Golf
Masters Champion Jon Rahm Might Be the Best Player in the World, but He’s the Worst Bet to Win the RBC Heritage
Jon Rahm is back on top of the golf world — figuratively and literally — after winning the first major championship of the season at the 2023 Masters. Not only is Rahm the biggest name in golf right now, but he’s also reclaimed his throne as the No. 1 player in the Official World Golf Ranking.
The new World No. 1 will be back in the spotlight this week when he tees it up at the RBC Heritage on Hilton Head Island, and sports bettors will be lining up at the window to get some money down on the hottest player in the world. Before you click submit on a Rahm outright bet, though, you should know he’s probably the worst bet on the entire board this week.
Jon Rahm is back on top of the OWGR after winning the Masters
Scottie Scheffler occupied the No. 1 spot in the OWGR since his victory at the Players Championship in March, but Rahm overtook the American after his impressive victory at the Masters. The Spaniard has officially reclaimed his spot as the best golfer on the PGA Tour, but hasn’t he been all year?
In 10 PGA Tour starts this season, Rahm has recorded four wins and seven top-10 finishes. The 28-year-old lost his No. 1 ranking after a T39 finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and an early WD at the Players Championship due to illness, but he was utterly dominant before that unlucky stretch.
In his first six starts of the season, Rahm won three times and didn’t finish worse than T7. He was 107 under par in those 24 rounds of golf, which is why it was surprising that Rahm was priced behind Scheffler and Rory McIlroy to win the Masters.
Rahm proved to be the best bet on the board at Augusta National, but that’s not the case at Harbour Town Golf Links this week.
Jon Rahm is the worst bet on the board at the RBC Heritage
Coming off his impressive Masters victory, Rahm is going to be a popular bet to win back-to-back events at the RBC Heritage. The World No. 1 is the co-favorite alongside Scheffler to win at +850, but I wouldn’t count on cashing that ticket.
Since 1985, 11 players have teed it up at the RBC Heritage a week after winning the green jacket. Only one — Bernard Langer in 1985 — won the tournament, and just three of the 11 finished inside the top 10, per a tweet from Brentley Romine of Golf Channel.
Additionally, Rahm wouldn’t be teeing it up this week if the RBC Heritage wasn’t an elevated event. Harbour Town hasn’t been a traditional stop on Rahm’s schedule his entire career, as he’s made just one start here in 2020, and he finished in a tie for 33rd place. Rahm would rather be enjoying a week off with his new green jacket, and he’s only in the field because of his prior commitment to the 13 elevated events on the PGA Tour schedule.
Don’t expect Rahm to be locked in this week coming off the biggest win of his career. I’d strongly suggest looking elsewhere for some outright bets at the RBC Heritage.
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