Welcome to week six of Virtual Insanity, where we spend virtual money to try and win virtual money on golf betting. It's that simple!
The pot is at €932 entering this week's tournament of focus, the Genesis Open in California on the US PGA Tour.
This week's event starts at 2.45pm Irish time on Thursday.
The tournament is played at Riviera, nicknamed 'Hogan's Alley', in tribute to legend Ben Hogan, who probably had the best ever swing in golf.
It used to be known as the Los Angeles Open, and it's where Tiger Woods played on the PGA Tour for the first time as a 16-year-old back in 1992.
I am picking three players all available at 1/5 the odds to finish in the first 8 places with Paddy Power, Betfair, SKY Bet and Boylesports.
Our first selection is Rory McIlroy for €5 each way at 15/2.
McIlroy is the world number one again and he seems in a very good place with his game and his head. The County Down star hasn't scaled the summit of the rankings since 2015 and he looks set for a big year in both the majors and at the Tokyo Olympics. McIlroy returned from a break by posting a tied third finish at the Farmers Insurance Open. His closing form last year included the claiming of the Fed Ex Cup and winning the HSBC Champions. He shot 63 around Riviera last year and is primed to contend. I think the work he's done with Brad Faxon on his putting has really helped and he may be an each-way bet to nothing this week with eight places available.
Our second selection is Patrick Cantlay for €3 each way at 20/1.
Patrick Cantlay is sixth in the world, but not a lot of people know that, to paraphrase Michael Caine. The American was the former top amateur in the world before the death of his close friend and severe injury hampered his progression. He has finally broken through with an all-round game of laser precision that propelled him to victory at the Memorial tournament last year following a charging close shave at the Masters. Cantlay has tied fourth and tied fifteenth the last two years at Riviera and played well last week. A winning docket doesn't care if the player is unsung or not.
Our final selection this week is Carlos Oritz for €2 each way at 150/1.
When I was digging into this event, I spotted that Mexican Ortiz finished in the top ten last year in addition to two other decent showings at Riviera when he wasn't displaying the form he is now. Ortiz likes the track and has finished tied fourth, tied fourth and tied second in three PGA Tour events this year. He putts well on poa annua greens and while this tournament is likely to be won by a household name, an outsider is always be capable of contending. I have chosen Ortiz as that outsider.
So that's €20 wagered on this week's golf.
Please gamble responsibly, never bet more than you can afford and good luck!
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