After a week off during Thanksgiving, many of the tour’s top players will head to the Bahamas for the Hero World Challenge this week. It’s a limited field with just 20 players teeing it up at Albany Golf Club. The tournament will get underway Thursday and feature 72 holes of stroke play with no cut. Below, we look at the 2021 Hero World Challenge odds and make our PGA Tour picks and predictions to win.
It’s obviously a strong field, reserved for the top players in the Official World Golf Ranking. The No. 1 player in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings, Jordan Spieth, will be among those competing this week in Albany, as will Viktor Hovland, who’s No. 2 in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings. Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas and Collin Morikawa will also be in the field this week, as well as Xander Schauffele.
Albany Golf Club is hosting the Hero World Challenge for the sixth time and will play at about 7,300 yards as a par 72. Bubba Watson holds the 72-hole scoring record for the Hero World Challenge at Albany with a total of 263 back in 2015. The tournament was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So this will be the players’ first time back since 2019.
2021 Hero World Challenge picks – Favorite
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds a full list. Lines last updated Tuesday at 7:30 a.m. ET.
Justin Thomas (odds +1000)
Thomas has been sharp as of late, finishing T-18 at the CJ Cup and third at the World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba. He also played well at the Ryder Cup in Team USA’s victory, coming into this week in great form. Not to mention, he tied for fifth here two years ago and is playing a course that fits his game nicely. I’m looking past the favorites, Rory McIlroy and Collin Morikawa, in favor of Thomas, who can heat up in a hurry.
2021 Hero World Challenge picks – Contender
Sam Burns (+1500)
Burns has the fifth-highest birdie average on tour this season and in a field this talented, it’s likely the winning score will be around 20-under par. Burns hasn’t finished worse than T-14 since October, winning the Sanderson Farms Championship and finishing T-7 most recently at the HP Enterprise Houston Open. At +1500, he’s a great value and someone who can legitimately contend among the stars this week in Albany.
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2021 Hero World Challenge picks – Long shot
Matt Fitzpatrick (+2000)
At the DP World Championship on the European Tour, Fitzpatrick fired a final-round 66 (6-under) to finish tied for second – three off the pace set by the champion Morikawa. He’s coming into this event playing well and as a streaky player, now is the time to get him at +2000 while he’s hot.
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Golfweek:
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