A look at Patrick Reed’s hopes of glory in the remaining 2021 Majors
- Dave Tindall
- 26 April 2021
The American racked up another top 10 in the Masters earlier this month but how do his chances look in the next three Majors?
Patrick Reed made a steady but unspectacular start to his Majors career.
While he didn't manage a single top 10 in any of his first 15, during that run the American posted six top 25s.
In short, he was finding his feet, coming to the boil.
But in the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow he flicked a switch, finishing in a tie for second and just two strokes back from winner Justin Thomas.
Reed had to wait seven months until the next Major but when it arrived he showed that he was now ready to take the final step.
Teeing off at the 2018 Masters, Reed was still in the role of underdog - a position he relishes - but surged to the top of the leaderboard with a second-round 66.
And after hitting the summit, he wouldn't be dislodged, closing out a battling one-shot win after rounds of 67-71.
Reed would add a fourth place in the very next Major, the 2018 US Open. And starting with the 2019 Open at Royal Portrush where he finished tied 10th, the 30-year-old has now reeled off five straight top 13 finishes in the Majors: the latest installment a tied eighth at Augusta National.
As a regular cast member on Majors leaderboards these days, it would come as no surprise if he adds a second sooner rather than later.
Here, Planet Sport Golf looks at his hopes of glory at this year's three remaining venues - Kiawah Island, Torrey Pines and Royal St. George's.
PGA Championship - Kiawah Island
Reed's best odds: 40/1 Paddy Power
Record at the PGA Championship
2014: T58 (Kentucky, Valhalla)
2015: T30 (Whistling Straits, Wisconsin)
2016: T13 (Baltusrol, New Jersey)
2017: T2 (Quail Hollow, North Carolina)
2018: MC (Bellerive, Missouri)
2019: MC (Bethpage State Park, New York)
2020: T13 (Harding Park, California)
After making the cut in his opening two PGAs, Reed made his first real impression at Baltusrol in 2016, shooting a second-round 65 to sit sixth at halfway.
He shot 70-69 on the weekend but dropped outside the top 10.
At Quail Hollow in 2017 he pushed even harder, charging through the field in round four to move to within a shot of the lead before bogeying the last and eventually finishing two back.
He added another top 15 at Harding Park last year after shooting 69-66 on the weekend.
This year's venue, Kiawah Island in South Carolina, hosted this event in 2012 but Reed hadn't started his Majors career (his first was the 2014 Masters) when Rory McIlroy romped to victory there nine years ago.
As for his performances on other tracks in the Carolinas, he won the Wyndham Championship at Sedgefield in 2013 (first PGA Tour victory) and there was that near-miss at Quail Hollow. In fact, he's made 15 cuts out of 15 in North Carolina events.
By contrast he's missed three cuts out of four at Harbour Town. That Pete Dye track in South Carolina is very different to Dye's Kiawah Island however.
Then again, he's never made the top 20 in seven starts at Dye's TPC Sawgrass and was a modest T30 in the PGA at Whistling Straits. He does have a top five at TPC River Highlands but, overall, his record on Dye tracks isn't exactly stellar.
US Open - Torrey Pines
Reed's best odds: 40/1 bet365
Record at the US Open
2014: T35 (Pinehurst, North Carolina)
2015: T14 (Chambers Bay, Washington)
2016: MC (Oakmont, Pennsylvania)
2017: T13 (Erin Hills, Wisconsin)
2018: 4 (Shinnecock, New York)
2019: T32 (Pebble Beach, California)
2020: T13 (Harding Park, California)
It's hard to forge a consistent record in the US Open but Reed has made six cuts out of seven and cracked the top 15 in four of the last six.
That includes a top four in brutal conditions at Shinnecock while he was the halfway leader at both Chambers Bay in 2015 and Harding Park in 2020.
Saving par from rough is a key skill in US Opens and Reed's razor-sharp short game allows him to do that. Resilience is another big factor and he boasts that in spades.
In short, pencil in Reed for plenty more challenges in his national Open.
Record at Torrey Pines in the Farmers Insurance Open
2013: T39
2016: WD
2018: T23
2019: T13
2020: T6
2021: WON
Reed must be licking his lips at the prospect of this year's US Open being staged at Torrey Pines.
He already had pleasingly progressive form figures at the heralded San Diego track after good performances from 2018-2020 but earlier this season he hoisted the trophy there after shooting 64-72-70-68 to power to a five-shot win.
"The golf course is hard," said Reed of Torrey Pines South when interviewed later.
"I mean, you definitely know why it's a US Open venue and just kind of seeing it this week and seeing kind of how tough it played in certain conditions definitely shows how much harder it's going to play once June comes around with a little firmer, faster greens and also with thicker rough."
However, Reed's US Open record shows plenty of promise and he'll be right up for the challenge.
Open Championship - Royal St. George's
Reed's best odds: 40/1 Paddy Power
Record at the Open Championship
2014: MC (Hoylake, England)
2015: T20 (St Andrews, Scotland)
2016: T12 (Royal Troon, Scotland)
2017: MC (Royal Birkdale, England)
2018: T28 (Carnoustie, Scotland)
2019: 10 (Royal Portrush, Northern Ireland)
2020: No tournament
Only one of Reed's six top 10s in Majors has come in the Open Championship but his record is still fairly encouraging.
Three top 20s in the last five is decent although it's worth pointing out that he's missed the cut in both his Open starts on English soil. On that basis, perhaps we should wait until St. Andrews in 2022.
However, he's certainly enjoyed recent trips to England after finishing fourth and third in the last two editions of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.
Links golf is a different animal though and, looking through interviews, Reed isn't quite as gushing about it as some American players are.
Conclusion
The immediate takeaway when looking at Reed's odds in the Majors is that he continues to be underestimated at this level.
Shop around and you'll find 40/1 available for each of the remaining three and that just doesn't tally with his past record and ability to win big events.
Reed is one of the most determined characters in the game; he absolutely loves to get stuck in and take on the world's best.
If there's an obvious chance in 2021 it has to be the US Open at Torrey Pines given his victory at the South Course earlier this year.
It's not a given that he'll be able to have the same success in the firmer, fast conditions of June but his odds simply look too big.
The only real dilemma for punters is that more each-way places will be available nearer to tee-off. Then again, it wouldn't be the worst move to bag some 40/1 (five places) now while the odds are there.
