The PGA Tour will remain in California this week with the Genesis Open set to take place at the Riviera Country Club in the Pacific Palisades. While the Riviera course is one of the most beautiful in Los Angeles, it also presents some very difficult challenges for a pretty loaded field of contenders. This course has a lot of history as its hosted a U.S. Open, two PGA Championships, a U.S. Senior Open and will be used in the 2028 Olympics.
From the favorites to the longshots, we took the time to break down the best bets on the board for this week’s tournament. Here is a look at eight excellent betting options to win the Genesis Open.
Event Details
Event: Genesis Open
Category: PGA
Date: February 14th-17th, 2019
Location: Riviera Country Club, Pacific Palisades, California
Past Five Winners
2018: Bubba Watson -12
2017: Dustin Johnson -17
2016: Bubba Watson -15
2015: James Hahn -6
2014: Bubba Watson -15
Dustin Johnson +805
D.J. is coming off an uncharacteristically bad performance at Pebble Beach. However, if there is one place we should feel confident that he could bounce back in, it is probably Riviera. Johnson has produced six top-three finishes at this course, including a title in 2017. Over the last five years, he’s finished inside the Top 16 each time with four Top 5’s. With a chance to regroup and get his head right following a poor performance that followed a long trip home from Saudi Arabia, Johnson should be rested and motivated.
Justin Thomas +1150
The world No. 4 has produced two top-five finishes in his last four starts and hasn’t finished any worse than 16th over that span. He finished in a tie for ninth at the Genesis Open last year. Of course he can pull out a win, but the smarter play might be to bet him to finish in the Top 10. He’s finished in the Top 12 or better in eight of his last 11 starts but he has zero wins in that span.
Rory McIlroy +1250
McIlroy is coming off back-to-back top-five finishes heading in to the Genesis Open. He finished in the top-20 at this tournament twice now but he is still looking for his first win here. After a strong start to 2019, is this the week he delivers that elusive victory? This course seems to lay out well for him.
Jon Rahm +1550
Rahm will be making his debut at this tournament but he has performed well in past debuts around the world, so there is the potential for him to do the same thing this week in Los Angeles. This course seems to suit him well if he can attack the Par 5’s with his length off the tee. Rahm hasn’t finished any worse than T-10th in his last six starts, so the expectation is that he’ll be in contention this week.
Phil Mickelson +1850
Mickelson is on fire following his convincing win at Pebble Beach. However, there is some hesitation betting him to win consecutive events. Mickelson has had plenty of success at Riviera with two wins under his belt and two second-place results, but if you’re nervous about him going back-to-back — although, he has won a Masters and an Open the week after a win — he could be a good bet to place in the Top 5 in an alternate market.
Hideki Matsuyama +2250
Matsuyama has had some decent success at Riviera in the past, including Top 23 finishes in his first three starts here, including a T-4th and a T-11th in his last two starts at this tournament. Matsuyama is coming off a T-3rd at Torrey Pines and a T-15th at TPC Scottsdale, so he is definitely in good form heading in to this event. If he maintains his strong ball striking (he’s been impressive the last few weeks), he could be in line for a win.
Cameron Smith +3050
Digging a little bit deeper on the list of potential sleeper picks to win the Genesis Open, Smith is an interesting value play at +3050. Smith was T-6th here in his last start and he has made the cut in each of his four appearances at this course. With Top 25 finishes in five of his last six starts, Smith should be in the mix again this week.
Adam Hadwin +5050
Hadwin has played some excellent golf this year and he is in solid form heading in to this week’s tournament. A runner-up at the Desert Classic, Hadwin has finished in the Top 25 in three of his last four outings. He’s been on-point when it comes to Greens In Regulation (hitting four of his last 18 greens in regulation last weekend) and Scrambling, which are both important factors at Riviera. Hadwin has improved in each of his last three starts at this tournament including back-to-back top-10 finishes.
Odds To Win 2019 Genesis Open
Dustin Johnson +805
Justin Thomas +1150
Rory McIlroy +1250
Bryson De Chambeau +1550
Jon Rahm +1550
Phil Mickelson +1850
Xander Schauffele +2050
Bubba Watson +1850
Jordan Spieth +2250
Tiger Woods +2050
Hideki Matsuyama +2250
Patrick Cantlay +2550
Paul Casey +2850
Marc Leishman +3050
Tony Finau +2850
Matt Kuchar +3250
Cameron Smith +3050
Sergio Garcia +4050
Tommy Fleetwood +3550
Charles Howell III +3550
Adam Scott +3250
Chez Reavie +5500
Louis Oosthuizen +4550
Adam Hadwin +5050
Rafa Cabrera Bello +5500
Branden Grace +5500
Tyrrell Hatton +6550
Jason Kokrak +6550
Sung Kang +7550
Brian Harman +12000
