2022 Valero Texas Open Odds & Picks: Jordan Spieth Has Value For Repeat Win

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Scottie Scheffler has completed an incredibly rapid ascent to World No. 1. He went from the best player without a win to start February to a three-time winner atop the Official World Golf Rankings to close out March.

Scheffler's win at the WGC-Dell Match Play saw him dominate the competition over the weekend, never playing from behind in any of his final 3 1/2 matches. His win over Kevin Kisner in the final match on Sunday secured revenge for him, bouncing back from his runner-up finish at the event in 2021.

This was Scheffler's big hurrah before the Masters, and last year another former Texas Longhorns star had his in the state of Texas.

Jordan Spieth became one of the favorites entering the Masters thanks to his win at the Valero Texas Open, which he will be defending his title at this week in San Antonio.

Alongside Spieth are the likes of Rory McIlroy, who sat out the Match Play, Bryson DeChambeau and Hideki Matsuyama, all of whom are using this to gain form before heading to Augusta National and make a nice pre-major field.

There are some trends heading into this week where players that are not in the Masters field have found success at this tournament. I'm sure there's something to players who already have their ticket to Augusta punched having one eye on the following week, while the rest of the field is trying to join them in the field.

I am unlikely to get too deep into the favorites this week for some of those reasons. I'll explain which one I'm backing before taking a few longer shots to start my card.

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Jordan Spieth

If I am going to the top of the board, it'll be for Spieth. He's the defending champion of this event and always seems to play well in his home state. He has eight top-10 finishes and a couple of wins to his resume in Texas over the past six years, including last year's triumph at TPC San Antonio.

Spieth didn't get out of his group at the Match Play, but he always seems to find his stride this time of year and I wouldn't be surprised to see him bring his game with him this week.

The key for me will be the number we get on Monday morning, and I am likely being a bit hopeful in expecting a decent one based on a couple of recent poor results, but we have been seeing extended odds on Spieth lately.

He, to me, has become more of a "course horse" type of player and clearly this week and next fit that bill. He'll be the first name I look for when odds drop on Monday morning.

Kevin Streelman

I will have an eye on several players that are carrying a combination of good form and quality play in the state of Texas. There is some correlation to the events in the Lone Star State that is tough to ignore, and Kevin Streelman is one that fits both of those metrics for me this week.

Streelman is coming into the week at TPC San Antonio with three top-25 finishes in his last four starts, including a T7 at the Valspar just a couple weeks ago. He should be well-rested and certainly has the ultimate motivation since he is not qualified for the Masters.

Streelman hasn't missed a cut at this event across his last four appearances and has top-10s in each of his last two trips to the Valero. Those are two of the three top-10 finishes he has in the state of Texas across the last five years, all of which has him in line to be on my card if the odds are right at open on Monday.

Chris Kirk

It's a similar story for Chris Kirk, who has flashed at the top of the leaderboard on Sundays several times this year. He's had some struggles closing out the week, but I expect he could be in the mix once again this week.

Kirk had a T7 at the Honda and a T5 at the Arnold Palmer across his last three starts. He did miss the cut at THE PLAYERS, but we can mostly throw that week out due to the uniqueness of how that played out.

When I saw he also had top-10 finishes in two of his last three appearances at TPC San Antonio, he quickly became a name to watch for me. I'll certainly be interested at the very start as he often makes for a viable play in First Round Leader markets, but I also think he has the form and ability to close out a win if he continues to give himself those opportunities.

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