2023 Genesis Invitational Odds, Picks & Preview

In addition to all of the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings taking part, Tiger Woods is making his 2023 PGA Tour debut at Riviera Country Club this week to wrap up the PGA Tour’s West Coast swing. Find out here the latest 2023 Genesis Invitational Odds and our picks.

2023 Genesis Invitational Preview

It’s the second-straight designated event for the PGA Tour after last week’s WM Phoenix Open, which means a $20 million purse, and all 23 of the players who were a part of the tour’s Player Impact Program in 2022 are participating.

The event—traditionally known as the Los Angeles Open—dates back to 1926, and the record books are littered with golf’s biggest names. Multiple-time winners here include Phil Mickelson, Fred Couples, Tom Watson, Sam Snead, Ben Hogan, and Arnold Palmer. Woods is the host of this event, and he’ll be taking part for the 15^th time. He has a pair of runner-up finishes here, but no wins.

The Course

Riviera hosts the event for the 60^th time. The course is a par-71, 7,322-yard track. It hosts tight fairways with challenging rough, so accuracy is vital. The par-5 first hole is just 495 yards, so expect plenty of golfers to go for an eagle to get their rounds off to a good start. Then the par-4, 488-yard second hole is the hardest on the course, so it provides an interesting dynamic early on. The fairways are also made from sticky Kikuyu grass, which makes it difficult for players to execute bump-and-run shots.

The course record is a -20 264 by Lanny Wadkins in 1985. Joaquin Niemann challenged it last year with a -19 on his way to victory, but he will not be defending his title since he now plays for LIV Golf.

Rahm, McIlroy, and Scheffler Enter as Favorites

You could say Jon Rahm (+850) is in a slump since he hasn’t won the last two events he played, but those resulted in a seventh at Torrey Pines and a third last week at TPC Scottsdale. He’s making his debut here, but it’s tough to bet against him in his current form, which includes three wins in his last five starts worldwide.

Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are next at +900. Scheffler regained the top spot in the Official World Golf Ranking after successfully defending his title at the WM Phoenix Open, coupled with McIlroy’s 32nd-place finish last week. He’s been better and better at Riviera over the years with a career-best seventh last year. Expect McIlroy to come out refocused and ultra-competitive after dropping the No. 1 ranking to Scheffler last week. He’s come in the top 20 five times in six tries in this event, including two top-fives and a 10^th in 2022.

Other Contenders

Xander Schauffele (+1000) has seen plenty of action early in the week to boost his odds here. He hasn’t been worse than 23^rd here in five starts at Riviera, and he’s coming in on quite a hot streak after withdrawing from the Sentry Tournament of Champions with a sore back. Schauffele has a third, 13^th, and 10^th in his last three starts since the WD.

Justin Thomas (+1400) got back on track with a fourth-place effort at Scottsdale last week after having a top-10 drought that extended to last summer. He now returns to a course where he’s logged three top 10s in his last five starts, but he did miss the cut here the other two times. Feast or famine for the 2022 PGA Championship winner.

Max Homa (+1800) is one of the toughest golfers to beat in his home state of California. He won at Torrey Pines a few weeks ago and has won the last two Fortinet Championships at Silverado in Napa. Homa also holds a victory here from two years ago. Even though he was 39^th last week at the WM Phoenix Open, he’s known for bouncing back at courses where he excels.

Tony Finau (+1800) was runner-up to Homa here in 2021 and also had another second-place finish at Riviera in 2018. He’s second in the PGA Tour in Shots Gained: Overall behind Rahm and ranks in the top 15 in several other stats, including fourth in putting. The worst finish in his last five starts (which includes a win), is 16^th.

Collin Morikawa (+2000) was second here a year ago and was in good form this year until a missed cut at TPC Scottsdale. Many golfers have used that to their advantage, however, and used the extra two days to reset their focus before going into a tournament where they have had some success. As a bonus for Morikawa, Riviera is a hometown concourse for the LA native.

Viktor Hovland (+2500) is coming off back-to-back top-five finishes in the last two years here at Riviera. While he hasn’t had an official victory this year (he did win the all-star Hero World Challenge in December), he hasn’t shot over par in the 24 rounds he’s played this season, so you know he’ll put forth a good effort this weekend.

Longshots

We’ll see Justin Rose (+5000) for the first time since he broke a four-year win drought at Pebble Beach two weeks ago. He hasn’t had huge success here with four top-20s since 2011, but the Englishman has his confidence back.

Adam Scott (+5000) is the all-time earnings leader in this tournament and has been excellent here over the past four events—a win in 2020, fourth last year, and seventh in 2019. He hasn’t teed off since the Sony Open in Hawaii a month ago, where he finished 21^st after posting four-straight rounds in the 60s.

2023 Genesis Invitational Odds & Picks from Jazzsports

Of the top four in the odds, we like McIlroy to stage a big comeback after a disappointing effort (by his standards) in Phoenix, and the odds are good on Rahm given his recent hot streak. Further down, Homa is our best bet due to his California savvy, and we also like Hovland and Scott.

GOLFERS	ODDS TO WIN 2023 GENESIS INVITATIONAL
Jon Rahm	+850
Scottie Scheffler	+900
Rory McIlroy	+900
Xander Schauffele	+1000
Justin Thomas	+1600
Tony Finau	+1800
Max Homa	+1800
Collin Morikawa	+2000
Patrick Cantlay	+2500
Sungjae Im	+2500
Viktor Hovland	+2500