THE PLAYERS Championship

Odds to Win Tournament

The TOUR heads to Florida for the unofficial “fifth major”, as the top golfers in the world will be competing in THE PLAYERS this weekend. Brian Harman is the guy that came away with the win in last week’s Wells Fargo Championship. That was hardly the talk of the tournament, though. The real buzz was that Dustin Johnson returned from a back injury to finish in second. That injury kept him out of The Masters, so expect Johnson to be eager to make up for lost time. Jason Day, meanwhile, is the defending champion of this event. He won last year by shooting 15-under to defeat Kevin Chappell by four strokes. Rickie Fowler was the winner in 2015, which is also worth noting. Fowler has never won a real major, but it was a huge deal when he won this one. One thing that should excite everybody is that this is a loaded field that will be competing this weekend. All of the top golfers in the Official World Golf Rankings will be out there, so fans will get to see guys like Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Jason Day, Hideki Matsuyama, and Jordan Spieth. They’ll also be able to watch both Sergio Garcia and Justin Rose, who battled it out in a playoff at The Masters just about a month ago. With that out of the way, let’s now take a look at some of the best value plays this weekend:

Dustin Johnson (7-to-1) - Heading into The Masters, Dustin Johnson had won three straight tournaments and came in third prior to that winning streak. When he returned from the back injury that kept him out of the major, Johnson shot a nine-under to tie for second at the Wells Fargo Championship last week. Johnson did not look like he was suffering at all in that event, and it was promising to see that he was not very rusty. With him still looking like he is in a groove, it’s hard not to back him at 7-to-1. Johnson is the best golfer in the world and will be eager to win his first ever PLAYERS.

Rickie Fowler (20-to-1) - Rickie Fowler might be known as one of the better players to have never won a major, but he has certainly performed at a very high level in THE PLAYERS. Fowler won this tournament back in 2015, shooting a 12-under to defeat both Sergio Garcia and Kevin Kisner in a playoff. It was the biggest win of his career, and it was not his only impressive outing in this event. Fowler also tied for second here back in 2012, when he shot an 11-under and lost by two strokes. Something about this event brings out the best in him, and his 20-to-1 odds are certainly favorable.

Matt Kuchar (50-to-1) - Matt Kuchar has not yet won a tournament this year, but the 38-year-old is a great value at 50-to-1 this weekend. Kuchar has still played some fantastic golf this season, finishing inside the top-five twice on the year. One of those times was at The Masters, where Kuchar shot a five-under to tie for fourth. He also happens to be pretty good at THE PLAYERS, as evidenced by his win here in 2012. It wouldn’t be shocking if he recaptured some of that magic on Sunday.

Phil Mickelson (55-to-1) - Mickelson might not be getting any insane odds, but 55-to-1 can pay out rather nicely. It’s also not much of a risk considering the fact that you can put a very small play on it and still come away with a big weekend. Mickelson is obviously no slouch either. He won this tournament back in 2007, and he has played rather well on the season. Even though Mickelson hasn’t won a tournament this year, he has finished inside the top 10 on three different occasions. He still has game, and people should not be afraid to back him.