AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am 2021: Tournament preview and picks
The PGA Tour heads back to California this week for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
What a finish we had in Phoenix over the weekend, it looked for a long while that Xander Schauffele was going to get his first win since 2019. Then on Saturday, it was the reemergence of Jordan Spieth who fired off one of the most incredible rounds when he seemingly made everything!.
The two at the top stalled on the front nine and faltered on the back in Sunday’s final round and it allowed for that man Brooks Koepka to return to the winning circle at the site of his first win on American soil back in 2015.
It was another weekend of disappointing picks for us after a semi-bright start over the first two rounds. Rahm really never got things going, and the late Bubba charge was unfortunately too little too late.
Let’s move on to this week’s AT&T Pro-Am at Pebble Beach!.
Tournament and course preview’s at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
It’s a significantly weaker 156 man field that heads to Pebble Beach this week. After last week’s Waste Management Phoenix Open and with The Genesis Invitational taking place next week a number of the World’s best are making adjustments to their schedules accordingly.
Still, some big names will be teeing it up this week including the World number one Dustin Johnson along with Patrick Cantlay, Jason Day, Daniel Berger, Paul Casey, Jordan Spieth, and several more.
Like at Torrey Pines, and The American Express, it’s another week of two-course rotation. Golfers will play one round at Spyglass Hill this week and the remaining three at Pebble Beach. With no Pro-Am taking place here in 2021 there is no need for the traditional three-course rotation that takes place at this event, so out goes Monterey Peninsula for this year.
Both courses this week play as short PAR 72’s that are right around 7,000 yards in length. Fairways are generous and the POA annua greens are tiny and fast. Approach play will be the deciding factor this week and an ability to scramble well around these tiny greens should also prove useful.
Spyglass Hill and Pebble Beach are not the most difficult courses, but winds off the coast can always play a factor as was the case in last year’s final round.
Past Winners at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
2020: Nick Taylor (-19)
2019: Phil Mickelson (-19)
2018: Tedd Potter Jr. (-17)
2017: Jordan Spieth (-19)
2016: Vaughn Taylor (-17)
The Favorites at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
The odds used in this article can be found online at popular betting sites, for more information on the best odds and sportsbook’s available locally to you check out The Action Network
Dustin Johnson +360 opens this week as the clear-cut favorite and it’s hard to argue against the best player in the world right now, DJ could show up this week and win in dominant fashion, and would it be a surprise? not really. The 2020 Masters champion makes his way back to the states this week for the first time since the Tournament of Champions, and he comes in fresh off a win in Saudi Arabia last weekend.
Three others show up in the 20 and under range this week. Patrick Cantlay +1000 comes in as the second favorite this week and is coming off a 2nd at the American Express in his last start. Daniel Berger +1800 and Paul Casey +2000 close out the range. Berger missed the cut last week but before that point had been playing some spectacular golf, he was also 5th at this event last year, so the short price makes sense.
Casey meanwhile is fresh off a win two starts ago and has two top-ten finishes at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in his last three starts.
Mid-Tier
Jason Day +3000 and Jordan Spieth +3000 highlight this range this week. Day has started his 2021 with two consecutive missed cuts but returns this week to a place he loves. The Australian has an incredible four straight top-five finishes in consecutive years at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Jordan will be a popular pick this week after his incredible play over the weekend. The price reflects this as he is now down in this range instead of some of the deeper numbers we have seen him at in recent times.
Even when playing poorly over the years Spieth has still found success at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am with two top-twenty finishes in his last three starts at Pebble.
Speaking of course history, Phil Mickelson +6600 is also one of the big names in the mid-tier range this week. The five-time Major winner has not had the best of starts in 2021, but the same case could have been laid out for him last year and he still went on to finish 3rd here in 2020. Phil has a 3rd, 1st, 2nd, 2nd, in four of his last five starts here.
In typical fashion after laying out all that course history, I begin this week’s card with someone who has very little to none at this event.