The West Coast Swing concludes this week at historic Riviera Country Club. The Genesis Open assembles the best field we’ve seen in golf in 2019. The course is one of the finest played on tour all season and is a favorite of many of the participants. Twenty-four of the top 33 players in the world are in this week’s field.
Bubba Watson is the defending champion, and he’s now won here at Riviera three times in the last five renewals. The way Watson likes to spin the ball and work his shots in all directions speaks to what is required for success at the Genesis. It is a ball-strikers’ course, meaning crisp, full-swing shots both off of the tee and into the greens, done so with accuracy, creativity, and direction control, is needed in all spots around this layout. One additional note to consider is the correlation of successes in Los Angeles and that at the Masters. We have seen many players win both events multiple times.
The Plays: A favorite, a contender and a long shot to win the Genesis Open:
Jordan Spieth (22/1): Spieth is a Masters specialist, having never finished worse than 11th in five tries. He has played the Genesis six times and has finished top 10 twice, including ninth last year. His stats don’t measure up currently, but it feels as if he is close to getting back to the form we are most familiar with. He began at both Torrey Pines and Pebble Beach with hot starts, and was in contention last week at Pebble before a poor final 20 holes killed his chances. Spieth, in any tournament at 22/1 is a good price.
Charles Howell III (50/1): Chucky Three Sticks is off to a great start this season with a win already under his belt. He is well-rested, having not played in two weeks, and he won this event back in 2007. He finished 37th here last year and 15th in 2017. He ranks second on Tour in ball striking and in greens in regulation and has racked up five top-30 finishes at the Masters.
Ernie Els (11/2, field): It has been a long time since we’ve seen this name on any list to possibly win a golf tournament, but “The Big Easy” quietly has been playing excellent golf early this season. He was 26th in LA three years ago and has three top-10 finishes including a win here in 1999. He hasn’t missed a cut this season and took 28th last week at Pebble Beach.
