Mexico Open at Vidanta Picks

World No. 1 Jon Rahm headlines the field for this week’s Mexico Open at Vidanta. The only other player in the Top 20 in the rankings playing this week is Tony Finau, who is ranked No. 16. Rahm won this event a year ago, while Finau finished tied for second. There will be a total of 17 Latin American players in the field this week led by Nico Echavarria. Brandon Wu, who also finished tied for second last year and who holds the course record at Vidanta Vallarta is in the field. Rahm is listed as the clear betting favorite at +225 at BetRivers. Finau is the only other player listed at single-digit odds, as he is +700. It is then a big jump to Wyndham Clark as the third choice in the betting odds at +1800. I am coming off hitting a 33-1 longshot last week, as the team of Hardy and Riley won in Louisiana. Let’s look at Mexico Open at Vidanta picks.

Venue: Vidanta Vallarta is a par 71 that measures 7,456 yards. It opened in 2015 and offers views of the Sierra Madres on every hole. The key on this course is position off the tee, as almost all of the leaders last year ranked highly in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee. There are a total of 106 bunkers on the course.

Last Year: Jon Rahm won his 7^th PGA Tour title a year ago by taking the Mexico Open. He closed with a final round 69 to finish one shot in front of Tony Finau, Kurt Kitayama and Brandon Wu.

TV Coverage: CBS & Golf Channel

Zurich Classic of New Orleans Odds

Rahm, Jon +225

Finau, Tony +700

Clark, Wyndham +1800

Woodland, Gary +2800

Hojgaard, Nicolai +3000

Rodgers, Patrick +3300

McNealy, Maverick +3500

Byeong Hun An +3500

Noren, Alexander +4000

Hossler, Beau +4000

Rai, Aaron +4000

Jaeger, Stephan +4000

Pendrith, Taylor +4500

Grillo, Emiliano +5000

Putnam, Andrew +5500

Smalley, Alex +5500

List, Luke +6000

Bramlett, Joseph +6000

Shelton, Robby +6600

Martin, Ben +6600

Hall, Harry +6600

Brandon Wu +6600

Lipsky, David +6600

Seong-Hyeon Kim +6600

Gordon, Will +6600

Higgo, Garrick +6600

Wallace, Matt +7000

Hodges, Lee +8000

Daffue, MJ +9000

Reavie, Chez +9000

Hubbard, Mark +9000

Griffin, Lanto +9000

Cole, Eric +9000

Sigg, Greyson +9000

Wu, Dylan +9000

All other players are listed with odds of +10000 or more

Favorite

Rahm, Jon +225

I said last week that although it was tempting to bet on the team of Cantlay and Schauffele that I was not going to do it and that proved wise, as the golf betting favorite lost yet again. The field in Mexico is about as weak a field as you are ever going to get in a full PGA Tour event, so if you want to bet Rahm, it is hard to argue. The one player who has been able to deliver as a favorite this year is Rahm, but I can’t take him at odds this low, especially when the golf betting favorite loses almost every week.

Value Picks

Woodland, Gary +2800

Why not Woodland at a decent price? He has been playing much better of late and we know he is good off the tee. He played well at Augusta and his number overall are pretty good. If he can get past Rahm and Finau, then he has a good chance this week and we definitely get a lot better number on Woodland than we do on the two favorites.

Hojgaard, Nicolai +3000

The next player on the odds board worth a look is Hojgaard. He is an excellent driver of the golf ball and he has played well this year with a number of good finishes on the PGA Tour. He is playing to get into the Top 125 for the fall portion of the PGA Tour schedule and right now he is at No. 118. He finished 2^nd at the Corales Championship just five weeks ago and that course is similar to this one.

Higgo, Garrick +6600

We are drifting down the odds board more than normal this week, but the field this week is so even after the top two that anyone could win if Rahm or Finau don’t. Higgo has made 8 of 10 cuts of late and he looked good at Harbour Town for a while. This course should suit his game better and he has shown the ability to play well on these coastal courses

Bhatia, Akshay +10000

Another longshot worth a look is Bhatia who is also looking to stay in the Top 125. He is currently at 102^nd so he has the chance to move up. He finished 2^nd at the Puerto Rico Open which had a weak field and was played on a coastal course. We know he can drive it well and he ranks in the Top 25 of late in Strokes Gained: Off-the Tee. I’ll take a flyer on him at big odds.

Check out the latest Mexico Open at Vidanta odds at BetRivers