* - Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COMs Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which also publishes on Tuesday. A cozy field of 120 is chasing a winners cut of 550 FedExCup points and $3.6 million from a prize fund of $20 million. 20. He led the field in shots gained: approach this past weekend, the first time he has accomplished that since the 2022 U.S. Open at Brookline. Just a friendly reminder that these aren't necessarily the 25 most talented players in . Spieth bounced back from disappointing back-to-back starts-he missed the cut at the Sony Open and tied for 63rd at Pebble Beach-to finish tied for sixth at TPC Scottsdale. Poston, Thomas Detry, Webb Simpson and Min Woo Lee will be among the notables reviewed in Golfbet Insider. Bermuda grass is in play as is the case throughout much of the Sunshine State. Harold Varner III Ranks 4th in SG: APP and 7th in Proximity: 200+ Yards. Brooks Koepka By Friday, thatll be the sustained average for the prevailing push from the southwest, while gusts will reach 35 mph. Kim grabbed his fourth PGA Tour victory when he rallied from 3 shots back to catch Hayden Buckley and win the Sony Open in Hawaii. In five starts, Burns has made a respectable four cuts, but last years T-9th (72-69-75-71) was his first top-10 at Bay Hill. He was sixth on the DP World Tour last year in driving distance (322.07). Much of Fitzpatrick's best work over the past few months has come in Europe, where he was second in the Italian Open and tied for fifth at the DP World Tour championship. He had made 13 straight cuts, which was the longest active streak on tour. According to Justin Ray of Twenty First Group, that's the best of any tour player during that span. The through line is hitting greens in regulation no matter how that equation is written for the individual. 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational picks, odds, Fantasy golf power rankings: PGA Tour predictions and best bets from top golf expert Jim Holliman, who has been rolling with his golf picks this season, offers his PGA Tour golf best bets and top players for the 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Those only resulted in an 11th, 10th and 20th thanks to other areas failing him, but this is a course he has plenty of experience on and has finished 3rd in the past. Kevin Yu and Joseph Bramlett both finished T7 at Pebble and didnt get into the WM as predicted, but only Bramlett is committed to the Honda (as of Monday). Marc Leishman Competed once before at Grand Reserve, finishing T52 in 2020 via a sponsor exemption. Gained 11.4 strokes ball striking in his debut here last year. He joins Luke List (Farmers Insurance Open) and Tom Hoge (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am) as new champions. 13. After his runner-up finish at the WM Phoenix Open, Cantlay has finished inside the top five in 21 of his past 24 rounds played. Id imagine hes ready to challenge the big names again. It had chased a couple of grumbles on the Korn Ferry Tour just before that. Ranks 1st in SG: OTT and 1st in GIRs Gained. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images). TUESDAY*: Power Rankings (Puerto Rico), Sleepers (API), SUNDAY: Payouts and Points (API), Payouts and Points (Puerto Rico), Medical Extensions, Qualifiers, Reshuffle. Of the 23 Player Impact Program winners, the only not to commit is Tiger Woods. Hes proof of the value of a home game. He lost in a playoff to Homa and finished second in the 2021 Genesis Invitational. is making his 2023 debut: Scheffler picked up his fifth victory over the past 365 days, but he hasn't been as consistent as Rahm during the past few months. The Honda Classic leads off a month of competitions in the Sunshine State. The field gets a primer on Thursday when gusts might touch 20 mph. Sundays finale easily will be the best round in the context of scoring conditions, but Bay Hills bite might strengthen even more than usual as the wind will rotate and howl in from the north. 1. His strength is on approach and, given his roots, also confidence when the wind blows. The 24-year-old has two-career DP World Tour wins at the 2020 ISPS Handa Vic Open and the 2021 abrdn Scottish Open. Scheffler is atop the OWGR for the second time in his career, after spending 30 weeks at No. Our experts have a couple of Arnold Palmer Invitational predictions that they like, but their best bet is on Will Zalatoris to win outright with +2200 odds at DraftKings Sportsbook. Trusting that greens will be adjusted accordingly, its a plan that likely will extend into Saturdays third round for which the elements will mimic the opener, albeit with a slight risk of inclement weather. He had six birdies in his first eight holes in the second round before picking up three bogeys on the second nine. How Arnold Palmers Bay Hill Club & Lodge will present itself, what Mother Nature has planned and more can be found below. Daytime temperatures will eclipse 80 degrees and the threat for rain is relegated to a passing shower at worst. Michael Collins is back for an all-new season of America's Caddie. He was just four off the winning pace on a crowded, talented . The Honda Classic, PGA National, Palm Beach Gardens, But he missed the cut at the WM Phoenix Open after hitting consecutive shots into the water on No. "I'm gonna say exactly what 99.99 percent of fans said about players leaving . The Arnold Palmer Invitational field is absolutely loaded, led by world #1 Jon Rahm. All of golfs best players will be in attendance. He missed the cut in each of his past two starts at Riviera, after finishing solo second there in 2019, 1 shot behind winner J.B. Holmes. Kevin Yu and Joseph Bramlett both finished T7 at Pebble and didnt get into the WM as predicted, but only Bramlett is committed to the Honda (as of Monday). Previous rank: 25 One of those was at Bay Hill in 2021, and hes been solid here in three starts. Previous rank: 6 The Spaniard finished in third place in Phoenix, 5 shots back, but was in contention once again. Rory McIlroy (Stacy Revere/Getty Images) The Grateful Dead didn't release an album about 2020, but the band . He finished T16. Seamus Power: irl 2.579 . Stream on ESPN+. Schauffele called on his former Long Beach State teammate, Kevin "Tech" Techakanokboon, to carry his bag this weekend. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. Other results in Orlando include T-49th in 2018, T-54th in 2019, T-36th in 2020, and a missed cut in 2021. He still has three top-10s, including a victory at the Sanderson Farms Championship. 1 Rory McIlroy leads a WM Phoenix Open field that features 22 of the world's top 25 golfers. With a win, each also would qualify for the 2024 editions of the API. This years field is as weak as this tournaments seen in years. Scheffler is the defending champion at Bay Hill, as he edged out Viktor Hovland, Tyrrell Hatton and Billy Horschel by a single stroke. Ranks 10th in the model and 11th in SG: APP. 1. 18. Things are about to get good on the PGA Tour. He won the Fortinet Championship in September and then cooled off. After a slow start to the season, the former Florida star is beginning to heat up. With that being said, it seems that distance may be becoming less important since some changes from the Bay Hill superintendent that have opened the course up more and made the fairway width closer to average. Make no mistake, however, par still remains a terrific score on the course. Its an event dating back to 1972 thats been held at its current venue, PGA National Resort and Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, since 2007. Spieth followed up his near-miss at Pebble Beach with a rather ordinary start at TPC Scottsdale, a tie for 60th at even par. looped in on merit, so even its reorder at the conclusion of the West Coast Swing had no impact. Former Ryder Cup members Shane Lowry, Alex Noren,. Justin Thomas Cameron Smith will not be in the field to defend his title due to leaving for LIV Golf. Patrick Cantlay With tree-lined, narrow fairways on a longer course, elite drivers of the golf ball are at an upper hand at Bay Hill. He should be well rested after taking last week off following a missed cut at the Genesis Invitational. Also recorded a T11 at Pebble Beach four weeks ago. Our experts have broken down the betting odds and are ready to deliver their Arnold Palmer Invitational predictions with odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook. 1, a loaded LPGA field and more to watch in golf this week Rahm is followed by Rory McIlroy (+900), Scottie Scheffler (+1000) and a large group at +2000 that is headlined by Xander Schauffele and Collin Morikawa. Lee also was T-13th at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic where he finished ahead of names like Rasmus and Nicolai Hojgaard, Perez, Tyrrell Hatton, etc. Tiger Woods, who is not in the field this year, has won Arnold Palmers event a whopping eight times. Call 1-800-GAMBLER if you have a gambling problem. He has 10 top-10s in 14 starts there, including a victory in 2020. Missed fairways will be inevitable, so playing out of the thick rough with short irons instead of long irons is a big advantage. He carded a 7-under 64 in the third round of the WM Phoenix Open, his 15th such round of 64 or better since 2021. MONDAY: Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers WEDNESDAY: Golfbet Insider SUNDAY: Payouts and Points, Medical Extensions, Qualifiers, Reshuffle * - Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM's. He hadn't missed the weekend since the 2021 Masters. Shortest in odds and claiming top honor is Sungjae Im. He would have become only the fifth player to win it three times, joining Phil Mickelson, Mark Calcavecchia, Gene Littler and Arnold Palmer. 16. Hatton won the tournament in 2020 before Bryson DeChambeau prevailed in 2021. Thomas, the reigning PGA Championship winner, still seemed to be dialing things in heading into Phoenix. Last week at PGA National gave us a fun week considering the lack of star power in the field. Cantlay, who is ranked No. 4. * - Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COMs Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf, which also publishes on Tuesday. Who's on the bubble in men's CBB? He's as hot as they come entering the Honda Classic, having won in Abu Dhabi a month ago (for a European Tour event) then finishing as the runner-up in Phoenix earlier this month. All of them are reachable for longer players and allow eagle chances throughout the round. Day climbed from No. Our Arnold Palmer Invitational predictions are focused on Will Zalatoris, who is also among the top choices at +2200. This week, the tour heads to the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, for the unofficial "fifth major," which now has a $20 . Scoring will be the name of the game this week. Scottie Scheffler : The World No. "It almost kind of took my focus to the next level where I just did a really good job of managing my way around the golf course and making some really key shots down the stretch. Normally, the winning score is in the low to mid-teens with anything in double digits a great week. The short game has been way off, but the ball striking continues to be there. Ranks 2nd in SG: P and 16th in the model. He also led the Phoenix field in strokes gained: tee to green and scrambling. Lees teed it up twice in 2023, both on the DP World Tours Middle-East swing. An entertaining run on the west coast headlined the PGA Tour during the January and February months, but now the golfers have headed east with the Masters on the horizon in early April. by Mastercard Rd 2 - Suspended ESPN+ ESPN Search. PGA TOUR Rob Bolton's fantasy golf preview for the 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational ROB BOLTON'S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.com's Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous perspectives.. As of Tuesday, five commits are currently exempt into THE PLAYERS, so the PRO also is an opportunity for Nate Lashley, Max McGreevy, Scott Piercy, Austin Smotherman and Nick Watney to sharpen their tools for the PGA TOURs flagship event. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. Ranks 17th in the model. As usual, a longshot that makes the top-25 this week is Alex Smalley. 5 in the Official World Golf Ranking, hasn't yet his stride this season. Its officially a designated event in 2023, but you dont need to conceive a visual of the King himself winking, grinning and giving a thumbs-up to approve what we already know, that this tournament is special. Kim, from South Korea, is tough to beat when his putter gets hot. Tom Kim : Going through his first mini-slump here since getting his PGA Tour card, but theres not too much to be concerned about. SUNDAY: Payouts and Points, Medical Extensions, Qualifiers, Reshuffle. Justin Thomas (+1200) With seven top-10 finishes this season, including at the Masters in April, the 14-time. 25. The qualifications for this exclusive event are pretty simple: win a tournament during the 2021 calendar year, stretching across two seasons (January to December). Itd be dumb to ignore him at a course that requires elite driving, and he gained 4.6 OTT here in a 13th last year.