Rickie Fowler Seeks A Last-Minute Masters Invite At The Valero Texas Open

Understandably, many in the professional golf world have already turned their attention to next week’s Masters Tournament. However, the PGA TOUR has one more stop to make before Augusta – this week’s Valero Texas Open at TPC San Antonio. First played in 1922, the Texas Open is the third-oldest PGA TOUR tournament and the sixth-oldest professional golf tournament in the world. The event purse is $8.9M, but arguably, even more importantly than money; the winner will receive the 90th and final invitation to the 2023 Masters Tournament. Given the current odds being offered by sportsbooks, only two golfers have at least a five percent chance to win this week. With so much at stake, and a seemingly wide-open field, things are shaping up to be very interesting at the Oaks Course this week.

The Valero Texas Open Odds

Since turning professional in 2009, Rickie Fowler has played in more than 300 career PGA TOUR events. He has made the cut in more than 75% of his starts, and has 77 career Top 10s, eight third places finishes, 15 runner up showings and has won five times on TOUR – his most notable victory being THE PLAYERS Championship in 2015. Fowler has made more than $44M in his career and was ranked as high as No. 4 in the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) in 2016. However, coming into the 2022-23 season, Fowler had been in quite the funk, registering only four Top 10s and missing the cut in 40% of the events he started the previous three seasons, falling as low as No. 185 in the OWGR. Nevertheless, 2022-23 has been a bit of a renaissance for the 34-year-old American so far with three Top 10s, including a runner up at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP, and only one missed cut in 11 TOUR events. Currently ranked No. 59 in the OWGR, anything less than a victory in San Antonio will result in Fowler missing his third consecutive Masters Tournament. At +2000, odds makers are assigning slightly less than a 5% chance that Fowler returns to Augusta for the first time since 2019.

At +1300 and No. 17 in the OWGR, Tyrrell Hatton is the favorite to win and the highest ranked golfer competing at the Valero Texas Open this week. However, the 31-year-old from England suffered from pain in his hand during last week’s World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play and failed to win a single match, falling to Ben Griffin, Lucas Herbert and Russell Henley. Additionally, while Hatton ranks ninth on TOUR in strokes gained off the tee, he ranks only 119th in greens in regulation percentage. Furthermore, this is Hatton’s first appearance at the Valero Texas Open and he has already qualified for next week’s Masters Tournament. If the hand health is at all a concern moving forward, it is fair to wonder how much Hatton has to gain by competing in all four rounds this week.

Corey Conners enters this week’s event ranked No. 40 in the OWGR and No. 82 in the FedExCup Playoffs Points List. Overall, the 2022-23 season is off to a good start for the 31-year-old Canadian: six Top 25s and eight made cuts from 10 TOUR starts. Conners’ two most recent performances, though, have been a missed cut at The Players Championship and a group stage exit at the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play. However, at +1700, Conners has the second-best odds to win in San Antonio this week due to his strong performances at TPC San Antonio in recent years. Conners earned his first and only career victory in this event in 2019. He was denied the opportunity to defend this title the following year, as the 2020 edition was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Conners returned to TPC San Antonio in 2021 and finished T-14, and finished then T-35 in last year’s event. While Conners has struggled putting this season – currently ranking 151st in strokes gained, 131st in putting average, and 189th in putts per round – his success in the Valero Texas Open in recent years and having already secured his Masters Tournament invitation should make him feel rather comfortable in the final tune-up before Augusta.