Jonathan Byrd’s travel woes lead to Pebble Beach

What once seemed unreasonable is a worthy conversation again — for the experts, for his peers, for Tiger Woods himself. It’s OK to talk about getting to or passing Jack Nicklaus’ 18 majors.

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Even when the narrative of wind coming to the defense of a golf course is promoted into the headline, it’s still relative. Legitimate inclement weather tore the dome off last year’s CareerBuilder Challenge. Early-tournament rain was followed by moderate-to-gusty winds throughout the tournament. Daytime high temperatures settled in the low 60s. Yet, Hudson Swafford still manufactured 20-under 268 en route to his breakthrough victory and runner-up Adam Hadwin spun a 59 at La Quinta Country Club in the third round. This week’s field of 156 may need an additional layer of clothing in the morning, but it won’t be annoyed further. More on the forecast, the three courses in the rotation and other nuggets beneath the ranking. Power Rankings: CareerBuilder Challenge RANK PLAYER COMMENT Concluded 2017 with victory at the DP World Tour Championship and began 2018 with a runner-up finish in his debut at the Sentry TOC. Second appearance at CareerBuilder (T34, 2017). Knock knock! The red-hot lefty has four top fives and a solo eighth in five starts this season. Since 2016 at CareerBuilder, he’s finished a respective T11 and T3, both at 18-under 270. What’s not to love about his form? Atop the FedExCup standings with two wins and another two top 10s. Third appearance at CareerBuilder, so familiarity is another asset. Scored 63-65 on the weekend at Waialae and placed T4 for his fourth top 10 and seventh top 20 since August. Most recent of four top 20s at the CareerBuilder was a T17 in 2016. Bracketed holidays with a T4 at RSM and a T10 at Sony where he co-led with an opening 63. Seeking redemption at CareerBuilder. Sat T8 through 54 holes last year but finished T21. Won here in 2016 and finished T25 in his title defense. Opened 2018 with a T11 at Kapalua and T18 at Waialae, ranking a respective fifth and 18th in strokes gained: putting. Opened and closed a 4-for-4 fall with top 10s. Has seven top 10s since a career-best-matching T3 at last year’s CareerBuilder; placed T14 the year prior. Third on TOUR in strokes gained. The 2014 champ is in his sixth straight appearance; last year’s T12 is his second-best finish. Polished off 2017 with a T10 at DP World, a T5 at the Hero and the birth of his second child. Off since a T15 at the WGC-HSBC Champions in late October. Opened 2017-18 with a T3 at the Safeway. Two-time CareerBuilder champ; T3-T21 here on current rotation. Perfect in six starts this season with three top 10s. T4 at Waialae; led the field in fairways hit and ranked second in strokes gained: putting. Top 10s at CareerBuilder in 2013 and 2014. This event rolls around at a time when the scuffling 35-year-old can really use it. All-time earnings leader here has two wins among eight top 20s, including in each of the last four editions. Settled for a T32 at Waialae despite four red numbers. Launched into this season with a pair of top 20s and a T4. He’s gone T11-T12 at the CareerBuilder since 2016. The 36-year-old continues to glide in a groove. Last week’s T18 was his seventh consecutive top 25 and 12th in his last 16 starts. T17 (2016) and T12 (2017) at CareerBuilder. A 62 on Sunday at Waialae was just one round but it was impeccably timed. Now carries disappointment-fueled motivation of a P2 into CareerBuilder where he’s 3-for-3 with two top 20s. First start as a father after son was born on Dec. 22 and does so in an event where he’s 5-for-5 with a pair of runner-up finishes. Closed out the fall with a T17 at the RSM. Defending champion Hudson Swafford, Kevin Kisner, Austin Cook and Zach Johnson will be among the notables in Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider. For the third straight year, PGA WEST’s Stadium Course, PGA WEST’s Nicklaus Tournament Course and La Quinta CC share duties as hosts of the CareerBuilder Challenge. They comprise the 13th combination of 12 courses used for the tournament since 1987. This is the seventh edition since the 90-hole competition was abandoned. Every golfer in the field pairs with an amateur. Together with another pro-am combo, the foursomes will play each course once until the 54-hole cut of low 70 and ties falls for the professionals. If more than 78 survive, only the low 60 and ties will play the final round held at the Stadium Course. (The leading three low-net and low-gross amateurs also will tee it up in the finale to determine their champion.) In 2016, the cut fell at 9-under 207, but in the more challenging conditions last year, those at 5-under 211 and lower advanced. Going back to the fourth edition of the tournament in 1963, all courses in the rotation have been par 72s. Each of the current trio features the standard four par 3s and four par 5s. La Quinta is the shortest at 7,060 yards, but length doesn’t distinguish one course from another. This tournament is always about piling up scoring opportunities and converting on those chances. However, La Quinta has undergone some enhancements that will toughen its test a bit. Fairway bunkering at the par-4 first and 17th holes have been updated; they should generate pause off both tees. Over four dozen trees planted across the property create new sightlines as targets and the potential for modified shot shapes into greens. And the green at the par-3 15th hole may appear the same to those who are returning, but it was rebuilt entirely since last year. Years ago, La Quinta usually yielded the highest scoring average among the tracks in the rotation, but the Stadium Course has assumed that role and with ease. Tuesday’s Fantasy Insider will examine how scoring has evolved and advise how gamers should adjust. It also will include how the weather here shapes our strategy. After a Chamber of Commerce opening round, a bit of energy will impact play on Friday. Winds will kick up a bit before abating on the weekend, but daytime highs will be stuck in the 60s. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.COM’s Fantasy Columnist Rob Bolton will be filing his usual staples leading up to this week’s event. Look for the following columns this week. MONDAY: Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers, Reshuffle, Medical Extensions, Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Fantasy Insider, Facebook Live WEDNESDAY: One & Done; Champions One & Done primer * – Rob is a member of the panel for PGATOUR.COM’s Expert Picks for PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf presented by SERVPRO, which also publishes on Tuesdays  

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An in-form Tony Finau and a hungry Justin Thomas are the early favorites with bettors amongst an elite field in this week’s Hero World Challenge at Albany in the Bahamas hosted by Tiger Woods. While the PGA TOUR’s next full-field event comes in January, that doesn’t mean golf betting has to wait until then. The limited field of 20 is stacked with 16 of the top 21 in the Official World Golf Rankings, with the final four players all inside the top 33. Woods was originally scheduled to play but withdrew earlier in the week due to plantar fasciitis in his foot. When it comes to wagering on the winner, bettors seem to be looking at a combination of history at this event and current form. As of Tuesday at the BetMGM online sportsbook, Thomas (+1200) and Finau (+900) were two of the most popular players. Finau has the biggest handle (14.6%) on the second-most tickets (10.2%), while Thomas has the second-biggest handle (11%) on the most tickets (12%). Thomas finished T5 at the event a year ago, highlighted by a final-round 64, and also finished T5 in 2019 (the 2020 event was canceled due to COVID-19) to be a combined 27-under at Albany in his last two starts. He has played once since being part of the victorious U.S. Presidents Cup team, finishing T40 at THE CJ CUP in South Carolina in October. Finau was the runner-up in 2018 despite giving up a seven-shot advantage after the opening round, and also finished in the top 10 in the last two iterations of the event. He’s won three PGA TOUR events in his last seven starts, including his most recent effort at the Cadence Bank Houston Open. Albany typically gives up tons of birdies, and these two players make plenty of them. Thomas finished third a year ago on TOUR in birdie average (4.58 per round), while Finau was 11th (4.22). Current Handle & Tickets Handle Tony Finau – 14.6% Justin Thomas – 11% Tom Kim – 9.8% Xander Schauffele – 9.6% Cameron Young – 8.6% Tickets Justin Thomas – 12% Tony Finau – 10.2% Scottie Scheffler – 8.8% Jon Rahm – 7.7% Xander Schauffele – 7.2% Jon Rahm is the betting favorite at +500, but he’s only pulling in 7.7% of the tickets and 6.7% of the handle. This is despite the fact he won the event in 2018 and was runner up in 2019. Xander Schauffele (+1100) is another popular pick. He finished T-12 a year ago and T-10 in 2019. Lastly, Tom Kim (+1800) and Cameron Young (+2000), who are making their tournament debuts, are also in the top five in terms of handle. * Visit BetMGM.com for terms and conditions. 21+ years of age or older to wager. BetMGM is available in AZ, CO, DC, IA, IN, IL, KS, LA, MI, MS, NJ, NV, NY, PA, TN, VA, WV, or WY only. All promotions are subject to qualification and eligibility requirements. Paid in free bets. Free bets expire in 7 days from issuance. Minimum deposit required. Excludes Michigan Disassociated Persons. Please Gamble Responsibly. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-NEXT-STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO, DC, LA, NV, WY, VA), 1-800-270-7117 for confidential help (MI), 1-800-GAMBLER (IN, NJ, PA & WV), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA) or call (877-8-HOPENY) or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), call or text the Tennessee REDLINE: 800-889-9789 (TN) or call 1-888-777-9696 (MS). Sports betting is void where prohibited. Promotional offers not available in Nevada. Responsible sports betting starts with a game plan. Set a budget. Keep it social. Play with friends. Learn the game and know the odds. Play with trusted, licensed operators. CLICK HERE to learn more at HaveAGamePlan.org

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