(GOLF) Puerto Rico Open Preview and Betting Tips

Puerto Rico Open
Alongside the World Golf Championship in Texas this week, the PGA Tour will also host a lesser event in the shape of the Puerto Rico Open.  The tournament will be held at Trump International Golf Club, with the course a Par 72 measuring 7,569 yards. With most of the world's best players playing in Texas, this tournament will represent great opportunities for those playing. Not only does it provide lesser known players the chance to win a PGA Tour sanctioned event, but it also provides an opportunity for those that are fighting to retain/win their tour card to accumulate both money and FedEx cup points. This event is therefore a big week for all of its competitors.

Last Year:

Tony Finau won his maiden PGA Tour event as he emerged victorious following a playoff with Steve Marino. After both recorded -2 par rounds of 70 in the final round to tie for the lead, it was the big hitting American who would prevail after 3 extra holes. Unfortunately, Finau will not defend his title this year having opted to play at the World Championship event in Texas instead.

Ian Poulter would put himself in pole position as he held the lead at -11 going into the last round, but the Englishman would stutter in final 18 holes as he recorded an even par round of 72 to finish one shot behind the leaders. It would be an opportunity missed for the Englishman, who was looking to win his first event since 2012. He is in the field this week and he will be looking to atone for the opportunity he missed in last year's edition.

Last year's Champion, Tony Finau

In this article, I will examine both player form and course form of ever player in the field. Using this information, I will then come to a judgement of who I think will be the top 6 players to look out for in the upcoming event.

*The odds for each player to win is provided by Sky Bet.

My Tips:

Graham De Laet - 18/1:

De Laet is the second favourite this week behind Wesley Bryan and rightly so. The Canadian has been knocking on the door for years to win his first title and there is a good chance it could happen this week. In his last 3 starts in Puerto Rico, he has finished T11, T18 and T9. Although he missed the cut at the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week, he has been in good form prior to this, having finished in the top 22 in 4 of his last 4 events. It may not be worth putting money on him due to his odds, but given his form both at the event and in recent weeks, he is without doubt a contender this week.

Scott Brown - 28/1:

The 1 time PGA Tour champion won his only event here at Puerto Rico in 2013, and he has been consistently strong here over the years. He has finished in the top 10 in 4 of the last 5 years here, including a pair of T5's in 2016 an 2012 and that win in 2013. He had been in fairly good form on the Tour this year, and nearly won his second title at the Genesis Open where he eventually had to settle for a T2 finish. Although he has missed his last 2 cuts on the PGA Tour, that is not cause for concern given his clear love for the course. Can the 2013 Champion win the event again?

Alex Cejka - 40/1:

The 2015 Champion returns to the event where he won his first PGA Tour event. The German veteran had a slow start to the year with a host of missed cuts and poor finishes, but he bounced back in his last event at the Vaslspar Championship, where he recorded a T14. His form in Puerto Rico cannot be ignored considering he finished in a T12 last week and recorded a win the year prior. Can the German add to his 4 world wide titles this week?

David Hearn - 50/1:

The Canadian skipped the last 2 editions here in Puerto Rico, but in his 3 last starts here he has recorded finishes of T24, T8 and T14. After an extremely poor start to the season, his last few outings have shown signs of encouragement as the Canadian has survived the cut in all 3 of his last appearances on the PGA Tour, with a T18 finish at the Valspar being his highest finish of the season so far. The Canadian has not won in his career despite teeing it up on 389 separate occasions. Will this week be his week?

Will Mackenzie - 80/1:
The 2 time PGA Tour Champion has been in erratic form this year, having mixed 4 MC's with a T14 finish at Pebble Beach. So he's not in the greatest of form going into the week, but he clearly likes the course in Puerto Rico. In the last 2 years at the event he finished T6 in 2015 and T8 in last year's edition. He's one of the bigger and more experienced names in this week's event, and he could use his reputation to his advantage.

Chris Stroud - 100/1:
I've followed my name-sake's progress on the tour for a number of years, and it's easy to suggest that the past year has been his most difficult as a professional. It looked as if Stroud would breakout for a win a couple years ago but this has not materialised, and having missed out on the top 125 in the FedEx Cup last year the American has been demoted to only having Conditional status on the Tour. He's only made one start on the PGA Tour this year where he missed the cut at Pebble Beach. So we do not know what sort of form he's in. But he has great history at the event; having finished in the top 27 in each of the last 4 editions, including a T9 in 2014. Whereas Stroud used to be one of the best scramblers on tour, in the past few years Stroud's short game has been his downfall and he has suffered as a result. Stroud's long game has improved so much that if he can recall his past talent around the green that he displayed a few years ago, he will surely be a contender this week in an event he clearly enjoys playing.