Inaugural Biltmore Championship odds released as model predicts upset
SportsLine’s predictive model, which has correctly identified 17 major champions, suggests that betting favourite Jackson Koivun may falter at the start of the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Fall series.
The PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Fall series commences on Thursday with the inaugural Biltmore Championship, held at The Cliffs at Walnut Cove in Asheville, North Carolina. The series, which runs through November, is designed to assist players ranked outside the top 50 in the points standings in securing their PGA Tour cards for the following year.
Odds released by FanDuel Sportsbook list rookie Jackson Koivun as the favourite at +1200. He is followed by Jacob Bridgeman at +1600, Ben James at +2200, and both Doug Ghim and Davis Thompson at +2500. Justin Thomas, who was originally scheduled to compete in the inaugural event, withdrew from the field on Monday.
SportsLine, a betting model developed by DFS professional Mike McClure, has simulated the tournament 10,000 times to generate its predictions. The model has a notable track record, having correctly predicted 17 majors, including the 2026 Masters, which marked its fifth consecutive Masters prediction. It also accurately called the winners of last year’s PGA Championship and Open Championship.
The model’s output for the Biltmore Championship suggests a significant shift in the expected leaderboard. It predicts that Koivun, despite his status as the betting favourite, will fail to finish in the top three. This prediction follows a recent dip in form for the Auburn graduate, who won the 3M Open earlier this summer but has not finished better than T29 in his last three events.
Conversely, the model identifies Ben James as a strong contender for the win and a value bet for a top-five finish at +2200. The 23-year-old from the University of Virginia has had a strong second half of the year, including a top-25 finish at the U.S. Open and a third-place result at the Wyndham Championship.
The model is also targeting a massive longshot with odds of approximately +4000 to make a strong run up the leaderboard. While the specific player is part of the full projected leaderboard available through SportsLine, the inclusion of such a longshot highlights the volatility of the field in this inaugural event.
