The 20th edition of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies gets underway at the Austin Country Club this week and with the Masters now only two weeks away the tournament's 64 players will each be looking to put on a strong showing over in Texas.
Rory McIlroy will be gunning to make it back-to-back wins after his overdue victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. It was McIlroy’s first triumph since the Tour Championship on 25 September 2016, which was the day that legendary golfer Palmer passed away, something which was not lost on McIlroy (BBC Sport):
"It's ironic to think that the last time I won was when Arnie passed away. To be able to create my own little piece of history on the 18th green here was pretty special.
"I'm just so happy to be back in the winner's circle again and win a tournament that has Arnold Palmer's name on it, someone that means so much to us in the game of golf."
McIlroy was simply mesmerizing on the final day, carding a stunning round of 64, with a sumptuous 42-foot chip in on the par-4 15th hole one of many highlights (see video below). The timing of the win was significant given that the Masters is now only two weeks away - it remains the only major missing from his trophy cabinet. The four-time major winner now tops the betting to come out on top at Augusta, while he’s the 7/1 frontrunner to win this week’s WGC-Dell Technologies for the second time in four years (2015).
The match-play tournament sees 64 players split into 16 groups of four. It’s a round-robin format in the group stages - played from Wednesday to Friday - with the group winners progressing into the knockout stages over the weekend. This means the finalists will have played a whopping seven rounds over five games.
Defending champion Dustin Johnson will be bidding to showcase his intent ahead of the upcoming Masters. The American, who beat Jon Rahm in last year's final, can be backed at 8/1 to retain his trophy this time around. Johnson has finished in the top-16 in each of the four tournaments he’s played in 2018, which includes victory in January’s Sentry Tournament of Champions.
Jason Day will no doubt be in the frame come the latter stages of the match-play event given that he won the tournament in both 2016 and 2014, and finished 3rd in 2013. Tiger Woods is the only player to have ever triumphed three times at the WGC-Dell but Day (14/1) will draw level should he bag his third win in five years.
Justin Thomas and last year’s runners-up Jon Rahm are priced at 10/1 and 14/1 respectively, while new dad Sergio Garcia can be backed at 25/1.
Jordan Spieth, who missed the cut in his last outing at Valspar, isn’t near the level he’d like to be ahead of the Masters with the American still looking for his first win since The Open. He’s a 20/1 shot to spark into life this week, but faces a tough test just to top a group which includes Patrick Reed, Charl Schwartzel and Li Haotong.
Earlier in March Paul Casey won his first PGA Tour event in nine years after winning the Valspar. The Englishman is in form at the moment, while he’s twice finished 2nd at the WGC-Dell Technologies, meaning he's definitely worth a look at 20/1 to go all the way once again. Elsewhere, Louis Oosthuizen (66/1) has three top-8 finishes in four years, including a runners-up spot in 2016.
Nine of the last 11 winners of the tournament have been fancied and in fine form, but for those looking for an outside bet Europe’s Ryder Cup legend Ian Poulter, who thrives in this sort of format, can be backed out at 110/1.
2018 Groups:
Group 1 – Dustin Johnson, Kevin Kisner, Adam Hadwin, Bernd Wiesberger
Group 2 – Justin Thomas, Francesco Molinari, Patton Kizzire, Luke List
Group 3 – Jon Rahm, Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Chez Reavie, Keegan Bradley
Group 4 – Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed, Li Haotong, Charl Schwartzel
Group 5 – Hideki Matsuyama, Patrick Cantlay, Cameron Smith, Yusaku Miyazato
Group 6 – Rory McIlroy, Brian Harman, Jhonattan Vegas, Peter Uihlein
Group 7 – Sergio Garcia, Xander Schauffele, Dylan Frittelli, Shubhankar Sharma
Group 8 – Jason Day, Louis Oosthuizen, Jason Dufner, James Hahn
Group 9 – Tommy Fleetwood, Daniel Berger, Kevin Chappell, Ian Poulter
Group 10 – Paul Casey, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Kyle Stanley, Russell Henley
Group 11 – Marc Leishman, Branden Grace, Bubba Watson, Julian Suri
Group 12 – Tyrrell Hatton, Charley Hoffman, Brendan Steele, Alex Levy
Group 13 – Alex Noren, Tony Finau, Thomas Pieters, Kevin Na
Group 14 – Phil Mickelson, Rafa Cabrera Bello, Satoshi Kodaira, Charles Howell III
Group 15 – Pat Perez, Gary Woodland, Webb Simpson, Kim Si-woo
Group 16 – Matt Kuchar, Ross Fisher, Yuta Ikeda, Zach Johnson
