Betting: PGA American Express Preview

Pamela Maldonado breaks down her top picks for the American Express in La Quinta, California.

Video Transcript

PAMELA MALDONADO: The PGA rolls into a unique event for this week's American Express in California. The format-- three courses in four days, all of which provide a different level of difficulty. Only one course provides strokes gained data, and only one course will be played twice.

So then if there's three different courses, which players should you be targeting? I'm keeping it simple and sticking with only the best players in the field. I'm Pam Maldonado, and these are the players that I like to contend for this week's American Express in the PGA.

I'm looking at the top two ball strikers in the field, starting first with Jon Rahm. He is easily the best player in the field, who just took second place at the Sentry Tournament of Champions earlier this month. If you look at his last seven starts, Rahm has six top 10 finishes, including a win and two runner-ups. With Rahm, you get the complete game. He's a great ball striker, he's a great putter, he's greater on the green, and you can find him at 6 to 1 to win this event.

The second player, Patrick Cantlay. He is the third best player in the field for ball striking, behind Rahm and Corey Conners. The thing about Cantlay is after not playing since September, Cantlay still managed to finish fourth in the Sentry Tournament of Champions. He was that good after that long of a layoff, 100% I'm willing to back him this week. In his last four starts, Cantlay has a T11, a win-win, and a fourth place finish. And he took second at this event last year, which is why I don't mind backing him at +125 to finish in the top ten, and +900 to win.

If you're looking for a top 20 opportunity, Talor Gooch at +140. He is top 10 in the field for strokes gained on the approach, around the green, and strokes gain total. In his last eight events, Gooch has six top 20 finishes, three of which were in the top 10, including a win at the RSM Classic earlier in November.

He did take T21 at this exact event last year. However, he lost nearly six strokes around the green, which is one of the stronger parts of his game. He also did have 12-under in last week's tournament, so hopefully he can roll some of that run good into this week.

So maybe that's it. Just take some of the best players in the field. When there are three different courses that you have to evaluate and no course history for two, then yes, keep it light, keep it simple, and stick to the best players in the field. You can find these odds and more at the Yahoo! Sportsbook. Bet $10 and win $200 in free bets by signing up at BetMGM.com/YahooVIP. New customers only, must be 21 or older, terms apply.