The Arizona desert is the backdrop this week for the second tournament in the expanded LIV Golf schedule. The 48-man field will gather at The Gallery Golf Club for LIV Golf Tucson with the same players we see every tournament littered around the top of the odds board. It seems like every week a combination of Dustin Johnson, Cameron Smith and Joaquin Niemann are positioned as the top three in the outright market. The only difference is that Niemann has yet to win in the LIV Golf League.
A few weeks ago in Mayakoba Charles Howell III continued the streak of a different winner in every regular season tournament. Howell got stronger as play continued closing with an 8-under 63 to win by four swings over Peter Uihlein becoming the eighth individual champion. Howell is one of six players with shorter than 20/1 odds to become the first multi-tournament winner. The top of the odds board is stacked with the best players in the LIV Golf League, but the field could be leveled with only a handful of players experiencing the host course layout. The Gallery hosted the WGC Match Play in 2007 and 2008 with Henrik Stenson winning the first playing. Visit BookMaker.eu for a complete list of odds when you’re ready to place a wager.
LIV Golf Tucson Odds
Dustin Johnson +1200
Joaquin Niemann +1213
Cameron Smith +1215
Paul Casey +1350
Mito Pereira +1915
Charles Howell III +1915
Abraham Ancer +2025
Talor Gooch +2150
Thomas Pieters +2250
Matthew Wolff +2651
Patrick Reed +2851
Sergio Garcia +2851
Branden Grace +2851
Brendan Steele +2851
Carlos Ortiz +3051
Dean Burmester +3251
Harold Varner III +3316
Jason Kokrak +3351
Brooks Koepka +4050
Sebastian Munoz +4050
Peter Uihlein +4050
Bryson Dechambeau +4050
Anirban Lahiri +4450
Louis Oosthuizen +4550
Marc Leishman +4850
Ian Poulter +4850
Henrik Stenson +5350
Cameron Tringale +5450
Odds Analysis
At some point we will get the first two-time winner and has been the case seemingly every tournament is seeing DJ positioned at the top of the odds board. The cool thing about LIV from a betting standpoint is that the wealth has been spread. Not only have we seen a different individual winner in each tournament, on more than half the events that player was a bit farther down the odds chart. There is value looking beyond the favorites with Howell going off at around 35/1 in Mayakoba.
There are some high-profile players in that price range this week who have won on the biggest stage. Former major champions Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau are both listed at +4050 with Louis Oosthuizen at +4550. Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra was in the 100/1 range when he won in Thailand last year, but that’s the exception. There’s a huge divide between the players at the top of the odds list and those at the bottom, so don’t stray too far.
The Field
The prize money is always the same and with a break usually between tournaments we see the same players every time out. He’s not exactly a household name but a win would certainly get Peter Uihlein closer. It’s not like he isn’t trying and he’s probably the most consistent player in the League. For the third time in his last four LIV Golf starts Uihlein finished behind only one player when he was 4-shots back of Howell in Mayakoba. Last year Uihlein was runner-up in Chicago and lost a playoff to Koepka in the final regular season event. It’s hard to say a player deserves to win but if anybody does it has to be Uihlein.
Speaking of Koepka I really like his chances this week for a number of reasons. First, he’s Brooks Koepka. Second, some of his best golf has come on desert courses, including last year’s win in Jeddah and a pair of titles on the PGA Tour. The season didn’t start according to plan finishing 31st at Mayakoba, but his win last October was a huge confidence boost after injuries had Koepka doubting his playing career.
One thing about the South Course at The Gallery is that it hasn’t changed much from when it hosted the WGC Match Play. A handful of players were around back then with Henrik Stenson beating Geoff Oglivy for the 2007 title. Stenson also advanced to the semifinals the next year bowing to eventual champ Tiger Woods.
Also keep an eye on Paul Casey, who went 5-2 in his two WGC appearances at The Gallery. With injury concerns behind him, Casey enters on a strong run of form with a top-5 at the Saudi International earlier in the year and a fourth-place finish at Mayakoba.
LIV Golf Tucson Prediction
There are a number of golfers I like including Bryson DeChambeau, Abraham Ancer and Cameron Smith, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see all of them in contention. However, Casey stands out with his strong recent play, knowledge of the course and his attraction to desert golf having played collegiately at Arizona State.
