South Carolina. He was dominant in the first round, as the Northern Ireland native shot five under. Even though he struggled Friday, shooting a three-over 75, he was still tied for fifth and just two shots back of the lead entering the weekend.

McIlroy rebounded from a poor second round right away, as he shot three under before play was stopped due to weather. He finished his third round—on Sunday—at four under to enter the fourth round with a three-shot lead.

He extended his advantage with his best round of the championship, shooting a six-under 66 in the final round to win by eight strokes.

The problem for McIlroy is that he hasn’t performed like a major champion in recent months. He finished tied for 25th at the Masters and then tied for 41st at the U.S. Open. The Open Championship was his most embarrassing major performance of the year, as he failed to make the cut.

McIlroy really needs to redeem himself with a strong week at Oak Hill. A victory would prove any doubters wrong, and at this moment, he has the seventh-best odds of winning the PGA Championship at 28-1.

He’ll need to stay composed throughout the week and could use a good first round to get his confidence up.

Aside from McIlroy, here’s a look at the golfers with the best shots at winning the PGA Championship this week, with analysis on two players you need to keep an eye on.

Phil Mickelson, 12-1

Phil Mickelson has eight top-10 finishes at the PGA Championship throughout his career and played well enough in 2005 to win the tournament.

He only has one top-10 finish since that victory, though. He’s cracked the top 20 just twice in the last four years, finishing tied for 36th a year ago at Kiawah Island.

But Mickelson is entering this year’s PGA Championship on quite the run. He’s finished in the top three in four of the last seven PGA Tour events he’s played.

He recently won the Open Championship after shooting three under.

This past week, he finished tied for 21st at the Bridgestone Invitational.

The last time the PGA Championship was played at the East Course at Oak Hill, back in 2003, Mickelson wasn’t overly impressive. He finished tied for 23rd that year, two years before winning the tournament. It was an improvement considering he finished tied for 34th a year earlier, but it still wasn’t Lefty’s best.

Birdies are going to be the key to victory for Mickelson this week.

He’s the No. 1 player on the PGA Tour this season in terms of his birdie or better conversion percentage (35.97 percent). He also has the highest birdie average (4.33). If he isn’t birdieing many holes, he probably isn’t going to win the title.

Brandt Snedeker, 25-1

Brandt Snedeker is still seeking the first major championship of his career. He’s played very well at the three major tournaments this season, and the PGA Championship could be his if he continues to perform at a high level.

This year, Snedeker has finished in the top 20 at all three majors.

The problem for Snedeker is that while he’s had five top-10 major finishes throughout his career, none have come at the PGA Championship. It’s easily his worst of the four tournaments, as he’s missed the cut in three of the last four years. He’s only finished in the top 20 at the PGA Championship once, and that was in 2007.

Snedeker is entering the PGA Championship with a little bit of momentum that could carry him to the top of the leaderboard.

He won the RBC Canadian Open two weeks ago after shooting 16 under par. He was fine at the Bridgestone Invitational, shooting three over, but that was only good for a 33rd-place finish.

We should be able to tell what kind of week it’s going to be for Snedeker depending on how does on the par-threes. He is 17 over par on the year on the shorter holes, which is the 85th best on the PGA Tour. If he birdies a few early, he should be one of the guys toward the top of the leaderboard throughout the week.

All statistics and information in this article was obtained via PGATour.com unless otherwise noted.