Although Tiger won’t play due to a back injury, The Players Championship still projects as one of the most competitive golf tournaments of the year. Tournament favorite Rory McIlroy offers less than +1000 odds. The second and third choice, Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas will demand respect. Keep reading for analysis and PGA Odds on those 3 players’ chances as well as other 2020 The Players Championship thoughts!

2020 PGA The Players Championship

• When: March 12 – March 15
• Where: TPC-Sawgrass, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL
• TV: NBA / NBC Sports / Golf Channel
• Radio: PGA Tour Radio

 2020 PGA The Players Championship Odds

• Rory McIlroy +700
• Jon Rahm +1200
• Justin Thomas +1400
• Bryson Dechambeau +2200
• Tommy Fleetwood +2500
• Dustin Johnson +2500
• Patrick Cantlay +2800
• Sungjae Im +2800
• Hideki Matsuyama +2800
• Xander Schauffele +2800
• Webb Simpson +2800
• Adam Scott +3000
• Patrick Reed +3300
• Rickie Fowler +3500
• Brooks Koepka +4000
• Marc Leishman +4500
• Tyrrell Hatton +4500
• Gary Woodland +5000
• Colin Morikawa +5000

Does Rory McIlroy offer fair odds to win The Players Championship? Which golfer between Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas has the best shot of upsetting Rory?

It’s almost never a good idea to back chalk to win a golf tournament. So many things can happen in four rounds of 18 holes that taking odds less than +1000 often leads to a loss. But in this case, Rory looks ready to win.

McIlroy has finished fifth or better in 5 straight. He won the WGC-HSBC, finished third at the Famers Insurance Open, and then finished fifth at the Genesis Invitational, WGC-Mexico, and Arnold Palmer Invitational. McIlroy won this last year. He’s a solid favorite.

If you want to beat McIlroy with one of the other two choices, you can’t go wrong with Jon Rahm. The Spanish player shot a -11 at last year’s The Players. He’s in awesome form as well, having made the Top 10 in 4-of-5.

Thomas has missed the cut in 2-of-4. Be wary of backing Justin at the listed odds. He could surprise but among the favorites, McIlroy and Rahm look best.

Which golfer between +2200 to +2800 odds has the best chance of winning The Players Championship?

Make no mistake. For Dustin Johnson to have any shot of winning The Players Championship, he must turn around his form. DJ shot a par 284 at the WGC-Mexico in his last tournament played. He might not make the cut if he shoots par in the first couple of rounds this week.

In 2019, though, Dustin rocked it with a -13 at The Players Championship. A repeat performance could lead to a final pairing on Sunday. Give DJ a better shot to take the trophy than the +2500 odds indicate.

What is the best golfer to consider backing at odds of +3000 to +5000?

Lots of choices here. We settled on Gary Woodland. The 2019 U.S. Open winner hasn’t had the greatest start to the PGA Tour Season. He did finish eighth at the Honda Classic, though. Also, he shot a -6 at the 2019 TPC. That gives him a shot. At +5000 odds, we could do worse than back Woodland to lift the trophy.

Consider these 3 PGA Tournament Matchups for the 2020 PGA The Players Championship

• Rickie Fowler -120
• Brooks Koepka +140

Fowler missed the cut at the Honda Classic. He bounced back at Bay Hill Club & Lodge with an eighteenth finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Koepka would need a massive form reversal to beat Fowler in the head-to-head. Go with the chalk.

• Rory McIlroy -130
• Jon Rahm +110

This one is tough because Rory appears destined for back-to-back Players Championship trophies. But Rahm offers much better odds. Give Rahm the nod even though Rory figures to win this matchup.

• Bryson Dechambeau -120
• Dustin Johnson +100

Dechambeau shot a -9 at the 2019 TPC. Bryson is in great form: a fifth at The Genesis Invitational, a second at the WGC-Mexico Championship, and a fourth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. But, we just got done writing about how DJ could turn his form around and take this. We must stick to our guns. If Dustin’s got hot sticks, forget it. He’ll beat Bryson in the head-to-head.