2021 Genesis Invitational: PGA Golf Picks, Odds, Predictions 2/18/21

This week, the PGA Tour presents the golf betting community with the 2021 Genesis Invitational.

Before I discuss my two favorite golf bets for this week’s Genesis Invitational let’s take a look at information that I feel is of importance to all golf bettors this week.   

I think it’s highly important for me to begin this article by noting that this week’s PGA Tour event will be absolutely stacked with talent. Frankly, this event has a field that you would find at a major championship. Why is that important to the golf bettor? Well, in my opinion, it’s essential for someone that is looking at wagering on a PGA Tour event to have a good grasp of the quality of the field.

I mean let’s be honest, how you process betting on a tournament like the American Express and this week’s Genesis Invitational is vastly different. For those readers that are not aware, the American Express traditionally attracts a rather weak field of talent. For me, the ability to adjust your thinking when it comes to golf betting relative to the quality of the field at a specific PGA Tour event is vital if you are going to be successful golf betting long term.   

Now let’s take a look at the golf course the field will play this week. The 2021 Genesis Invitational will be contested at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles, California. This golf course is a par 71 that measures 7,322 yards. This track has tight fairways and small green complexes. Due to fact that Riviera has such small greens, precision on second shots appears to be vital to scoring on this course.

It should be noted that this will be the second consecutive year that the Genesis will have invitational status. With this event now carrying the invitational designation the field will be limited to 120 golfers. Just to provide an appropriate perspective, most tournaments on the PGA Tour have a field of 156 golfers.

Let’s shift our focus to my favorite golf bets for this week.

Here is a golfer to consider placing on your card to win this week.

Dustin Johnson +600 –  The current number one player in the OWGR (Official World Golf Rankings) is on quite a run of great golf. How great? Well, let’s look at the data to answer that question. Since the beginning of August, Johnson has played nine golf tournaments (PGA and European Tours combined). In those nine events just mentioned, Johnson has a whopping eight top six finishes, including three wins (2020 Northern Trust, 2020 Masters, 2021 Saudi International). There is little doubt in my mind that Johnson can win again this week in California.

Here is a golfer to consider placing on your card to finish in the top ten.

Bubba Watson +4500 – The 42 year old American certainly likes playing the Riviera Country Club golf course. If you don’t believe me just take a look at his previous results at the Genesis Invitational. Watson has played the Genesis Invitational every year since 2014, in those seven tournaments played, Watson has five top fifteen finishes, including three wins in 2014, 2016, and 2018.

I also like the fact that Watson played well recently. More specifically, Bubba shot a final round 65 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open two weeks ago en route to a 22nd place finish.