The Tiger Woods impact can be felt on the PGA Tour this weekend with the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Nation Membership for the primary time in a very long time.
Not solely will the Tour’s cease in Los Angeles symbolize the newest designated occasion — with a star-studded subject enjoying for a $20 million purse — but it surely’s additionally the on-course return of Woods (and his new look), who hasn’t performed an official PGA Tour occasion for the reason that Masters final 12 months the place he withdrew after three rounds. His final full, four-round Tour occasion got here right here — the match he hosts — a 12 months in the past.
Primarily based on the percentages, expectations for Woods are unsurprisingly low. it’s a 70-player subject however is just one of three signature occasions on the calendar to characteristic a lower. The low 50 and/or gamers inside 10 photographs of the 36-hole lead will make the weekend. FanDuel Sportsbook isn’t even providing a lower/no-cut market. Woods is +350 to complete within the high 20, longer odds than the likes of Taylor Moore, Patrick Rodgers, Andrew Putnam and Brendon Todd. Woods is 9-1 to complete within the high 10, and he’s as excessive as 220-1 to win the entire thing.
Type of tempting, no?
Story continues under commercial
Let’s get into our Genesis Invitational picks with all odds from FanDuel Sportsbook.
GENESIS INVITATIONAL
Course: Riviera Nation Membership
Defending champion: Jon Rahm
Favorites: Scottie Scheffler (+650), Rory McIlroy (+1000)
Notes: One of many oldest programs on Tour with a wide range of signature holes, like the primary, sixth, tenth and 18th. … Performs as a par-71 at greater than 7,300 yards, a quantity that most likely performs even longer when accounting for the brief par-4 tenth that presents its personal challenges. … Driving distance might be a very powerful trait, and should you aren’t lengthy off the tee, you higher be aces together with your lengthy irons. Brief recreation can also be paramount with difficult-to-hit greens.
First-round chief: Collin Morikawa (+2500)
He hasn’t completed worse than sixth right here in his final two begins, and that features a medical efficiency in 2022 that most likely would have earned him the trophy if Joaquin Niemann hadn’t gone 63-63 to start out his week. He completed sixth final 12 months and was within the hunt from Spherical 1. He’s additionally a mixed 9-under in his final first two rounds at Riviera, and he has made a behavior of beginning fast this season, with a 66 Spherical 1 scoring common in three begins; final season, he was eleventh in first-round scoring for the 12 months.
High 20: Wyndham Clark high 20 (+130)
Not precisely a bomb right here, but it surely appears like plus-money on a serious champion like Clark for a top-20 placement received’t be round for much longer. Certainly, a return to Los Angeles — the place he received the U.S. Open final 12 months — brings again some good vibes for Clark. That win got here at Los Angeles Nation Membership, a monitor designed by George Thomas, who additionally occurred to design Rivieria. He has some success right here, too, with a pair of top-20 finishes in 2020 and 2021. One dangerous placing spherical final 12 months most likely value him a top-20. The space off the tee is a should right here, and his means to get scorching with the putter(see: Pebble Seashore) may enable him to get inside that top-20 quantity at any level within the weekend.
Story continues under commercial
High 10: Will Zalatoris (+400)
Once more, not an enormous quantity, but it surely’s additionally most likely a quantity we received’t see for much longer in tournaments that Zalatoris performs. It appears to be like like he’s, effectively, again, after lacking most of final season with a again damage. After shaking off the rust with a depressing efficiency in Hawaii on the Sony, he has improved every begin since, when it comes to ending place and strokes gained. The putter is all the time a difficulty with Zalatoris, but when there’s one floor he performs “effectively” on, it’s Poa. There’s additionally the concept that on a course like this the place everybody struggles on the inexperienced, particularly from shut, the enjoying subject may be evened a bit bit, and his greatest flaw may not value him a whole match.
Winner: Max Homa (+2000)
Proper again to the Homa effectively after selecting him at Pebble Seashore — solely to see him end outdoors the highest 65. He additionally missed the lower final week in Phoenix, so kind is a little bit of a difficulty. However you’re getting him at longer odds right here than you probably did at Pebble, and it’s on a golf course and at a match he adores. The LA native has completed fifth, first, tenth and second over his final 4 begins at Rivieria. He’s a Poa specialist, too, who has excelled at these brief putts which are so vital on this match.
