Written by: Ian Robins
Review of Last Week:
Last weekend was an exciting tournament as Scottie Scheffler outlasted Patrick Cantlay in a playoff for his long overdue first win on the PGA Tour. The scene was eclectic at TPC Scottsdale at one of the craziest atmospheres you will see. Our selections were pretty solid on the derivatives, but still struggling in the outright market. One of our favorite rookies, Sahith Theegala, had a great showing. One long shot, KH Lee, was in the lead after the first round, and Hideki Matsuyama just did not have enough holes to catch up.
NRiviera's 10th hole offers one of the better risk-reward scenarios on TOUR. (Jon Cavalier/@LinksGems)
The Course:
The course moves to the legendary Riviera Country Club just outside of LA. This tournament is an invitational, featuring the strongest field we have seen this year. This golf course has the typical west coast Poa greens and very tough kakuia rough. This is a Par 71, 7300 yard course that plays a little long based on the design. This course features many holes where you need talent to shape your shots with many doglegs, and need the ability to get out of trouble. These are some of the toughest fairways to hit, and will be the hardest test of the year. There is a strong correlation to Augusta National as many players who do well at the Masters, also do well here. We will look for great shot makers, bogey avoiders, and players with strong course history.
Top tier:
The top tier is absolutely loaded here. When it comes to DFS, it is hard to ignore Jon Rahm. He has a run of top 10s that is great, but has not been able to close out a tournament since the US Open last year. Patrick Cantlay also has been absolutely on fire and these two have separated themselves from the rest of the field. From a betting perspective, it is very hard to ignore Colin Morikawa at 20-1. He has been playing world wide, but is in the argument for top player in the world. He is absolutely the best ball striker in the world, and the ability to shape shots is unmatched. With a field this strong, live betting will provide opportunities as these top players are never out of it.
Mike Ehrmann
Mid-range:
The mid range is loaded with players with great course history. Adam Scott and Bubba Watson have some of the best course form here and are both playing well coming into the tournaments. Both are in play for DFS and derivative markets. Sungjae Im comes into the tournament in tremendous form and has the skill set to succeed here, as he plays well when in trouble. From a value betting perspective, I am looking at Marc Leishman, Paul Casey, Joaquin Niemann, and Abe Ancer. All of these players have strong ball striking ability and are class players. All have had success in the Masters as well and show value in this field.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Long shots:
A couple of players who made their money on the European Tour, Aaron Rai and Robert Mcintyre are in the field. Both have won major tournaments world wide and come in in good form. Rai has played very well on the PGA Tour in his recent tournaments, and we can continue to back. Bobby Mac, is one of the more talented players from Scotland and was excellent in his debut at Augusta last year. He also comes in off a top 10 in the World Tour. The lefty is a great shot maker and could surprise here.
Image via SkySports