The field for the Shriners Children's Open has taken a bit of a hit over the past couple of years, first with Bryson DeChambeau's defection and now with the absence of course specialist and former champion, Patrick Cantlay.
Whether Cantlay's decision not to play is to do his honeymoon, the new FedEx Cup Fall meaning points aren't on offer for elite players, an issue with the size of his head or the size of his bank account, who can say, but it means star power comes courtesy of two international studs instead.
TOM KIM ought to be shorter in the betting than Ludvig Aberg after winning here last year, and he has the right game for Summerlin.
He showed as much in winning, ranking fifth in approach play and third in putting, and those two aspects of his game have started to fire of late after his first real blip back in the spring.
Kim has finished inside the top 25 in every start since the Scottish Open, including sixth last time out in France following a good Wentworth debut, and this improvement aligns with his rediscovering of the putting form that saw him win twice in four starts this time last year.
Spaun has spent a lot of time at Summerlin down the years and his results in this event show how comfortable he is here. In 2017 he led after rounds two and three, eventually fading to 10th, and a year later he again led the field in strokes-gained approach to finish 15th.
More recently he's been back on the bike following a missed cut in 2019 with finishes of 35th and 15th, flying home with a personal-best 64 last year, and at 15th in adjusted scoring there are only five players in front of him who have been regular starters in this event.
Putnam's sole win so far came in Nevada over at the Barracuda Championship and just as was the case then, he's at his most effective when there's no pressure from the tee, and the emphasis is on making birdies.
He shot a second-round 64 on his way to 11th here in 2021 and a third-round 64 to finish 12th last year, while he was the halfway leader on debut, so this is a course Putnam likes much more than Silverado, where he made his return to action with a missed cut last month.
Ryder was fancied by many to do that last week but while 51st might seem disappointing, his record at Jackson now reads MC-MC-MC-51-45-51. It was just about as well as he's ever played there.
In contrast, he's been third, 18th and 28th at Summerlin, all of his success the product of quality approach play. Ryder currently ranks ninth among this field for the season, behind leader Hoge, and he's fifth in putting, one place behind Putnam.
Again that's my formula for the week and while Ryder's driver was poor in Jackson, we at least saw a step forward with the putter and that should have him primed for this easier test. It's one we know he loves and among his last 16 rounds here, Ryder has shot a nine-under 62, two 64s, two 65s and two 66s.
It's a seriously good record from one of the PGA Tour's better maidens and at 80/1, he's a fun each-way bet.
Course specialist Matt NeSmith has been trimmed from the same price and I prefer CHESSON HADLEY, another who has been there and done it at Summerlin.
Hadley is 26th in putting and inside the top 50 in strokes-gained approach so again that statistical profile is there, while as with Hoge, Putnam and Ryder his game has been ticking over really nicely, with eight cuts made in nine.
Although unable to kick on from an opening 64 in Mississippi, that at least holds up his price and I was really struck by his bullishness after that eight-under par start.
"I've been feeling good," he said. "I feel dangerous. I'm feeling dangerous right now. I feel like some of the hard work and some of the shot shape change that I've done has paid off, and my game feels good.
"Just need to keep it going. The gas is on the right."
Knox has a good record here and having sided with him at 100/1 last year on the back of two top-30 finishes to begin the season, he was quite hard to leave out having done the same thing again.
However, I do struggle to see him winning a shootout and while the same is to some extent true of Moore, at his best these were very much ideal conditions for this UNLV graduate and longtime Vegas resident.
Summerlin has been Moore's base for many a year and he was an impressive winner of this event in 2012, when he opened with a 10-under 61. Also a winner in 22-under at the John Deere Classic, where he beat a subsequent Shriners champion, shootouts on shorter courses were his bread and butter.
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