Waste Management Open First-Round Matchup Bets: Target Horschel for a Hot Start

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — It's officially Waste Management Phoenix Open week, which means we need to get ready for myriad camera shots of boisterous fans cheering in unison.

Wanna cheer along with 'em? Then go win some bets.

Here are my three favorite matchups on the board for the first round and for my favorite tournament matchup bets, click here.

Season record: 22-28-2, -5.71 units

Billy Horschel over Daniel Berger (-125)

In the battle of Gator vs. Seminole, I'll take the former. As I detailed in my tourney preview, when Horschel gets hot, he often stays hot for a little while, stepping on the gas pedal.

I see a low one for him in the opener — and if you're looking for a Hail Mary first-round leader wager, he could be a smart play.

Kevin Kisner over Kevin Na (-105)

The first two starts of 2019 haven't been anything special for Kisner, but it beats Na, who withdrew from the Sentry TOC with a finger injury and hasn't teed it up since.

I always try to assume that if a player is healthy enough to play, then he's healthy enough to play well, but in this case, I'm also going to assume that Na will be a little rusty in his first round back.

Emiliano Grillo over Whee Kim by -1.5 (-125)

I love the spread bet for tournament matchups, but I don't love it for specific rounds. It's a sucker's bet — and yet, this one is too good to pass up.

Grillo is one of my favorite plays this week. Kim, on the other hand, has missed four straight cuts and missed them badly, finishing six spots from the bottom through two rounds at Torrey Pines last week. I see Grillo posting something around 68, while Kim struggles to break par.