BMW CHAMPIONSHIP: It’s getting serious now, as an elite 70-man field has gathered at the renowned Conway Farms Golf Club, just outside Chicago, for the third leg of the Fedex Cup Playoffs: the BMW Championship.

While there’s no denying that the FedExCup Playoffs in general are a manufactured, transparent money grab– the latest attempt by the PGA Tour to keep golf relevant beyond the year’s final major and milk the cash cow til the last drop– it’s difficult to complain when we get events like this, with all the best players in the world showing up to battle it out at a great golf course. And this is really the best of the four Playoff events: next week’s Tour Championship will have just 30 players in field, which gives it more of an exhibition/”specialty” feel in my view.

Conway Farms is a Tom Fazio masterpiece that hasn’t even been around for 30 years but feels like it’s been around forever. I’ve been fortunate enough to play it, and though I spent about half the round stomping around in the knee-high fescue, it was a memorable experience that I hope to repeat. Perfectly-conditioned bentgrass fairways and greens are a hallmark, as are well-placed bunkers and the aforementioned fescue. The pros don’t have too much trouble with the place; Jason Day opened with 61 and reached 22-under in his victory here two years ago, and Jim Furyk carded a 59 back in 2013, the year that Zach Johnson won with a 16-under total. Those two years– 2015 and 2013– are the only two times that this tournament has been held at Conway Farms, so course history for most of the players is somewhat limited, and nonexistent for others.

Jordan Spieth heads BETDAQ’s Win Market at 7.4, and that’s certainly understandable considering his recent form and the fact that he finished 16th or better in both of his previous appearances at Conway Farms. He’s followed by Dustin Johnson, who won this event last year at Crooked Stick, and Justin Thomas, who has won two of his last three events and picked up a T13 here back in 2015. After that the market condenses a bit, but as is always the case with fields of this quality, there’s good value to be a found a bit further down the board. That being said, some of the favorites are in excellent form and Conway Farms has produced big-name winners (Z. Johnson, J. Day) in its past two turns in the spotlight, so if you favor the short odds this week I’m not going to talk you out of it.

Here’s what I’m thinking:

WIN MARKET

Recommendations to BACK (odds in parenthesis)

Henrik Stenson (34.0)- Stenson has quietly been playing some great golf lately, reeling off five consecutive top-20 finishes and picking up a victory at the Wyndham Championship a couple of weeks ago. He has a great record in big events over the past few years so he’ll certainly be comfortable if he finds himself around the lead on Sunday, and his putting, which comes and goes, has been rock solid since The Open. Moreover, he seems to like Conway Farms, as evidenced by his 10th-place finish here in 2015 that included a second-round 63. This is an elite player at the top of his game playing a golf course that he’s had success on in the past; at a price like 34.0, Stenson is the best value on the board this week.

Louis Oosthuizen (66.0)- Though he hasn’t won yet this season, Oosthuizen has had a good year and has nearly broken through at a couple of significant events, most notably with his runner-up finishes at The Players and the PGA Championship. He’s only played twice since the PGA, one of those being a top-10 finish (The Northern Trust) and the other a top-30 (Dell Technologies Championship) in which he broke 70 in three of the four rounds, with only a Saturday 74 preventing him from logging another top result. In other words, there should be no concerns about the state of Oosthuizen’s game entering this week, and he has experience at Conway Farms, finishing 19th here in 2015 despite opening with a disappointing 71. I’ll take my chances with the diminutive South African at the nice, juicy price of 66.0.

Kevin Na (110.0)- While Na may get lost in the shuffle with a field of this caliber, those who are seeking a “live” longshot should look very closely at him. He seems to have really found something in his game over the past month… something has definitely clicked. After a poor summer stretch that included several missed cuts and a dearth of quality results, he’s turned it around of late and now seems to be in top form, with a 4th-place showing at the Wyndham Championship and then a T6 at the Dell Technologies in his last start. I’m sure he’s excited about returning to Conway Farms after finishing 10th here in his only previous appearance (2015), and I must admit I’m fairly excited about backing him at better than 100/1.

TOURNAMENT MATCH BETS

Jordan Spieth (1.91) vs. Dustin Johnson (1.91)

The market leaders should both contend this week, and the opportunity to back Spieth heads-up at nearly even money is always difficult to pass up. However, Johnson seems to be getting back to the type of golf that he was playing five months ago, when he was clearly the best in the world. He’s now strung together five consecutive top-20 finishes and was able to best Spieth in a playoff at The Northern Trust a couple of weeks ago, putting him in prime position for a FedEx Cup Championship with a couple more strong weeks. He finished 7th at Conway Farms in 2015, and something tells me he’s going to be awfully tough to beat this year. Recommendation: Johnson at 1.91

Patrick Cantlay (1.91) vs. Sergio Garcia (1.91)

Garcia has had it on cruise control since his Masters win, recording just one top-15 since April and finishing 35th or worse in each of his last four starts. Cantlay, meanwhile, has played well in these FedEx Cup Playoffs, finishing 10th at The Northern Trust and 13th at the Dell Technologies. Garcia is the bigger name who has much more high-level experience, but I expect Cantlay to be the better player at Conway Farms this week. Recommendation: Cantlay at 1.91