The PGA Tour will spend another week on the West Coast, as Riviera Country Club, located in Pacific Palisades, California, will host the Genesis Invitational. The course runs 7,322 yards and plays as a par 71 for the weekend. The greens, once again, are poa annua grass. The tournament dates back to 1926 and will have its 58th edition this year. Tiger Woods will appear for the 11th time — and will still be looking for his first win. The field is an elite one, with Brooks Koepka, Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas all on hand. J.B. Holmes is the defending champion. One of the most famous holes is #6, a par 3 that has a bunker in the middle of the green. Fairways are hard to hit here, and the kikuyu grass in the rough is dense and hard to break out of. The greens are small and undulating, making them harder to hit. Look for golfers who excel in Strokes Gained: Around the Green and Strokes Gained: Putting. Also, Strokes Gained: Off the Tee is important, because long drivers are rewarded here — if they are accurate. We have the 2020 Genesis Invitational odds (+10000 or better) as well as sports betting suggestions for your wagering cards.
2020 Genesis Invitational Odds & Preview
Contender Odds- Rory McIlroy +800
- Jon Rahm, Justsin Thomas +1000
- Dustin Johnson +1200
- Tiger Woods +1400
- Bubba Watson +1800
- Brooks Koepka, Patrick Cantlay +2000
- Tony Finau, Xander Schauffele +2200
- Adam Scott, Hideki Matsuyama, Jason Day, Justin Rose +3300
- Jordan Spieth, Marc Leishman, Patrick Reed, Phil Mickelson +4000
- Abraham Ancer, Bryson DeChambeau, Collin Morikawa, Paul Casey +5000
- J.B. Holmes, Matt Kuchar, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Sergio Garcia, Sungjae Im +6600
- Joaquin Niemann, Kevin Na +8000
- Adam Hadwin, Alex Noren, Branden Grace, Cameron Champ, Cameron Smith, Charles Howell III, Corey Conners, Francesco Molinari, Max Homa, Nick Taylor, Ryan Moore, Scottie Scheffler +10000
Patrick Cantlay did come in 40th at the Safeway Open, but other than that, his worst finish since the end of July has been 21st. He has not missed a single cut since THE PLAYERS Championship back in March. In 13 of his last 14 tournaments, he has gained strokes tee to green. In his last two tournaments at Riviera and his last three tournaments on the PGA Tour, he is fourth in this field in stroked gained: approached the green.
Adam Scott has taken a bit of a break from Tour play, but his game at Riviera has been solid historically. In this field, he ranks fourth in strokes gained: approach the green and fifth in strokes gained: tee to green in his last six tournaments here. There are a lot of other big names on this odds list, which could lead to Scott developing even a little more value as the Wednesday wagers pour in.
Sungjae Im has made the cut in 14 consecutive PGA Tour events. Over his last 24 rounds, he is 11th in this field in strokes gained: putting, eighth in strokes gained: total and 32nd in strokes gained: tee to green. The poa annua grass at Riviera is similar to the grass at many of the clubs in South Korea, where Im learned the game, which could give him an advantage. His finishes this year have been quality, so he could be someone who rises up as a sleeper.
Justin Thomas should have plenty of motivation this weekend. Last year, he posted scores of 66, 65 and 65 in his first three rounds, leading by four going into Sunday. The conditions on Sunday were tough, which slowed play down, and Thomas coughed up the lead to J.B. Holmes with a 75, settling for second place. He tied for third at the Waste Management Open last week, and he has wins at the CJ Cup at Nine Bridges and the Sentry Tournament of Champions. In this field, he ranks fourth in strokes gained: total so far this season.
