Houston Open Betting Tips: Six Panel Selections From Memorial Park In Texas
The US Masters is drawing closer as the PGA Tour moves from the demands of Copperhead to the vast, sprawling expanses of Memorial Park for this week's Texas Children's Houston Open.
Scottie Scheffler has finished runner-up here in three of the last four years and was the favourite on betting sites, but he has withdrawn for family reasons.
That has caused a major shake-up in the odds, which see defending champion Min Woo Lee as the new frontrunner at around 12/1, with Chris Gotterup - a two-time winner on the PGA Tour this season - next in the betting at 18/1.
Memorial Park has hosted the Houston Open ever since Tom Doak's stunning 2019 renovation of this municipal parkland venue, with some input from Brooks Koepka, who is playing this week.
This long par-70 course measuring 7,475 yards is emphatically not for the faint-hearted, and it should be noted that five of the top seven last year were among the longest hitters over the four days.
The last five winners have also ranked inside the top five for Strokes Gained: Putting, so someone with a hot blade fits the criteria for this week's selections from The Panel, who grabbed some returns on 66/1 shot Ricky Castillo (T7) for first-round leader at last week's Valspar Championship.
With five par threes, three par fives and as many as five par fours stretching beyond 490 yards, this is a layout that will test most of the field, especially if a gust is blowing as it so often does in Texas.
That said, the wind is not expected to get much above 12mph on any of the four days, so Lee's winning score of -20 is not out of the question.
Focusing on long hitters with razor-sharp putters seems to be the way forward for this week's Houston Open betting tips, which start with a player that fits the bill in both areas.
Houston Open Tips: Go Knapp!
Jake Knapp's price has been slashed from 33/1 to 20/1 on betting apps following Scheffler's decision to pull out, but he still gets the nod to win a second PGA Tour title this week.
The 31-year-old Californian has been one of the most consistent performers this year, and a brief look at his seasonal record makes for remarkable reading.
Five of his six starts produced finishes of T11 or better - including fifth at Torrey Pines, eighth at TPC Scottsdale, eighth at Pebble Beach and sixth at Riviera.
He pulled out of the Arnold Palmer Invitational with an illness moments before he was about to tee off and then missed the cut at Sawgrass, but they are mere blips on what has been an excellent first three months of the season.
Grind time until Houston next week! #LTD pic.twitter.com/NsxqyCZi3C
— Jake Knapp (@knapptime_LTD) March 20, 2026
Fittingly, Knapp is second for Strokes Gained: Putting this season and inside the top 10 for Driving Distance, so he ticks a couple of the boxes for the trip to Houston.
Being long off the tee will certainly make approach shots more manageable, so long as he finds the fairways consistently - something he has been doing 58.77% of the time.
The former nightclub bouncer's sole PGA Tour victory came at the Mexico Open two years ago when he lost a four-shot lead in the first seven holes only to win by two.
Although Vidanta is a par 71, it's almost exactly the same length as Memorial Park, which should suit his eye this week.
Houston Open Betting Tips 1: Jake Knapp 20/1 (Each-Way) - With Bet365 (Five Places)
Houston Open Betting Tips:
- Jake Knapp 20/1 (Each-Way) - With Bet365 (Five Places)
- Brooks Koepka 22/1 (Each-Way) - With Bet365 (Five Places)
- Stephan Jaeger 66/1 (Each-Way) - With BetMGM (Six Places)
- Matthieu Pavon 250/1 (Each-Way) - With Bet365 (Eight Places)
- Tony Finau 3/1 Top 20 - With SpreadEx
- Ricky Castillo 70/1 First-Round Leader (Each-Way) - With BetMGM (Six Places)
Houston Open Betting Tips: Count On Koepka
We have already mentioned that Koepka is familiar with this course because he helped design it with Doak, but there are more compelling reasons to be onside with a player who returned to the PGA Tour from LIV Golf earlier this year.
Hefty fines paid, the five-time major champion advised slashing the number of bunkers from 54 to 20 which have been replaced by demanding run-off areas that reward creativity and short-game expertise.
Knowledge of Memorial Park will benefit Koepka, who has finished inside the top 20 in his last three tournaments, which included T13 at The Players Championship.
The burly American is one of the longest hitters on the PGA Tour, tops the Strokes Gained rankings for Approach and is sixth from Tee-to-Green - all of which will aid his cause.
Although his putting needs a facelift judging by his numbers, Koepka's metrics were positive at Copperhead, so everything seems to be heading in the right direction for a player seeking a first non-LIV Golf title since winning the USPGA Championship just under three years ago.
He was 28/1 while writing this preview and although those odds have been cut to 22/1, The Panel remain on board Koepka as the next of their Houston Open predictions.
Houston Open Betting Tips 2: Brooks Koepka 22/1 (Each-Way) - With Bet365 (Five Places)
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Houston Open Predictions: Jaeger Primed For Title Repeat
Stephan Jaeger starts the week at 66/1 with some bookmakers, but The Panel strongly believe the German is being underestimated ahead of an event he has made almost his own.
The 36-year-old from Munich claimed his breakthrough PGA Tour victory at the 135th attempt at this venue in 2024, edging out Scheffler and four others for a one-shot victory, courtesy of a superb performance on the greens.
Twelve months earlier, Jaeger had finished inside the top 10 at Memorial Park and 12 months ago he was 11th, so this is a track that clearly suits his game.
Jaeger has had a mixed start to 2026 which began with fifth spot at Torrey Pines, but he looked back to his best at Copperhead where a closing five-under-par 66 gave him a share of seventh spot.
His Strokes Gained numbers were positive for all the major metrics, so he leaves Florida with his confidence sky high ahead of his return to Texas.
When he won two years ago, he said: "I think this golf course does give you a lot of room off the tee on some spots and you can hit some bad drives and still have a perfectly fine lie."
Jaeger's remodelled driving technique from the 2022/23 season continues to serve him well and he looks a decent each-way shout at 66/1 with BetMGM, which is offering six places.
Houston Open Betting Tips 3: Stephan Jaeger 66/1 (Each-Way) - With BetMGM (Six Places)
Houston Open Tips: Pavon A French Fancy At A Big Price
Matthieu Pavon is the last of this week's Houston Open outrights and was available at 300/1, but The Panel's fingers weren't operating on full throttle and his price has since dipped to 275/1.
In any case, the team are taking the 250/1 with Bet365 which is offering eight places on the Frenchman, who played really well at Innisbrook Resort last week when he finished just outside the top 10.
Pavon, who became the first Frenchman to win on the PGA Tour when he triumphed at Torrey Pines in 2024, arrives in Houston in reasonable nick, having also finished inside the top 20 at PGA National four weeks ago.
True, his Strokes Gained Approach and Tee-to-Green numbers could do with significant improvement, but he was at least on the positive side (+0.15) at Copperhead for the latter last week and he hits the ball in excess of 300 yards off the tee.
What's even more encouraging is that he is one of the best putters on the PGA Tour in the first three months of the season ahead of his debut at Memorial Park.
That may put off some punters, but it should not be forgotten that Lee won this tournament as a debutant 12 months ago and hopefully Pavon can do the same - or at least go close.
Houston Open Betting Tips 4: Matthieu Pavon 250/1 (Each-Way) - With Bet365 (Eight Places)
Houston Open Top 20 Tips: Finau At Home In Texas
The Panel are on board another former champion in the shape of Tony Finau, who looks well priced at 3/1 with SpreadEx for a top-20 finish.
The 36-year-old Utah native triumphed here in 2022 with a wire-to-wire victory on the last occasion the tournament was played in the autumn and also took one of the five runners-up spots when Jaeger won in the spring of 2024 in the next renewal.
Encouragingly, his scoring average across his five appearances at Memorial Park is 68, the second best of any player in the entire field, behind only Alejandro Tosti.
Despite being just outside the top 100 in the world rankings, Finau arrives in Houston in solid form, having posted a third top 20 in his last six appearances with a share of 18th at the Valspar Championship.
With only two members of the world's top 20 competing this week, Finau has the chance to make his mark at 70/1, but The Panel are taking a safer option at much lower odds.
Houston Open Betting Tips 5: Tony Finau 3/1 Top 20 - With SpreadEx
Houston Open First-Round Leader Tips: Castillo Has Appetite For Fast Starts
Ricky Castillo is fresh off the back of the best moment of his young career - a maiden PGA Tour victory at the Puerto Rico Open earlier this month - and The Panel fancy the 24-year-old Californian to make an immediate impact in the opening round.
The Florida-based American has been inside the top 25 on a Thursday in six of his last seven starts, including fourth in Rio Grande and seventh at Copperhead.
The Panel were disappointed that so many players shared seventh spot last week which meant the 66/1 on Castillo was severely diluted, but they see no reason to abandon him at the bigger price of 70/1.
Although Castillo missed the cut on his debut last year, it was only by one stroke after he shot 70-68 over the first two days.
Hopefully, he can continue his run of fast starts against a field now missing the world's best player.
Houston Open Betting Tips 6: Ricky Castillo 70/1 First-Round Leader (Each-Way) - With BetMGM (Six Places)
