Golf best bets: Outright picks for the Genesis Invitational

The PGA Tour closes out the West Coast Swing this week with the Genesis Invitational from Riviera Country Club, and a familiar face is headlining the field. That's right, Tiger Woods is back for his first start of the 2024 season.

Although we're excited to see Tiger back in action, we won't be targeting him with an outright bet at 170/1. Instead, let's take a look at three players we do like to win the Genesis Invitational. 

Ludvig Aberg (+2000 FanDuel)

It's hard to understate how good Ludvig Aberg already is at 24 years of age. The rising superstar has two wins and 10 top-15 finishes in his last 12 worldwide starts, and he's knocking at the door of a top-10 spot in the Official World Golf Ranking. 

Coming off a T9 at the Farmers Insurance Open and a solo second at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Aberg returns to California for his first crack at Riviera Country Club. Rivera demands length and accuracy off the tee because of its narrow, tree-lined fairways, and that's where Aberg excels. This is a perfect golf course for the talented Swede. 

Cameron Young (+4000)

Speaking of good course fits, let's move on to Cameron Young.

The American ranks No. 1 in the field in true strokes gained at Riviera thanks to a T2 in his tournament debut in 2022 and a T20 last season. He also enters the week in fine form, as he finished T8 at the WM Phoenix Open and solo third at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic in January. There aren't many players who can drive the ball longer and straighter than Young, and he seems to like putting on Riviera's poa annua greens. 

Harris English (+12000)

Every winner so far this season could be found at 100/1 or higher before the tournament, so we would be foolish not to include a longshot on our outright card.

Harris English plays his best golf in difficult conditions, and Riviera is one of the toughest tests on the PGA Tour schedule every year. After missing the Genesis Invitational three years in a row, English returned to Riviera last season and finished T12 while ranking second in the field in strokes gained: putting. He's also gained strokes on the green in five of his last seven starts and has four top-17 finishes over that span. English is worth a sprinkle at 120/1.