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Best Bets for the Sentry Tournament of Champions (PGA Betting)

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The 2019-20 PGA Tour season returns this week after a brief break in the action. On Thursday, a small field of thirty-three golfers will tee it up for the annual Sentry Tournament of Champions in Kapalua, Hawaii. This is an invite-only event that features all of the winners from the 2019 calendar year. There will be no cut this week, as everyone will be guaranteed four rounds on this prestigious Plantation Course. Last year was a crazy golf season, as we saw 15 first-time winners on Tour. This was the highest mark since 2003 (19 first-time winners), and it is very exciting for the game.

Atop the betting board this week, we see several class names. Jon Rahm is the favorite to win at +400, followed by Justin Thomas (+500), last year’s winner Xander Schauffele (+850), and Dustin Johnson (+1150). Big names that chose not to participate included Brooks Koepka, Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, and Justin Rose.

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Course Preview

The Plantation Course in Kapalua, Hawaii, is the only par 73 that the PGA Tour will see this season. It is an extremely long golf course, and it measures at over 7,500 yards. There are only three par 3s, and golfers will need to gain strokes off the tee to gain an advantage on the competition.

The holes will feature Bermuda greens with fairways that are wide and easy to hit. Routinely playing as one of the easiest courses on Tour each year, we can expect plenty of birdies this week. Though wind can be a factor, plenty of the longer par 5s are reachable in two for the golfers, and the track features six par 4s under 400 yards long.

Key Stats

  • Par 5 scoring
  • Birdie-or-better
  • Strokes gained: approach
  • Recent form

Best Bets to Win

Patrick Reed (+1400 on DraftKings Sportsbook)
Love him or hate him, Reed has been playing some phenomenal golf of late. The former Masters Champion has three straight top-20 performances to begin his 2019-20 campaign. His highest finish came in earlier this month, where he finished third in the Hero World Challenge. He will look to carry this form into an event that he has had great success in the past.

Over the past five times playing here, he has three top-10 finishes, including a first (2015) and second (2016). His ability to both hit the ball long off the tee and be sharp with his short irons favors him at a course like Plantation. There is some value in this number here, and both the course history and recent form bodes well for Reed this week.

Gary Woodland (+1700 on DraftKings Sportsbook)
Woodland’s game suits this golf course perfectly. Second in the field in par 5 scoring, second in birdie-or-better, and eighth in strokes gained: approach, Woodland hits all the key stats we are looking for this week. He will no doubt be out for redemption this week, as last year, Xander Schauffele shot a sensational round of 62 on the final day to steal the Championship away from Woodland.

Off to an excellent start to his 2019-20 season, Woodland has three consecutive top-10 finishes. At the Hero World Challenge earlier this month, Woodland finished seventh despite uncharacteristically scoring poorly on the par 5s. He shot a one-over 73 on the final day to ruin his chances of winning, and he finished one-over-par on the par 5s. If he can return to form as the elite par 5 scorer he is, Woodland could get the job done.

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Nic Turner is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Nic, check out his archive and follow him @sportzbandit.