2022 PLAYERS Championship: Betting Odds, Picks To Watch Entering Sunday, Including Sam Burns & Viktor Hovland

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Life isn’t fair. Sometimes bad things happen to good people. If you’re learning that for the first time here in this column, I sincerely apologize for the lack of a spoiler alert.

Golf isn’t fair, either. Sometimes your drive lands in a divot. Or maybe an untimely gust of wind pushes your approach into the water or a spike mark keeps your putt from finding the bottom of the cup.

Or, in the case of half of the competitors in this week’s PLAYERS Championship field, you might wind up on the wrong side of the draw, held captive by Mother Nature, who decides your fate more than your actual performance.

As we witnessed, Saturday’s completion of the opening round and beginning of the second round occurred in brutal conditions, with a fierce wind blowing close to 40 mph throughout the afternoon.

Those who were able to weather the storm find themselves near the top of the current leaderboard, but that might not mean much over the next few days.

While conditions won’t exactly be perfect for the remainder of the second round and into the third on Sunday, as cold temperatures could/should cause an initial frost delay and will certainly impact scoring, it should still be less of a determining factor than Saturday’s gusts.

All of which leads to an inherent advantage for those who not only didn’t expend the physical and mental energy needed already, but should have more scorable conditions for a greater number of holes than so many others.

Here are a dozen potential live outright options from the list of those who either barely played Saturday or didn’t tee it up at all, running the gamut from those among the favorites to a few massive longshots.

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2022 PLAYERS Championship Picks

Odds via BetMGM as of the end of play on Saturday.

Cameron Smith (+1200)

A local resident who often plays and practices at TPC Sawgrass, Smith, who opened with a 69, owns some big-game tendencies which have been on display over the past couple of years. The Aussie birdied the only hole he played in his second round on Saturday night and is two back of the lead entering Sunday.

Sam Burns (+1600)

His scores were a disaster (81-76) in his PLAYERS debut last year, but the two-time PGA TOUR winner started with a 4-under 68 this week and has enough talent to win this week.

Keith Mitchell (+2500)

Few players have made a leap in the early part of 2022 than Mitchell, who has four finishes of 12th or better this year. His driving prowess should offer a major edge over the next few days.

Viktor Hovland (+2500)

Compared to others who barely teed off in their second rounds, I’m surprised by Hovland’s current number, considering he’s a top-five player who has learned how to win.

Alex Noren (+3500)

Yet another under-the-radar ball-striking maven, Noren started with a 69 that featured just a lone bogey on 18. He has a nice run of both recent form and course history.

Corey Conners (+5000)

An unassuming Canadian who never seems to get too ruffled, that attitude could be the perfect complement to his elite-level ball-striking.

Shane Lowry (+10000)

It would only be fitting that the man who lost the recent Honda Classic in some poor late weather comes back to triumph in a week that featured all four seasons.

Gary Woodland (+12500)

A pair of pars on the final two holes would’ve netted him last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational title, but he’s obviously in good form and knows how to win a big-time tourney.

Sebastian Munoz (+12500)

Armed with some strong recent ball-striking numbers, his opening-round 70 included four birdies. With five top-30 finishes in his last seven starts, including a pair of top-fives, he could make a run.

Sungjae Im (+15000)

It was a ho-hum opening round for Im, who posted an even-par 72 with a pair of birdies and a pair of bogeys in near-perfect conditions, but he can turn that around in a hurry.

K.H. Lee (+15000)

A lover of TPC venues, Lee opened with a 2-under 70, during which he played the par-5 holes in 3-under. That should be an important trend to keep going.

Patrick Reed (+30000)

I know, I know. The Masters champion from four years ago has seen a dramatic fall-off in his performance lately, but this is a massive number and worth a small chance.

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