PGA Power Rankings: Top 5 Golfers for Texas Children's Houston Open
PGA Power Rankings: Top 5 Golfers for Texas Children's Houston Open
Scottie Scheffler returns to action at the 2024 Texas Children's Houston Open at Memorial Park golf course this week.
Scheffler will attempt to win three consecutive events following back-to-back victories at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and The PLAYERS Championship, which would be the first time this feat has been recorded in seven years. His win at TPC Sawgrass was made possible by Wyndham Clark's birdie putt that lipped out on the 18th hole. Now, Scheffler and Clark return to the field at the Houston Open, the first event held outside of Florida since the Mexico Open on February 22.
PGA handicapper Matt MacKay is back to share his favorite PGA Tour outright bets before the first round tees off at the Texas Children's Houston Open on Thursday morning.
HOUSTON OPEN DATE, START TIME, AND WHERE TO WATCH
- Date: March 28 - 31, 2024
- Where: Memorial Park Golf Course, Houston, Texas
- Where to Watch: ESPN+, Golf Channel, NBC
HOUSTON OPEN COURSE
Par 3s and par 4s reign supreme at Memorial Park golf course. It's a par 70, featuring only three par 5s, but water hazards remain an abundant defense around the greens. This course runs over 7.400 yards and was renovated by Tom Doak in 2019. The Houston Open is back in the spring on the PGA Tour schedule for the first time in a few years.
With only one par 5 on the back-nine, which is at the 16th hole, stretching just south of 600 yards, golfers will need to keep their tee shots and approach shots precise to knock down flagsticks on the greens. Once the greens have been reached, their two-tiered surface, featuring plenty of undulations, will challenge even the best putters.
The good news for golfers is that the rough stands under 1.5 inches, which is a huge departure from the three and four-inch overseeded Bermudagrass rough that was present during the majority of the Florida swing. Bermudagrass greens run 12 feet via Stimpmeter, slower than previous events.
HOUSTON OPEN ODDS
| GOLFER | ODDS |
|---|---|
| Scottie Scheffler | +260 |
| Wyndham Clark | +1200 |
| Will Zalatoris | +2000 |
| Sahith Theegala | +2000 |
| Tony Finau | +2200 |
| Jason Day | +2500 |
| Si Woo Kim | +3000 |
| Alex Noren | +4000 |
| Stephan Jaeger | +4500 |
| Keith Mitchell | +4500 |
| Tom Hoge | +5000 |
| Kurt Kitayama | +5500 |
| Beau Hossler | +5500 |
| Aaron Rai | +6000 |
| Jake Knapp | +6000 |
| Billy Horschel | +6000 |
HOUSTON OPEN POWER RANKINGS
1. Scottie Scheffler (+260) CLICK HERE TO SEE WHICH SPORTSBOOK HAS THE BEST ODDS
It may be chalky, but Scheffler's first in nearly every strokes gained metric, excluding putting, which he's vastly improved in his past few rounds on the golf course. We saw the Texas native manage a T9 finish at -6-under-par in 2023 at the Houston Open, so coming off of back-to-back wins and a week of rest, ignoring him due to this short number would be a mistake.
2. Sahith Theegala (+1800) CLICK HERE TO SEE WHICH SPORTSBOOK HAS THE BEST ODDS
Sahith Theegala available at +1800 in the outright betting market indicates oddsmakers are bullish on him to contend on Sunday at Memorial Park. Theegala ranks seventh SG: Putting and 25th SG: Off-the-Tee this season. His approach shots aren't bad, ranked 59th SG: Approach, but Theegala's flat stick is the primary motive to invest in his outright odds at +1800 this week. It also helps knowing Theegala already has a career win under his belt at the 2023 Fortinet Championship.
3. Jason Day (+2500) CLICK HERE TO SEE WHICH SPORTSBOOK HAS THE BEST ODDS
A T16 finish at this event a year ago makes Jason Day an interesting prospect in the outright betting market this week. The Aussie has 13 career wins, with three T10 finishes in 2024, however, his form has been a bit suspect lately, going T36 and T35 at API and The PLAYERS. A departure from Florida may serve Day well, so we'll wager 0.25 units on him, as he dominates SG: Around the Greens, ranked seventh on the PGA Tour with his short game.
4. Stephan Jaeger (+4500) CLICK HERE TO SEE WHICH SPORTSBOOK HAS THE BEST ODDS
Stephan Jaeger is our next prospect to bet on at +4500 odds in the outright betting market. The German joined Scheffler at -6-under-par for a T9 finish at the last Houston Open event. Jaeger ranks 24th SG: Off-the-Tee and 26th SG: Tee-to-Green, but his putting needs to be sharper than we've seen in order to cash this ticket. Jaeger has been close twice this year, drawing two T3 finishes, so we're wagering on a quality player at such a long number.
5. Matti Schmid (+17000) CLICK HERE TO SEE WHICH SPORTSBOOK HAS THE BEST ODDS
We're going all the way down to +17000 odds to target Matti Schmid. Another golfer from Germany, Schmid has been steadily producing as of late, going T10, T26, and T17 last week at Valspar. Ranked 38th in hole proximity, 21st for sand save percentage, and 26th in consecutive fairways hit, there's enough here to warrant a 0.10 unit investment on Schmid's lucrative +17000 odds at the Houston Open this week.
GOLF ODDS
Matt is an avid writer, editor, and researcher. He enjoys analyzing the game within the game which is fantasy sports and sports betting. Music is another constant in his daily life. Matt loves spending time with his wife and three pets. He likes to read, listen to podcasts, and is constantly motivated to create the most accurate and engaging content in the sports betting industry.