World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba betting odds, favorites

The PGA Tour moves to Playa del Carmen, Mexico, for the World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba. Viktor Hovland won this event in back-to-back seasons while going a combined 43 strokes under par. The course is a par 71 while being relatively short (7,017 yards) compared to many other pro layouts. Here’s a look at the odds of the winning player over the past five seasons:

• 2017 Patton Kizzire +6000
• 2018 Matt Kuchar +5000
• 2019 Brendon Todd +10000
• 2020 Viktor Hovland +2000
• 2021 Viktor Hovland +1800

Over the 15 years at this venue, most of the winners weren’t top-tier players, leading to some handsome payoffs for the winner. Many of the elite tour players don’t enter this event. Only 13 of the top 50 players in the world will play this week. 

Here’s a look at the players with the most success at this tournament over the five seasons:

Viktor Hovland (+1000)

After missing the cut in 2018 and 2019, Hovland picked up his second and third PGA Tour wins at this event over the past two years. He also won the limited-field Hero World Challenge last December with a win on the DP World Tour (Slyn.io Dubai Desert Classic) last season. Over his first two stops on the fall tour, Hovland placed T5 and T21. He has three top fives over his previous eight events, highlighted by the British Open (T4) and Tour Championship (T15). His odds at SI Sportsbook price him as the second favorite behind Scottie Scheffler.

Brendon Todd (+5000)

Entering this year’s event, Todd ranks 103rd in the Official World Golf Rankings. His game had a revival in the 2019-20 season with two wins, including a victory at Mayakoba. He finished T8 and T11 over his past two trips over this course. Todd posted just one top 5 (3rd) over 28 tournaments in 2022. However, his form did look improved over his previous four events (T9, MC, T28, and T7).

Matt Kuchar (+6000)

Kuchar won this tournament in 2018, followed by T14 and T22 finishes sandwiched around a skipped entry in 2022. He remains a top 100 player (75th) despite regression over the past three seasons (no wins since the Sony Open in 2019). In 2021-22, his last top-10 finish was in April at the RBC Heritage. This fall, he played in two events (T12 and T29) with four rounds under 70.

Adam Long (+7500)

In 2019 (T2) and 2020 (T3), Long was a contender at this event, followed by a 22nd-place finish last season. He has one career PGA win (2019 Desert Classic) while ranking 238th worldwide. Long played on the weekend over his previous three tournaments this fall (T30, T53, T44). He didn’t finish in the top 3 in any event in 2022.

Other Notables with Recent High Finishes at Mayakoba

• Scottie Scheffler (4th, T18)
• Aaron Wise (T15, 2nd, T10)
• Billy Horschel (T33, T5, T21, T8)

Top First-Time Starters

• Collin Morikawa
• Taylor Montgomery
• Nick Hardy
• Dean Burmester
• Justin Lower

Here are my top contenders based on betting odds at SI Sportsbook:

Scottie Scheffler (+900)

In his third full season on the PGA Tour, Scheffler developed into one of the best players in the game by winning four events with five other top 3s. He finished with a cool $14 million in winnings. Since picking up the win at the Masters in early April, he placed second three times, with two coming at spotlight events (U.S. Open and Tour Championship). Scheffler wasn’t great in his first event of the new season (T45 at the CJ Cup two weeks ago), but his experience at this course should push him closer to the winner’s circle.

Collin Morikawa (+1600)

After picking off five wins over 44 events from 2019 to 2021, Morikawa failed to deliver a victory over his previous 21 tournaments. His play hasn’t been elite since the start of June (four missed cuts over nine events) despite two fifth-place finishes. Morikawa failed to make an impact over his last four stroke-play events (T29, T45, T21, T44) dating to the FedEx Cup.

Tony Finau (+1600)

Finau had a slow start to the 2022 calendar year (three missed cuts over six events) while failing to finish inside the 15 until placing T2 at the Mexico Championship in late April. His play reached a higher ceiling over his previous 13 tournaments, leading to two wins and three other top-5s. Finau will be making his first appearance in the fall. 

In this event, with many birdies expected, it is possible to develop a DFS roster with two stud lead players. Ideally, someone entering multiple teams can focus on a core of backend players with high ceilings to increase their chances of getting all six golfers through to the weekend.

Here’s my roster for this week at DraftKings:

• Scottie Scheffler ($11,400)
• Tony Finau ($10,400)
• S.H. Kim ($7,200)
• Erik Van Rooyen ($7,200)
• Ryan Palmer ($6,900)
• Dylan Frittelli ($6,800)

Best Bet: Tony Finau (+1600)

Best Value: K.H. Lee (+4000)

Home Run Swing: S.H. Kim (+11000)