After four weeks in the Sunshine State for the Florida Swing, the PGA Tour heads west for the Texas Children’s Houston Open at Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler – winner of his last two starts at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Players Championship – is the heavy betting favorite at +260 (13/5) and is joined in the field by Wyndham Clark, Sahith Theegala, Will Zalatoris, defending champion Tony Finau and Jason Day. In his last two trips to Memorial Park, Scheffler has finished 9th (2023) and 2nd (2022).
This week is the second-to-last opportunity for players to earn their way into the year’s first major championship – the Masters is slated for April 11-14 – if they’re not already exempt.
The total purse in Houston is $9.1 million with $1.638 million going to the winner.
Golf course
Memorial Park Golf Course | Par 70 | 7,435 yards
Course history
Betting odds
Player | Odds | Player | Odds |
Scottie Scheffler | +260 | Stephan Jaeger | +4500 |
Wyndham Clark | +1200 | Kurt Kitayama | +5000 |
Sahith Theegala | +1800 | Jake Knapp | +5500 |
Will Zalatoris | +2000 | Billy Horschel | +5500 |
Tony Finau | +2200 | Beau Hossler | +5500 |
Jason Day | +2200 | Aaron Rai | +5500 |
Si Woo Kim | +3000 | Mackenzie Hughes | +6000 |
Alex Noren | +3500 | Doug Ghim | +6000 |
Keith Mitchell | +4000 | Akshay Bhatia | +6500 |
Tom Hoge | +4500 | Taylor Moore | +7000 |
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Picks to win
Justin Thomas (14/1): T-64
Doug Ghim (40/1): T-67
Maverick McNealy (55/1): T-45
Sam Ryder (90/1): T-33
Everyone made the cut, but no one contended. Another frustrating week, especially after Thomas’ third-round 79. Onward.
Can’t stop, won’t stop betting on Willy Z. I can’t help myself.
He’s coming off a missed cut at the Players Championship but posted finishes of T-4 (Arnold Palmer Invitational) and T-2 (Genesis Invitational) before TPC Sawgrass.
Strokes Gained: Approach is one of the most important stats for the week and Zalatoris ranks sixth on Tour this season.
Driving distance is another key stat for the week, and it’s tough to beat Knapp in that category (20th on Tour). As for his iron play, he ranks 21st in Strokes Gained: Approach.
Since his win at the Mexico Open, Knapp has finished T-4 (Cognizant Classic), T-57 (Arnold Palmer Invitational) and T-45 (Players Championship).
Since missing the cut at the Mexico Open, Hughes has finished T-30 (Arnold Palmer Invitational), T-26 (Players Championship) and T-3 (Valspar Championship).
In three starts at Memorial Park, Hughes is three-for-three making it to the weekend with finishes of 16th (2023), 29th (2022) and 7th (2021).
Griffin is coming off a solid week at the Copperhead Course – T-17 at the Valspar – and played well at Memorial Park last year, eventually tying for 16th.
If he can tighten up his iron game, he’ll have a shot to be in the conversation come the weekend.