2021 Players Championship odds, predictions and PGA Tour picks
The PGA Tour's best return to TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, for The Players Championship. Rory McIlroy will defend his 2019 title at this event after the 2020 tournament was canceled following the first round due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Below, we look at the 2021 Players Championship odds and make our PGA Tour picks and predictions to win.
Dustin Johnson and Jon Rahm, ranked Nos. 2 and 3, respectively, in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings return to play after skipping last week's Arnold Palmer Invitational. Johnson is this week's top betting favorite at +1100, with Rahm, McIlroy and DeChambeau following suit at +1400. DeChambeau claimed victory last week.
Brooks Koepka is this week's most notable absentee after withdrawing Sunday afternoon due to a knee injury. Matthew Wolff and Tiger Woods also won't be participating this week.
Also see:
- 2021 Players Championship Fantasy Golf Power Rankings
- Sleepers and long shots to target
- 1 bet for each of the favorites
2021 Players Championship picks - Favorite
Odds provided by BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports' betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated Wednesday at 10:55 a.m. ET.
Tyrrell Hatton +4000
Hatton's coming off a rollercoaster performance in his defense of his 2020 title at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He opened and closed the tournament with rounds of plus-5, 77, but his second round of 67 was the second-best round of the day and his third-round 66 was Saturday's fourth-best score.
He lost 1.22 strokes per round on the greens last week, but he gained 0.96 strokes per round around the greens with 2.52 Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and 0.86 SG: Approach per round. He's still averaging 0.33 SG: Putting per round for the 2020-21 season and should bounce back with the flat stick.
Special The Players Championship Offer: Bet $1 on any golfer, WIN $100 (in free bets) if any golfer hits a birdie. Promotion available in CO, IA, IN, MI, NJ, TN, VA and WV. PA residents, don't miss BetMGM 's risk-free, first-bet offer. Place all of your legal, online sports bets at BetMGM Sportsbook. New customer offer, terms and conditions apply. Bet now!
Though he missed the cut in each of the last two runnings of this event, he returns with his first PGA Tour victory and three other wins on the European Tour since then.
2021 Players Championshippicks - Contender
Abraham Ancer +7000
Ancer leads the PGA Tour in driving accuracy at 72.50% through 40 rounds. Additionally, he's T-31 in par 5 scoring average and T-37 in bogey avoidance, all of which are key stats for the 7,189-yard, par-72 TPC Sawgrass.
Play our new free daily Pick'em Challenge and win! Play now !
He has two missed cuts in six international events in 2021, but he tied for fifth at The American Express and is coming off a quality T-18 showing against most of this week's top competition at the WGC-Workday Championship. He tied for 12th in his debut at this event in 2019 with 2.02 strokes gained on the field per round from tee to green.
Place your legal, online 2021 Players Championship bets in CO, IA, IN, MI, NJ, PA, TN, VA and WV atBetMGM . Risk-free first bet! Terms and conditions apply. Bet now !
2021 Players Championshippicks - Long shot
Lee Westwood +10000
This is a staggering price for last week's runner-up to DeChambeau. Westwood was third in last week's field with 1.57 SG: Approach and led the field with 3.30 SG: Tee-to-Green per round. His shorter driver won't be as much of a disadvantage against this week's top contenders at the shorter venue as it was against DeChambeau Sunday at Bay Hill.
Also see:
Westwood's third PGA Tour event of 2021 will come at another familiar course. He has played 32 career rounds with an average of 1.48 strokes gained on the field per round at TPC Sawgrass. He hasn't played here since 2017 but has three top-10 finishes in his last six appearances.
Last week's third-place finisher, Corey Conners, is just +7000 to win this week.
Get some action on the 2021 Players Championship by signing up and betting at BetMGM. If you're looking for more sports betting picks and tips, access all of our content at SportsbookWire.com. Please gamble responsibly.
Golfweek:
- DeChambeau puts on a show in winning at Bay Hill
- Mickelson falls out of OWGR's top 100 for first time since 1993
Follow Esten McLaren on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage. This information is for entertainment purposes only. We make no representations or warranties as to the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any content.