Originally an Arnold Palmer design, TPC Boston has been the host course since this event was first played in 2003. Once the Dell Technologies Championship became a part of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, it went under the knife and was changed quite a bit by Gil Hanse, along with consultant Brad Faxon.
Over the last 15 editions, the winners have shot anywhere between 14-under to 22-under par, which goes to show that scoring will be everything this week at TPC Boston, as it rewards aggressive play by featuring reachable par 5s and a couple of really short par 4s as well.
The 18th is one of those reachable par 5s, which through the years has always provided excitement – especially once on the green.
Last year, Justin Thomas took down Jordan Spieth and Marc Leishnam during Sunday’s final round to win his fifth title of the season. Although Thomas – like McIlroy the previous year, adds to the list of long-hitters who’ve won here, length isn’t everything in Boston. The premium around here has always been on creating scoring opportunities.
3 KEY STATS TO WIN
1. GREENS IN REGULATION
One of the most important keys to winning around TPC Boston is hitting a bunch of the (smallish) greens in regulations. The three most recent Boston winners – Rickie Fowler (2015), Rory McIlory (2016), and Justin Thomas (2017) – each hit over 70% en route to Boston victories.
Tournament favorites ranked highest in this category:
- Henrik Stenson (73.48)
- Adam Scott (70.92)
- Jon Rahm (70.73)
- Jordan Spieth (70.54)
- Justin Thomas (69.78)
- Tony Finau (69.72)
- Bryson DeChambeau (69.48)
2. PROXIMITY TO HOLE
Not only is it crucial to hit greens here, it really helps if you can get it close and create those birdie opportunities, as these green have a history of being a little funky.
Tournament favorites ranked highest in this category (feet/round):
- Dustin Johnson (33′ 0″)
- Henrik Stenson (33′ 1″)
- Jordan Spieth (33′ 9″)
- Tiger Woods (33′ 9″)
- Bryson DeChambeau (34′ 8″)
- Justin Thomas (34′ 9″)
- Rory McIlroy (35′ 0″)
3. PAR 4 SCORING AVERAGE
The depth of this course lies in its Par 4s. There are 11 of them around TPC Boston, and six of them are in 450-500 yards range. The Par 5s are scoring holes as well, but you can go one up on the field by scoring on these Par 4s.
Last season, Thomas led the field in par-4 scoring with a 14-under par, which included one eagle, 13 birdies, 29 pars, and just one bogey
Tournament favorites ranked highest in this category:
- Dustin Johnson (3.93)
- Justin Rose (3.95)
- Justin Thomas (3.95)
- Jason Day (3.97)
- Jon Rahm (3.97)
- Jordan Spieth (3.97)
- Brooks Koepka (3.98)
