The PGA Tour may be on break for the Holidays but that doesn’t mean the world of professional golf is taking time off. A select group of the best players in the world gathers this week in the Bahamas for the Tiger Woods-hosted Hero World Challenge. And the big news is that Tiger himself will be competing for the first time since The Masters in April when he withdrew in the third round due to an injury. Overshadowed by Tiger’s presence is the return of Will Zalatoris, who also missed a significant chunk of time due to injury. The unofficial event does not offer FedExCup points, but there is a hefty prize pool and OWGR ranking status up for grabs. Four former winners are included in the 20-man field with two-time defending champ Viktor Hovland opening as the betting favorite. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who was runner-up to Hovland both times, is the second favorite. Woods has won the event a record five times with Jordan Spieth (2014) and Rickie Fowler (2017) the other previous winners. Visit Bookmaker.eu for updated odds and to place your wager.
Hero World Challenge Betting Odds
Viktor Hovland +350
Scottie Scheffler +450
Max Homa +685
Collin Morikawa +750
Justin Thomas +1400
Matt Fitzpatrick +1600
Jordan Spieth +2000
Rickie Fowler +2000
Cameron Young +2000
Sam Burns +2200
Tony Finau +2200
Wyndham Clark +2200
Keegan Bradley +2500
Sepp Straka +2500
Justin Rose +3000
Brian Harmon +3000
Jason Day +3500
Will Zalatoris +3500
Lucas Glover +5000
Tiger Woods +5500
Odds Analysis
Tony Finau +2200
Though he started last season on a positive note it wasn’t the kind we’re used to seeing from Finau. He won the Houston and Mexico Opens but he’s landed just two top 10s since the end of January. And he hasn’t competed since the TOUR Championship over three months ago. However, he is Tony Finau at a nice price and his success at Albany allows me to take a chance. He’s finished in the top half of the field in all four starts with a runner-up in 2019 and T7-7 his last two visits. He’s shown the ability to master the course under varying elements and like I said, there’s a nice price attached to him.
Rickie Fowler +2000
Since his last visit to the Bahamas in 2019 Fowler’s career has come full circle. He was at the top of his game back then and won this thing in 2017 with an Albany record-tying four swings. He capped off that victory with a tournament course record 61 in the final round. Years of frustration came to an end this season with Fowler getting a long-awaited win at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in July. He seemed to be in contention every time he played finishing with eight top 10s. And his success here is well documented with a total of four top 5s.
Max Homa +685
This isn’t your typical PGA event so you have to look at the numbers differently. With only 20 players the odds will be shorter and Homa is a good bet to break the mold. Proving he can play just about everywhere, Homa recently claimed his initial DP World Tour title at the Nedbank Challenge, his fifth straight top 10 finish around the globe.
Collin Morikawa +750
Along with Homa, Morikawa arrives with a win in his most recent start claiming the title at the ZOZO Championship. He also heated up at the close of the season with a playoff loss, a T6 and two additional top 25s over his final six starts. And in two starts at Albany he has a T5 in 2022 and a solo sixth last year under strenuous conditions. Apparently there’s something about links-style courses that Morikawa likes since he also claimed the title at the 2021 Open Championship.
Cameron Young +2000
There isn’t a lot Young has done over the past several months to make you really want to back him for the outright. He has only one top 30 finish since the end of June, but he’s one of the better scorers on Tour on par 5s and you’d think he’s motivated returning to a venue that yielded him a podium finish last year. The long holes will make or break him this week and betting they do the former at a nice price.
Course: Albany Golf Course – 7,449 yards, Par 72
Playing host for the eighth straight time, the Albany Golf Course measures nearly 7,500 yards and is a relatively long par 72, but by no means is it a difficult play for some of the best in the world. Scoring on the par 5s is a must to be in contention and there are five of them allowing players plenty of opportunities. And the ones that take advantage have the upper hand. We’ve had some outrageous scores during the run at Albany with every winner carding 16-under or better. Four of the last six winners finished at exactly 18-under. Bubba Watson captured the hardware in 2015 with an Albany record 25-under. The course has a links feel to it, but it is more of a resort venue with generous fairways and few hazards. High coastal winds are always a factor and the elements will be more of an issue for the field than the course itself.
TV Coverage: Golf Channel, NBC
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