The 2019 Hero World Challenge may not be an official PGA Tour event, but it features one of the strongest lineups you'll see all season. Eighteen of the world's top golfers will tee it up this week at the Albany Golf Club in the Bahamas. Play gets underway on Wednesday, with the first 2019 Hero World Challenge tee times coming at 10:40 a.m. ET. Twelve players with an Official World Golf Ranking in the top 25 will be in the 2019 Hero World Challenge field, including world No. 3 and tournament favorite Jon Rahm. The three-time PGA Tour champion is listed at 7-2 in the current 2019 Hero World Challenge odds, while Justin Thomas (7-1), Tiger Woods (8-1) and Webb Simpson (10-1) are the only other players in the field with odds shorter than 10-1. Before you make your 2019 Hero World Challenge picks or enter a PGA DFS tournament on sites like FanDuel and DraftKings, be sure to see this week's projected leaderboard from the model at SportsLine.
SportsLine's prediction model, built by DFS pro Mike McClure, has nailed two of the last three majors entering the weekend. It predicted Gary Woodland's first career major championship at the U.S. Open even though he wasn't the favorite entering the weekend. The result: Woodland held off a late charge from Brooks Koepka and won by three strokes. The model also called Koepka's historic victory at the 2019 PGA Championship, predicting he'd hold his lead in the home stretch. In all, their advanced computer model has nailed a whopping six majors entering the weekend, and anyone who has followed it is way up.
Now that the 2019 Hero World Challenge field is locked, SportsLine simulated the event 10,000 times, and the results were surprising. One huge shocker the model is calling for: Woods, a five-time champion of this event and one of the top Vegas favorites, stumbles this week and barely cracks the top 10.
Woods ignited the golfing world when he earned his 82nd career PGA Tour victory earlier this year at the Zozo Championship. Woods' wire-to-wire victory at the Zozo Championship saw him tie Sam Snead for the most career PGA Tour victories.
However, Woods has not played since his triumph in Chiba, Japan. Plus, Woods has not won this event since 2011, which doesn't bode well for his chances to finish on top of the 2019 Hero World Challenge leaderboard this week at the Albany Golf Club. He's not a strong pick to win it all and there are far better values in this loaded Hero World Challenge 2019 field.
Another surprise: Patrick Reed a 16-1 long shot, makes a strong run at the title. He's a target for anyone looking for a huge payday.
Reed has played extremely well at this venue over the years. In fact, he has recorded a pair of top-five finishes at Albany Golf Club, including a runner-up finish in 2016. And he'll enter the Hero World Challenge 2019 full of confidence after finishing eighth at the WGC-HSBC Champions in his last start on the PGA Tour.
Reed's short game is what makes him an intriguing play this week in the Bahamas. The 2018 Masters champion finished last season ranked inside the top-30 in putting average (1.731), one-putt percentage (41.79) and three-putt avoidance (2.08). He also finished last season ranked first on the PGA Tour in scrambling from the green.
Also, the model says two other golfers with odds of 14-1 or longer will make a strong run at the title. Anyone who backs these underdogs could hit it big.
So who wins the Hero World Challenge 2019, and which long shots stun the golfing world? Check out the odds below and visit SportsLine now to see the projected 2019 Hero World Challenge leaderboard from the model that's nailed six golf majors, and find out.
Jon Rahm 7-2
Justin Thomas 7-1
Tiger Woods 8-1
Patrick Cantlay 17-2
Xander Schauffele 17-2
Webb Simpson 10-1
Rickie Fowler 12-1
Justin Rose 14-1
Patrick Reed 16-1
Gary Woodland 18-1
Bryson DeChambeau 20-1
Tony Finau 25-1
Matt Kuchar 25-1
Henrik Stenson 25-1
Jordan Spieth 28-1
Kevin Kisner 45-1
Bubba Watson 45-1
Chez Reavie 66-1
