The last solo tournament of 2024 on the PGA Tour takes place this week when 20 of the leading players in the world are invited to the Bahamas to compete in the Hero World Challenge, hosted by the great Tiger Woods.
Woods isn’t in the field this week but the world number one and defending champion Scottie Scheffler is as he goes about trying to keep hold of the title and take the pre-Christmas bounty that comes with winning this event.
Recent Winners
2023 – Scottie Scheffler
2022 – Viktor Hovland
2021 – Viktor Hovland
2019 – Henrik Stenson
2018 – Jon Rahm
2017 – Rickie Fowler
2016 – Hideki Matsuyama
2015 – Bubba Watson
2014 – Jordan Spieth
2013 – Zach Johnson
The Course
We are back at the Albany Course in the Bahamas for the latest staging of this event. The event has been held here since 2015 which means the regular players will be used to it by now. No major damages have taken place since we were last here so the course remains a par 72 which measures 7,309 yards and which is very much one for the longer hitters, as highlighted by the list of winners since 2015.
There is no rough to speak of here and the ball flies miles through the air so it is wise to favour those who can get it out there off the tee. This is always a low scoring event with the pins generally placed in spots where they are accessible so a very good short game and a hot putter is never a bad thing around here. All 20 men play all four rounds so birdies is the order of the day and lots of them.
The Field
20 players make up the field this week but it has to be said that it isn’t the strongest assembled party that has ever gathered here. That might be down to the fact that Tiger Woods isn’t teeing it up but some of it will be down to a number of regulars now playing on the LIV Tour which would exclude them from this tournament. A select field is made up by the defending champion Scottie Scheffler who will fancy his chances of keeping hold of his title.
Scheffler is the only major winner who is in the field this year because Xander Schauffele isn’t here and Bryson DeChambeau is ineligible. There are some star acts teeing it up though. They include Ludvig Aberg while Justin Thomas is a regular in this tournament. The international group of Jason Day, Sungjae Im and Tom Kim are all in the field while Patrick Cantlay, Sam Burns and Sahith Theegala will all be here believing that they can win.
Market Leaders
When the field was released for this tournament the big question was always going to be what price Scottie Scheffler would be to win. The answer is 11/5 which is very short but he does look a good way clear of the rest of the field even without considering that he has won here last year. You get the feeling this tournament is all about Scheffler but there is expected to be plenty of wind around and so I wouldn’t want to be on at the price in what could turn into a bit of a lottery with the conditions.
Sometimes at this time of the year the freshest player is the best player and if that is the case then the 11/1 on Ludvig Aberg could look big come Sunday. He has not long been back from injury but did attempt to defend his title at the RSM Classic so he has shaken off the rust. This could should suit his driving very well so he wouldn’t be the most surprise winner this tournament has ever had. I think he’s better value than Scheffler but he is on debut here.
Justin Thomas is the joint third favourite and he arrives here off the back of finishing T2 at the ZOZO Championship and a third placed finish in this tournament 12 months ago. Patrick Cantlay is the other player who is the joint third favourite. He hasn’t been here in four years so that would be a negative and 2024 hasn’t been his best ever season. Both are 12/1 to win this tournament with the former favoured over the latter.
Sungjae Im comes next in the betting at 14/1. The Korean has been in solid form throughout the year without really standing out anywhere but he has been here before where he finished in the top 10 and got better every day so if that trend continues then he is entitled to go very well against a much weaker field than the one he would have been up against back then. I wouldn’t rule Im out but I think better value lies elsewhere.
Betting
Two bets take my fancy over the course of the week with the first of those coming in the form of Robert MacIntyre. Clearly it isn’t ideal that he is on debut here but the field is so small and almost half of them tee it up for the first time so that might not be the disadvantage it often is. One area where MacIntyre does have an advantage is the comfort he has in the wind, which is expected to blow fairly strong in the middle two rounds. He is also an excellent iron player and a decent putter and in this company he probably still might think he has something to prove so should be right at it. I think he’s a great bet here.
The other bet I like comes in the form of another debutant in Akshay Bhatia. He has been pretty quiet since the end of the FedExCup but he was T2 in Japan last month which is no bad effort and he has won in this part of the world on the Korn Ferry Tour. Bhatia won in Texas this year which tells us that he can play in the wind if his lower level win in the Bahamas didn’t and with him being an excellent iron player as well I think he could run very well on his tournament debut. At 33/1 he feels a good bet.
Tips
Back R.MacIntyre to win Hero World Challenge (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 26.00 with William Hill (1/5 1-4)
Back him here:
Back A.Bhatia to win Hero World Challenge (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 34.00 with Bet365 (1/5 1-4)
