Golf: PGA Tour – Arnold Palmer Invitational
Venue: Bay Hill Golf Club, Florida
Dates: Thursday 3rd – Sunday 6th March 2022
Tournament Preview
The Arnold Palmer Invitational is one of the staple events on the PGA Tour, having first been introduced by Palmer himself back in 1966. It is one of only 5 invitational events on the tour, meaning it has a restricted field of only 120 players. Arnold Palmer won the event back in 1971 and other previous winners include Fred Couples, Phil Mickelson, and Tiger Woods. The event has a prize pot of $9.3 million whilst the winner is in line to take home a healthy $1.65 million. With Ryder Cup points to play for and plenty of dollars too, it should be an excellent week at Bay Hill.
Betting Preview
Outright Winner
The field in Bay Hill is always strong and the usual smattering of big names will be keen to get their hands on the trophy come Sunday:
Spaniard Jon Rahm is currently the world’s undisputed number one golfer and how he would love to add another big title to his name in 2022 here at Bay Hill.
2018 Arnold Palmer Invitational winner Rory McIlroy starts as one of the favourites here in Florida. He looked back to his best at times over the past few months and if he carries that form over, he could be tough to stop.
Young Norwegian Viktor Hovland has taken the PGA Tour by storm this season and his superb win at the Dubai Desert Classic last month makes him one of the favourites here.
Current Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama is a pillar of consistency on the PGA Tour, and he could be tough to stop if he gets up ahead of steam in favourable conditions this weekend.
South Korean Sungjae Im is consistently in the mix at the biggest events on the PGA Tour and few would be surprised if he was lifting the Arnold Palmer Invitational trophy on Sunday.
1st Round Leader
The whole field here in Florida will believe they can get off to a strong start and if they do so they could set themselves up for the week ahead:
Australian Adam Scott continues to churn out the performances on the PGA Tour and he always looks to get off to a flyer in the biggest events.
Billy Horschel has been a bit stop start this season, but past performances here should fill him with confidence, and he is well suited to the conditions in Florida.
Top 10 Finish
With so many good players assembled here in Florida, getting into the winning enclosure could be tough but there are plenty of candidates to finish in the top 10 come Sunday:
2022 Phoenix Open winner Scottie Scheffler finds himself at the forefront of US golf currently and he should be in contention from the off at Bay Hill.
As a former runner up at this event, Justin Rose is sure to be in the mix at Bay Hill and whilst his form hasn’t been great – he looks superb value to finish in the top 10.
American Kevin Kisner continues to put in consistent performances every weekend on the PGA Tour and he should be very much in the mix in an open field at Bay Hill.
2022 Arnold Palmer Invitational betxchange.com Best Bets:
Outright Winner: Jon Rahm – 7/1
1st Round Leader: Adam Scott – 35/1
Top Ten Finish: Scottie Scheffler – 2/1
