It is time for one of the best weeks of the year in golf as The Masters begins. This is a look at the best first-round leader bet to make for the event on DraftKings Sportsbook.
The Masters Tournament
The Masters Tournament is played at the famous Augusta National Golf Club. Augusta National is a par-72 golf course and ranges 7,555 yards. The greens are Bentgrass and some of the most challenging in the world. The Masters field features all of the best players in the world. From the PGA TOUR’s Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele to LIV’s Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka and Jon Rahm. This will be the first time this season that the two tours will come together and all of the best players in the world will be in the same field. Scottie Scheffler has won two of the past three Masters and he will be the man to beat once again.
Here is a look at my picks to lead after the first round of The Masters:
Collin Morikawa FRL (+2500)
Collin Morikawa has been one of the best players in the world this year. In five events so far this season, Morikawa has finished 17th or better in all five tournaments, including two runner-up finishes. Morikawa has never been afraid of the biggest moments and the biggest tournaments. He is a two-time major champion and has performed well in all four majors throughout his career. Specifically at Augusta, Morikawa has been fantastic over the past three years. Morikawa has finished fifth, T-10 and T-3 in the past three Masters. Last season, he finished top-20 in all four majors. Morikawa’s game is in great form and he has consistently stacked up against the best players in the world. Morikawa leads the field in stroke-gained approach per round over his past 24 rounds. That is essential to succeeding at Augusta, and if Morikawa has his putter working, he could jump out to the early lead.
Sepp Straka FRL (+6000)
Sepp Straka has been one of the most underrated players on the PGA TOUR this year. In 10 events played, he has made nine cuts, finished in the top-15 seven times and won The American Express. Course experience is so important to conquering Augusta, and Straka has now played The Masters three times. Last year, Straka played really solid golf and finished T-16, showing signs that he can compete at Augusta. Straka’s ball-striking has been phenomenal this season, and he has thrived in all of the right categories to succeed at Augusta. He ranks seventh on the PGA TOUR in strokes-gained total, fifth in strokes-gained approach to green, ninth in driving accuracy and second in green in regulation percentage. If Straka plays his best, he is more than capable of leading after the first round, making this fantastic value at 60/1.
Sergio Garcia FRL (+6000)
Among the LIV players, 2022 Masters champion Jon Rahm and last year’s U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau get a lot of the hype, but some of the old veterans know this course better than anybody. Among that group is 2017 Masters champion Sergio Garcia. Garcia has been playing really good golf on the LIV Tour so far this season. He has three top-six finishes in five events played, including a win in Hong Kong and a third-place finish last weekend in Miami. Despite his age, Garcia is second on the LIV Tour in season points and seems poised to compete at Augusta. Garcia knows this course as well as almost anyone in the field, having competed in 25 Masters Tournaments in his career. He won the low-amateur in his first ever Masters, won the 2017 Masters and has three other top-10 finishes in his career. It’s hard to trust Garcia at his age to come out on top against the best players in the world after four long days of golf. However, Garcia could carry over his momentum from last week’s LIV event and use his experience to jump out to a first-round lead.
