Texas Children's Houston Open Betting Tips: 5 Selections From Memorial Park
The US Masters is just three weeks away and some of the world’s best players are honing their skills at this week’s Texas Children’s Houston Open which provides perfect preparation for the first major of the year.
World number one Scottie Scheffler has an excellent record at Memorial Park, which is a similar lay-out to Augusta National, and starts as the 4/1 favourite with betting sites, but Players champion Rory McIlroy is not far behind at 7/1.
We had pay-outs with three of their five Valspar Championship betting tips last week, although the profit margins were low because all of the selections tied.
Sam Ryder’s top 20 finish at 5/1 (he drifted to 13/2 before the first tee-off after a draw bias came to light) was the pick of the bunch, but 22/1 shots Shane Lowry and Corey Conners also obliged with top-eight finishes, although they were both 25/1 on Thursday morning.
Last week’s success means we remain well in profit for March and the year thanks, in part, to Russell Henley’s victory at Bay Hill.
Hopefully, this week’s five Houston Open betting tips will be equally on the money and they start with an English player looking for his second PGA Tour title since winning the Wyndham Championship last August.
Houston Open Tips: Rai Thrives At Memorial Park
Aaron Rai was one of our each-way tips for The Players Championship and although he missed out on the places, a T14 finish gave them a run for their money at 50/1.
The 30-year-old from Wolverhampton remains in excellent nick in his fourth season on the PGA Tour and he has great course form at Memorial Park which is extremely long for a par-70 at 7,475 yards.
Rai may not be the longest hitter, but he is very accurate off the tee.
Finding fairways is an important skill to have in your locker at this tree-lined track where he posted a top 20 on his 2021 debut, followed by back-to-back seventh places in the last two seasons.
The world number 25 withdrew from last week’s Valspar Championship for undisclosed reasons, but we would like to think it was for no other reason than wanting to avoid playing over four consecutive and successful weeks.
Rai was fourth in Mexico last month, 11th at Bay Hill and he played exceptionally well at Sawgrass, so it can only be to his advantage that he has a week off to prepare for a tournament where he traditionally plays well.
All in all, Rai can certainly challenge the likes of Scheffler and McIlroy, making his first appearance at the Houston Open in 11 years, and he looks a decent prospect at 25/1 with golf betting sites.
Houston Open Prediction 1: Aaron Rai (Each-Way) - 25/1 With William Hill (Eight Places)
* To access all five selections below, simply sign up to Gambling.com for FREE.
Houston Open Betting Tips:
- Aaron Rai (Each-Way) - 25/1 With William Hill (Eight Places)
- Tony Finau (Each-Way) - 28/1 With William Hill (Eight Places)
- Davis Riley (Each-Way) - 75/1 With Bet365 (Eight Places)
- Davis Riley Top 20 - 4/1 With SpreadEx
- Nico Echavarria First-Round Leader (Each-Way) - 90/1 With William Hill (Six Places)
Prices correct at 12.30 on March 26
Houston Open Odds: Former Champion Finau Can Bounce Back
The last time we saw Tony Finau, he missed the cut by some distance at Sawgrass where his Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green and Approach stats were frighteningly bad.
A pair of 76s meant he missed the cut by nine shots which was surprising considering he had played well at Pebble Beach and Torrey Pines, and he was handily placed in fifth heading into the final round at Bay Hill only for a disastrous back nine saw him finish in mid-division.
Finau, though, has fond memories of this course where he won the fifth of his six PGA Tour titles with a four-shot wire-to-wire victory over Tyson Alexander in windy conditions in the autumn of 2022.
He also matched his lowest PGA Tour score at Memorial Park with a second-round 62 during his title defence 16 months later when the tournament was moved to the spring, although he finished just a shot behind winner Stephan Jaeger.
Three years ago, Finau said: “I knew the golf course; it’s a tough golf course to play. You have to drive it in the fairway and your work’s not done; it’s hard to hit the greens. You know if you miss the green, it’s hard to get up and down, so I was just patient with myself.
“I’ve always looked at myself as a good ball-striker and I have no problem hitting the ball low. Those are things that are very good when I play in this Texas wind. I definitely…don’t mind that the wind is blowing.”
That could be the case on Thursday when rain is expected and Friday could also see some thunderstorms, although the weekend should be sunny.
One feature of this course is that it comprises five par-3s, so it bodes well that Finau is inside the top 20 with an average of 2.99 shots over the shortest holes.
It’s a course that seems made for Finau, one that has treated him well over the last few years, and although Sawgrass was a train crash, we expect him to bounce back at 28/1 as the next of their Houston Open betting tips.
Houston Open Prediction 2: Tony Finau (Each-Way) - 28/1 With William Hill (Eight Places)
Houston Open Predictions: Davis Enjoying Life Of Riley
Davis Riley moved closer to breaking into the world’s top 100 with another excellent performance at the weekend and looks worth a punt at 75/1 for eight places with Bet365.
Riley was surprisingly the best player from tee to green over four days at the Valspar Championship where he finished seventh courtesy of a pair of 69s at the weekend.
He has been almost bottom of the pile for that metric heading into the tournament, but after Friday’s round he said: “I feel really good. I felt like I left a lot of shots out there. I think I missed four putts inside five feet today, but my game is in a really good spot.”
The 28-year-old American made a woeful start to the year, withdrawing from his final round at the season-opening Sentry which he followed with four successive missed cuts, but he feels more comfortable now that the west coast swing is over.
When asked to pinpoint when his game started to click into gear, he said: “I actually missed the cut in Mexico but I actually played a lot of good golf. I had two really bad holes that prevented me from playing the weekend.
Can you cash out of bets before an event has finished?
Can you cash out of bets before an event has finished?
Can you cash out of bets before an event has finished?
“When I got back from the west coast I started to feel really good about my game. I don’t know why but historically, I’ve never really played good golf over there.”
Riley was sixth at the Puerto Rico Open in the same week of the Arnold Palmer Invitational and although the cast was clearly not as strong as at Bay Hill, he proved at Copperhead he is more than capable of mixing with elite company.
Both of Riley’s PGA Tour titles (the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in tandem with Nick Hardy in 2023 and last year’s Charles Schwab Challenge) came in the spring, so this time of year seems right for Riley to start motoring.
Houston Open Prediction 3: Davis Riley (Each-Way) - 75/1 With Bet365 (Eight Places)
Price correct at 12.30 on March 26
Initially, we were looking at Mackenzie Hughes for the top 20 market, but Riley’s price is higher and his record at Memorial Park has been good in his three previous visits.
Riley finished inside the top 30 on his debut in 2021 and again a year later, but last spring he was just four shots off the winner in 14th spot.
If Riley can just get the putter working to convert those birdie opportunities, it could be an excellent week and we are happy to accept the 4/1 on offer for another top-20 finish.
Houston Open Prediction 4: Davis Riley Top 20 - 4/1 With SpreadEx
Houston Open Betting Tips: Colombian Has Right Blend For Fast Start
Defending champion Jaeger was our original pick for first-round leader at 60/1, but the wind is expected to pick up in the afternoon on a rain-affected day, so it makes sense to go for a player from the morning wave.
Nico Echavarria is back inside the world’s top 50 following a decent performance at Copperhead (T16) and he looks well priced at 90/1 with a range of betting apps for first-round leader.
The Colombian was sixth after Thursday’s round at Innisbrook and also burst out of the blocks at Torrey Pines for last month’s relocated Genesis Invitational.
Putting is a major factor in determining the winner at Memorial Park and that’s one of Echavarria’s strengths.
We would not put anyone off backing Echavarria at triple-figure prices in the outrights, but with a morning start and hopefully more benign conditions, he can get off to another fast start.
Houston Open Prediction 5: Nico Echavarria First-Round Leader (Each-Way) - 90/1 With William Hill (Six Places)
Stay In The Loop With Free Bets, Insider Tips & More!
Live Betting. Sports Promos. Sent Weekly.
