Hero World Challenge 2021: Picks, predictions, best bets for Albany Golf Club

The Hero World Challenge is set to tee off from Albany Golf Club in The Bahamas on Dec. 2-5 and we have your picks, predictions, best bets and more. 

The last regular stroke play event on the PGA Tour calendar year is upon us with the Hero World Challenge descending upon Albany Golf Club in Nassau, Bahamas this week. Though not an official event on the tour, the Tiger Woods-hosted event brings in some of the PGA Tour’s best to ultimately cap off the 2021 year before ramping up for the 2022 calendar.

Heavy-hitters galore are in the field for the Hero World Challenge with many of the world’s best set to tee it up at this course. Henrik Stenson was the winner a year ago and is in the field as well but, given his recent form and the strength of the 20-man limited field, saying that he’s going to compete this week would be a long shot.

Who will compete to win and at the top of the Hero World Challenge leaderboard, though? We have our picks, predictions and best bets for the event locked and loaded for your consumption.

Note: All odds are via WynnBET. For more betting info and content, visit BetSided.

Hero World Challenge picks: Winner and Top 5 predictions

Top 5 pick: Xander Schauffele (+180)

Our friend Iain MacMillan at BetSided has Schauffele as one of his best bets to win and it’s not hard to see why that’s the case.

Three of Schauffele’s four PGA Tour wins have come in limited-field events with no cuts — not including the Olympic golde medal win, which was the same format — and he fits the prototype for how to succeed at an event that puts a premium on ball-striking. While I’m not going to put him as my winner, he feels like a shoo-in to make it into the top five in a 20-man field.

Pick to Win: Justin Thomas (+1000)

While Schauffele would be a great pick to win in his own right, how can you not like Justin Thomas in an event such as the Hero World Challenge? He’s performed extremely well in limited-field events in his own right and has a game that should play well at Albany Golf Club. Furthermore, his ball-striking pedigree is near unmatched. If he can get the putter to cooperate — admittedly, that’s not a given when it comes to JT — then he should very much be in contention to go extremely low and win.

Make your picks on WynnBET now

Hero World Challenge best bets

Xander Schauffele – Top 5 Finish (+180)

I’d be remiss not to include Schauffele for a top five as one of my best bets considering that he’s my pick for that. Plus, if we’re getting plus odds for this wager, that’s hard to pass up for a golfer seemingly in line to accomplish this with relative ease.

Viktor Hovland – Top 5 Finish (+160)

Slightly worse odds than you’re getting with Schauffele but Viktor Hovland is still highly intriguing when you’re getting better than even money. Not only has he won relatively recently and improved upon his short game, undeniably his biggest weakness, he’s one of the best ball-strikers in the world and fits the profile to play well in this event.

Brooks Koepka to win (+2200)

Shouts to our friend Iain MacMillan again but he’s spot on with this. We just saw Koepka at The Match put Bryson DeChambeau in a body bag with some great iron play and solid putting. When you’re talking about best bets, you’re talking about the best value. There’s no way that Koepka should be north of 20/1 to win this event based on his upside and the fact that we just saw him play well on Black Friday — even if that was a far different event than this.

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