Diane Knox Balas
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The race to the finish line is on. There are three events left in 2023 on the PGA Tour, and that means three chances for a chunk of the field to lock up their full cards for next year. Tiger Woods may not be teeing it up this week, but his name is going to be on everyone’s lips. The course this week is a Tiger design – in fact, the first course he ever designed with his TGR team.
El Cardonal at the Diamante Resort in Cabo, Mexico opened in 2014 and this marks the first time a PGA Tour event has been held at one of his masterpieces. For years, this tournament was held at Mayakoba near Cancun – a Greg Norman design – but after the event last year the course signed a deal with LIV Golf, thus ending their partnership with the PGA Tour.
At the culmination of this FedEx Fall portion of the season, the guys in the top-125 of the FedExCup standings lock up their full card for next year. In addition, the players who finish 51st – 60th place earn their place in the first two Signature Events of 2024.
Some of the big names (and storylines) this week in Cabo include Ludvig Aberg who sits at 99th in the standings, Sahith Theegala who won the Fortinet Championship last month, Maverick McNealy returning after shoulder surgery in June, and Michael Block who became big news after this play at this year’s PGA Championship. Cabo seems like a fun place for a Block Party…!
Aberg is the Vegas favorite at +1000, followed by Cameron Young at +1400 and Theegala at +1600.
El Cardonal at Diamante: What you need to know
The course this week measures in at 7,363 yards and is a par-72. The opening hole is a 582 yard par-5 that plays dramatically downhill, and the 18th is a relatively easy par-5. Those two bookend holes really set the tone for the week – we’re going to see low scores and a lot of birdie chances. According to Woods, he wanted to challenge golfers to “think and make choices”, with angles of approach being a key part of the strategy.
By all accounts, it’s going to be quite the trek out there this week, but the views of the Pacific Ocean will surely help. The terrain is dramatic, with elevation changes and irregular contours, but there’s a lot of space off the tee, setting up risk/reward opportunities.
The fairways are wide, but there’s strategically placed rustic bunkers in the prime landing areas. The shaved areas around the greens make for lots of creative options. Speaking of the greens, they are enormous, averaging 8,300 square feet.
The wind is going to be a factor this week, and with the course being so exposed the direction of the gusts can flip completely. The weather is going to be the primary defense of the course, with native areas, featuring the desert cacti that the course was named after, being areas to avoid.
The fact this is a new venue for the tournament opens the field up a little, as course history won’t be a factor.
PGA Tour Worldwide Technology Championship Open Winner Picks
Emiliano Grillo (+2800 at FanDuel)
After securing a win at the Charles Schwab Challenge earlier this season, Grillo has all his playing privileges locked up. However, he’s coming into the WWT Championship with some form after finishing within the top 10 at the ZOZO two weeks ago, and that was a nice result for him after two consecutive missed cuts. Uncharacteristically, Grillo’s putting and approach stats have been pretty poor of late, but his play at the ZOZO hopefully sparked something in him as he returns to Mexican “resort golf” which has merited some great results in the past for the Argentinian. With odds of 28/1, I’m putting him at the top of my picks this week.
Beau Hossler (+3000 at DraftKings)
Hossler leads the FedEx Fall top-10, sitting at #51 after a fantastic start to this campaign. With results of 30th-28th-7th-2nd, Beau is making moves at the right time and looking to stamp his place in the first two (big money) Signature Events of 2024. With five top-20 in his last eight starts, Beau has been gaining strokes in all areas of his game and currently sits at 34th in putting average for the season. With excellent momentum and form, could this be the week Beau breaks through for his first PGA Tour victory? Given his results of late, plus the fact he grew up in Southern California and won’t feel too far from home this week, I like these odds.
Patton Kizzire (+17000 at FanDuel)
Kizzire finds himself at #130 in the standings after a T46 at the Shriners a few weeks ago, therefore it’s crunch time for the Auburn alum who’s a past winner of this event. Patton won the tournament at Mayakoba back in 2018 and finished within the top-10 last year (also at the old course). Going back to any tournament as a past champion has to provide you with a boost of motivation, and this is a pivotal time for him. Always a strong putter, that club has been failing him for the majority of the season, but something seemed to click back into place in Vegas a few weeks ago, gaining strokes for the first time since May. I like Patton to find another gear in this final stretch of three events and make some moves towards keeping his card.
Worldwide Technology Championship Prop Bets
Luke List top-10 (+375 at Bet365)
List won the Sanderson Farms Championship at the start of the month, and his FedEx Fall resume boasts an additional two top-25 finishes. Luke hasn’t lost any strokes off-the-tee since June, and has played well exactly when he needed to, moving up from 119th to 59th in the standings. I like him to continue to perform this week.
Beau Hossler top-5 (+600 at Bet365)
I’m taking Hossler as an outright this week, but when I saw 6/1 for a top-10, I leapt on it, too. He’s playing the best of anyone in the field right now and if he doesn’t win this week, I think he’ll be right in the mix on Sunday.
