A familiar tournament with a new title sponsor gets the 2021-22 PGA Tour season started. A full field makes its way to Northern California wine country this week for the Fortinet Championship. Formerly known as the Safeway Open, the event takes place for an eighth consecutive year at Silverado Resort and Spa in Napa. We typically don’t see the big guns during the fall portion of the season but things have changed. World No. 1 Jon Rahm headlines the field as the prohibitive favorite in the outright market and he’s also a huge favorite in several tournament matchups. It might be best to stay clear of the Spaniard with little value on his betting line. Last season’s Rookie of the Year Will Zalatoris makes his debut as an official PGA Tour member along with several recent Korn Ferry Tour graduates. BookMaker.eu has a complete list of tournament matchup odds when you’re ready to place a wager.
Fortinet Championship Matchup Odds
Jon Rahm -310 vs. Webb Simpson +230
Jon Rahm -340 vs. Hideki Matsuyama +260
Jon Rahm -350 vs. Kevin Na +270
Webb Simpson -115 vs. Hideki Matsuyama -115
Webb Simpson -140 vs. Kevin Na +110
Hideki Matsuyama -130 vs. Kevin Na +100
Will Zalatoris -120 vs. Cameron Tringale -110
Will Zalatoris -130 vs. Harold Varner III +100
Cameron Tringale -125 vs. Harold Varner III -105
Cameron Champ +100 vs. Si Woo Kim -130
Cameron Champ -115 vs. Marc Leishman -115
Si Woo Kim -130 vs. Marc Leishman +100
Sebastian Munoz +100 vs. Emiliano Grillo -130
Sebastian Munoz -135 vs. Mito Pereira +105
Emiliano Grillo -150 vs. Mito Pereira +120
Charley Hoffman -135 vs. Brendon Todd +105
Maverick McNealy -130 vs. Max Homa +100
Chez Reavie -130 vs. Stephan Jaeger +100
Phil Mickelson -105 vs. Brandt Snedeker -125
Talor Gooch -140 vs. Roger Sloan +110
Pat Perez -125 vs. Ryan Moore -105
Charles Howell III -130 vs. Brendan Steele +100
Taylor Moore -130 vs. Taylor Pendrith +100
Lucas Herbert -145 vs. Kiradech Apibarnrat +115
Adam Hadwin +100 vs. Dylan Frittelli -130
Brian Stuard +105 vs. Patton Kizzire -135
Aaron Rai -140 vs. Danny Willett +110
Sepp Straka -115 vs. Adam Schenk -115
Nick Taylor +105 vs. Joseph Bramlett -135
Tom Hoge -120 vs. Doc Redman -110
Alex Smalley -120 vs. Adam Svensson -110
Troy Merritt -110 vs. Lanto Griffin -120
Scott Piercy +100 vs. Russell Knox -130
Need to Know
The North Course at Silverado has hosted since 2014 and we’re seeing many of the same faces so everyone knows what to expect. The layout isn’t difficult to navigate playing at 7,123 yards and par 72. We’re likely to see a lot of wedges on the course with tree-lined fairways of modest width. However, going long off the tee is an option since the rough is forgiving. Big hitters have traditionally done well here, but reaching the winner’s circle requires every stick in the bag. The par 5s aren’t long allowing players to make up strokes, but one poor round will doom you. Winning scores at Silverado ranged between -14 and -18 until Stewart Cink established a record 21-under last year.
Fortinet Championship Matchup Picks
Will Zalatoris -120 vs. Cameron Tringale
Zalatoris is the biggest favorite among my matchup picks and I think his price is inviting. Winning Tour ROY as a special exempt member is unheard of, but the Z-man pulled it off going 21 for 25 with eight top-10s among his 14 top-25s. The only thing he didn’t do last season was win a tournament and that seems like just a matter of time. Obviously the stage wasn’t too big for him and now that he’s a permanent member he can concentrate on getting that maiden W.
Cameron Champ +100 vs. Si Woo Kim
I’m hoping Champ carries over the momentum from his close to last season when he qualified for the FedExCup playoffs with a T11 in the Deere Classic and a win in the 3M Open, the third of his career. With Cink not in the field, Champ is the last player to win at Silverado capturing the crown in 2019 at 17-under. While distance off the tee isn’t required, Champ overcame the field with his aggressive play and that hasn’t changed. Backing him at even money is a risk I’m willing to take.
Mito Pereira +105 vs. Sebastian Munoz
With a number of KFT grads in the field I’m tracking Pereira since he’s the most experienced having competed on the PGA Tour over the summer. Consecutive wins on the KFT in June, and three overall, got him an invite and he performed admirably with a pair of top-10s, including a T5 in the Barbasol Championship, ahead of his T4 at the Olympics. He’s gotten some much needed rest and I can see the young Chilean putting up a fight through the weekend.
Phil Mickelson -105 vs. Brandt Snedeker
With full-time status on the Champions Tour just around the corner, Mickelson is going to give it another go at a venue he’s played in each of the last five years. If Lefty can hit the ball straight off the tee, he should do well since he enjoys the poa annua greens. “I don’t know of better surfaces than these right here,” he said. Mickelson surprised everybody with his PGA Championship win and he’s had success at Silverado with two top-10s among his three top-20s.
Max Homa +100 vs. Maverick McNealy
There’s a lot more to this matchup than two golfers going head-to-head. The played collegiately at NorCal rivals with Homa teeing it up at Cal and McNealy for Stanford. So why not wager on golf’s version of the big game. McNealy is riding a wave of nice form coming in, but Homa has something his counterpart doesn’t – a Tour victory, two of them in fact. There is nothing pointing to Homa having a better finish, but I have a feeling big things are in store.
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker.eu. The Fortinet Championship is scheduled for September 16-19, 2021, and can be seen on Golf Channel.
