The 2021 Masters Tournament is just one week away and a quality field of PGA Tour pros either making their final preparations or hoping to secure one of the remaining invitations to Augusta National is at TPC San Antonio for the Valero Texas Open. Below, we look at the fantasy golf power rankings and odds for the 2021 Valero Texas Open, with picks and predictions.
Canadian Corey Conners returns to TPC San Antonio to defend his 2019 Valero Texas Open title after the 2020 tournament was canceled amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Conners secured himself an invitation to the 2019 Masters with his first PGA Tour victory.
Dustin Johnson, No. 1 in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings, withdrew from this event Monday afternoon ahead of his defense of the Masters. He had been the pre-tournament betting favorite at +650 but Jordan Spieth (+1100) slid into the vacated pole position.
Odds provided by BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Odds last updated Tuesday at 9:05 a.m. ET.
Valero Texas Open fantasy rankings
20. Byeong Hun An (+10000)
Tied for seventh in this event in 2019 despite losing 1.51 strokes per round with the putter. The flat stick has plagued him throughout his career but anything close to a neutral performance would allow for a top finish as the rest of his game suits this venue well.
19. Brendan Steele (+3500)
His T-3 finish at The Honda Classic two weeks ago was his second top-five finish of 2021, and he hasn’t missed a cut in eight events. TPC San Antonio is a similar track to PGA National, and he won here in 2011.
18. Keegan Bradley (+5000)
The former PGA Championship winner hasn’t yet been invited to Augusta National Golf Club for the 2021 Masters after slipping to 129th in the Official World Golf Ranking. He tied for 10th against a strong field at the Arnold Palmer Invitational as part of four straight made cuts.
17. Gary Woodland (+8000)
Missed the cut in three of his last four events following a seemingly promising start to the calendar year with a T-16 finish at The American Express. His putter has abandoned him, but he’s still averaging 0.21 Strokes Gained: Approach per round.
16. Joel Dahmen (+8000)
The winner of last week’s Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship wasn’t given an invitation to the Masters out of the opposite-field event, so he’ll be highly motivated to go back-to-back. This is a considerably stronger field, but the motivation of the biggest names is always in question one week out from Augusta.
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15. Lanto Griffin (+5000)
One of the top putters on Tour, he comes in with 0.79 SG: Putting and 0.76 SG: Approach per round for the season. He won the Houston Open in Texas in 2019, and he tied for seventh in a stronger field than this at the Farmers Insurance Open in January.
14. Chris Kirk (+4000)
Two top-10 finishes in his first seven events of the calendar year, including a T-8 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in which he gained 1.05 strokes per round around-the-green. He’ll need to lean on that same aspect of his game at TPC San Antonio.
13. Cameron Tringale (+3000)
Only four members of this field have played more rounds here than his 34, and he has averaged 0.59 strokes gained on the field per round. He missed the cut in 2018 but tied for 17th in 2019.
12. Charley Hoffman (+3000)
No one in this field has played more rounds than his 40 at TPC San Antonio, and he has averaged 1.99 strokes gained per round, including a victory in 2016 and a runner-up finish in 2019. He also still needs a Masters invitation.
11. Andrew Putnam (+6600)
Tied for fifth in a weak field at the Puerto Rico Open but followed it up with a far more impressive T-4 showing at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. His putter’s red hot and his approach game has been a strength.
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10. Matt Kuchar (+5000)
Comes off a third-place finish at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play to get back inside the top-50 of the OWGR. He’ll make his final preparations for Augusta National at a course where he has averaged 1.30 strokes gained on the field over 32 career rounds.
9. Ryan Palmer (+2800)
Thirty-four career rounds played with an average of 1.14 strokes gained per round. Missed the cut in each of his past two appearances but tied for sixth in 2017.
8. Cameron Davis (+4000)
Gained 1.11 strokes per round on approach in a T-33 finish at The Honda Classic. He struggled around the greens and will need to be better in that area here, but he doesn’t need to worry if he’s not missing the dance floor.
7. Hideki Matsuyama (+1800)
The 33rd-ranked golfer in the Golfweek rankings makes his debut at this event ahead of the Masters. He’s looking to fine-tune his game after a missed cut at The Players and a group stage exit from the match play.
6. Si Woo Kim (+2800)
Has made three straight cuts in this event, including a T-4 finish in 2019 in which he averaged 2.30 SG: Tee-to-Green per round. Won this year’s The American Express with 3.87 SG: Tee-to-Green and 2.63 SG: Approach and can lean on those same strengths.
5. Jordan Spieth (+1100)
Finished second here in 2015 with 2.42 SG: Putting per round. His wedges and putter have been his best tools in his four top-10 finishes in seven events this calendar year and those suit this course well.
4. Abraham Ancer (+2000)
Made the cut here in each of his three appearances but hasn’t cracked the top 40. He comes in with a much better approach game than he had in 2019.
3. Corey Conners (+2000)
The 2019 champ was in the top three among those who made the cut in each of SG: Approach, SG: Off-the-Tee and SG: Tee-to-Green. His putting and short game are much improved to start 2021, and he had back-to-back top-10 finishes before the match play.
2. Scottie Scheffler (+1400)
Last week’s runner-up at Austin Country Club climbed to a career-best No. 22 in the Official World Golf Ranking. It was his third top-10 finish in high-profile events this year and this is the weakest field he has played against in 2021.
1. Tony Finau (+1200)
At No. 8 in the Golfweek rankings, he’s now the top-ranked player in the field following Johnson’s withdrawal. He has three runner-up finishes in 2021 and tied for third here in 2017.
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