We were a tad unfortunate not to profit from a multi-course angle at Torrey Pines last week. Wednesday's first-round multiple was on course to return around 12 points for five invested only for Patrick Rodgers to let slip a big lead; then, on Thursday, Eric Cole played his best round yet on the South Course, only to perform abysmally on the Friday. Opposing him for that outlier round is just part and parcel of golf betting.

The same dynamics are in play at Pebble Beach, where the host course shares that duty with Spyglass Hill over the first two rounds. In-play punters should note that when it gets windy, you do not want to be at Pebble Beach, and the difficulty of the slightly more sheltered Spyglass doesn't tend to increase by the same magnitude. With little wind in the forecast, it remains to be seen whether this proves helpful.

But we do still have something important to work with here: the fact that bookmakers simply are not digging through round-by-round scorecards to work out who plays which course best. Players are graded on their overall form and ability combined with their record in this event and the 2019 US Open, but they're not separated according to which of the two courses appears to play to their respective strengths.

Perhaps the best example for round one concerns defending champion WYNDHAM CLARK.

Part of the reason for siding with him in this event last year was that, buried within a seemingly modest tournament record, there was some evidence that he particularly enjoys Pebble Beach. Previous renewals included just 36 holes there; from 2024, that went up to 54 (or at least it was meant to), so players like Clark were bound to benefit.

Famously, he went on to shoot a third-round 60 to take the clubhouse lead and when the final round was abandoned, that was enough for a rather fortuitous victory. One year on, it now goes without saying that Pebble Beach is a course he very much likes and on a per-round basis, nobody in this field has a better record to call upon.

Sahith Theegala has only played three rounds at Pebble Beach but he's about a stroke worse than the field average for them, versus three better in Clark's case. So while Clark hasn't set the world alight lately (although 15th in Hawaii was fine), this two-time California winner ought to be favourite given that his playing partner has also struggled a bit, including with last week's final-round 80.

At Spyglass Hill, there's a case for it being each-of-two. Around Pebble Beach, Clark should be odds-on.