Valero Texas Open
TPC San Antonio (Oaks Course)
San Antonio, Texas
Head to Golfbet for all our content each week.
Top of the Board (odds via Bet365)
No Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy to gnash teeth over this week.
Only 16 of the top 50 OWGR are playing as a tune-up for Augusta National.
The only way to get in the Masters this week, if not already qualified, is to win.
Ludvig Aberg (+1200), the Swedish ball-striking machine, sits at the top of the pile. Already a winner this year at a demanding Torrey Pines South, the four-year player formally of Texas Tech won’t be bothered by the energy in the atmosphere. Making his third start, yet only second as a pro, he signed for T14 last year.
Tommy Fleetwood (+1600) and Corey Conners (+1600) take up the next two spots. Fleetwood, never a winner on TOUR, ran T7 on debut and led the field in Bogey Avoidance last year. Conners, the only two-time winner, has two wins on TOUR, each at TPC San Antonio. He’s never missed the cut or cashed worse than T34.
Patrick Cantlay (+1800) is an interesting addition this week. Making his debut, the Californian will knock the simulator rust off after winning TGL with his mates from Atlanta. I’m more interested next week and DEFINITELY at RBC Heritage where he will almost certainly be my OAD selection.
Hideki Matsuyama (+2000) keeps rolling quietly along. The winner at The Sentry to open the season, he always returns to TPC San Antonio after his 2021 debut that was followed by his Green Jacket. If he’s turning up each year, I’m sold on this being a proper tune-up for Augusta National.
Akshay Bhatia (+2200) picked up his first top-10 result of 2024 with his playoff win here last year. In 2025, he’s on a run of three top-10 paydays in his last four on TOUR. The only left-hander to win it, he seeks to become the first player to successfully defend the title at TPC San Antonio. Bet.
Jordan Spieth (+2500), when healthy, and that appears to be the case entering the week, contends this time of year. The off-season wrist surgery is fading to the memory bank, and results are getting closer and closer to the old days. The 2021 champion has four top-10 paydays from eight starts.
Keegan Bradley (+2800) continues to balance TGL, TOUR starts, and the Ryder Cup captaincy. A stern test tee-to-green fits his strengths. As long as the energy level remains high, I’m on board.
Denny McCarthy (+3000) still has not reached the summit but he enjoys TPC San Antonio. Needing just 92 putts last year, tying the TOUR record, he birdied his last seven holes, posted the course record 28 on the inward nine, shot 63, and lost in a playoff.
Daniel Berger and Gary Woodland come in red hot, while Si Woo Kim has cashed in six straight here. … Sam Stevens (T14, 2nd) and Lee Hodges (T11 last week) should also receive deeper inspections. … Chris Kirk, another course horse of years gone by, presents a tasty number at +6600.
5 Players to consider for Top 10, Top 20, or Top 40 action:
Three of the five last week cashed T18, T18, and 10th, so I hope you were paying attention. BONUS BALL Gary Woodland was T2. I can’t leave him out #Heater!
Eric Cole (+9000) picked up T12 at Valspar and backed it up with T15 in Houston.
Mac Meissner (+8000) is the hometown hero this week. The SMU grad has cashed in his last three events and knows this layout (T10 2024).
Jesper Svensson (+10000) has cashed in six straight.
Matt Kuchar (+12500) owns T12 or better in four of his last five starts and eight T25 or better from 11 paydays career.
Alejandro Tosti (+15000) earned a pair of top-10s, including T5 last week, on big, driver-necessary tracks. This week qualifies.
Bonus Ball: Trey Mullinax (+17500) popped up on the walk-and-talk last weekend before fading to T34. He owns the course record, 62, at TPC San Antonio and can #Send it.
NOW PLAYING:
| Host Course | TPC San Antonio |
| Yards (per official scorecard): | 7,438 |
| Par: | 72 (36-36). |
| Greens: | Overseeded Poa Trivialis; 6,400 square feet on average. |
| Stimpmeter: | 11-plus feet. |
| Rough: | Overseeded ryegrass at 2.25” |
| Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play | 64/3/3 |
| Architect(s): | Greg Norman (2010). |
| Defending Champion (event): | Akshay Bhatia (-20) |
| Multiple Champion(s) Entered: | Corey Conners (2023, 2019). |
| Course Record: | 62; Trey Mullinax, Round 3, 2018. |
| 72 Hole Tournament Record: | 268; Akshay Bhatia & Denny McCarthy (2024); Corey Conners (2019). |
| Fact of the Week: | The event has been the week before the Masters since 2019. |
| Fact of the Week II: | The last seven winners are 31 or younger. |
Notables
- The last two champions owned the outright lead after 18 holes.
- Three of the last six winners won for the first time on TOUR.
- The last four winners have ranked T3 or BETTER in Par-4 Scoring.
- Four of the last six winners have won on their second or third try.
- TPC San Antonio has played under par just twice in 14 previous events.
- The ryegrass/fescue fairways average 25 to 30 yards in the landing area.
- Poa Trivialis overseeded greens average 6,400 square feet and will run not run more than 11.5 feet on the Stimpmeter (wind).
- The course tips at 7,438 yards for the third consecutive season.
- Charley Hoffman, 39 in 2016, is the only champion of the last eight who were older than 31.
- Trey Mullinax posted 62 in Round 3 in 2018 and owns the course record.
- The Official World Golf Ranking is represented by 16 of the top 50 players, led by No. 5 Ludvig Aberg, the highest-ranked player in the field this week.
Recent Winners
- 2025 Season Winners
| Event | Winner |
| The Sentry | Hideki Matsuyama |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Nick Taylor |
| The American Express | Sepp Straka |
| Farmers Insurance Open | Harris English |
| AT&T Pebble Beach | Rory McIlroy |
| WM Phoenix Open | Thomas Detry (first time) |
| The Genesis Invitational | Ludvig Aberg |
| Mexico Open at VidantaWorld | Brian Campbell (first time) |
| Cognizant Classic | Joe Highsmith (first time) |
| Arnold Palmer Invitational | Russell Henley |
| THE PLAYERS Championship | Rory McIlroy (2) |
| Valspar Championship | Viktor Hovland |
| Texas Children’s Houston Open | Min Woo Lee (first time) |
2024 Season Winners
| Event | Winner |
| The Sentry | Chris Kirk |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Grayson Murray (Rest in Peace) |
| The American Express | Nick Dunlap (a) |
| Farmers Insurance Open | Matthieu Pavon (rookie) |
| AT&T Pebble Beach | Wyndham Clark (54 holes) |
| WM Phoenix Open | Nick Taylor |
| The Genesis Invitational | Hideki Matsuyama |
| Mexico Open at Vidanta | Jake Knapp (rookie) |
| Cognizant Classic | Austin Eckroat (first time) |
| Arnold Palmer Invitational | Scottie Scheffler |
| THE PLAYERS Championship | Scottie Scheffler (2) |
| Valspar Championship | Peter Malnati |
| Texas Children’s Houston Open | Stephan Jaeger (first time) |
| Valero Texas Open | Akshay Bhatia |
| 88th Masters Tournament | Scottie Scheffler (3) |
| RBC Heritage | Scottie Scheffler (4) |
| Zurich Classic | Rory McIlroy & Shane Lowry |
| THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson | Taylor Pendrith (first time) |
| Wells Fargo Championship | Rory McIlroy (2) |
| 106th PGA Championship | Xander Schauffele |
| Charles Schwab Challenge | Davis Riley |
| RBC Canadian Open | Robert MacIntyre (first time) |
| The 49th Memorial Tournament | Scottie Scheffler (5) |
| 124th United States Open | Bryson DeChambeau |
| Travelers Championship | Scottie Scheffler (6) |
| Rocket Mortgage Classic | Cam Davis |
| John Deere Classic | Davis Thompson (first time) |
| Genesis Scottish Open | Robert MacIntyre (2) |
| 152nd Open Championship | Xander Schauffele (2) |
| 3M Open | Jhonattan Vegas |
| 2024 Paris Olympics | Scottie Scheffler (7) |
| 3M Open | Jhonattan Vegas |
| Wyndham Championship | Aaron Rai (first time) |
| FedEx St. Jude Championship | Hideki Matsuyama (2) |
| BMW Championship | Keegan Bradley |
| The TOUR Championship | Scottie Scheffler (8) |
| FedEx Cup Fall | |
| Procore Championship | Patton Kizzire |
| Sanderson Farms Championship | Kevin Yu (first time) |
| Black Desert Championship | Matt McCarty (first time) |
| Shriners Children’s Open | JT Poston |
| ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP | Nico Echavarria |
| World Wide Technology Champ | Austin Eckroat (2) |
| Butterfield Bermuda Champ | Rafa Campos (first time) |
| The RSM Classic | Maverick McNealy (first time) |
Recent Winners – Valero Texas Open
Italics – not entered this week;
| Year | Winner | Notes |
| 2024 | Akshay Bhatia (-20) | Became the second winner to lead after 18 holes; Led after every round but not considered wire-to-wire because of a playoff with McCarthy. |
| 2023 | Corey Conners (-15) | Opened with 64 and won by a shot (Sam Stevens) to become the only two-time winner at TPC San Antonio. |
| 2022 | J.J. Spaun (-13) | Won by two shots to earn his only TOUR victory to date. |
| 2021 | Jordan Spieth (-18) | Circled 24 birdies and won by two. |
One and Done – Spotter’s Game
1 player per event (plus a backup pick if your guy get kidnapped on Wednesday night and doesn’t make it to the first tee Thursday).
1 use per year.
| Event | Selection | Place | Earnings |
| The Sentry | Sungjae Im | 3rd | $1,360,000 |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Russell Henley | T10 | 195,025 |
| The American Express | Adam Hadwin | MC | |
| Farmers Insurance | Jason Day | T32 | 52,080 |
| AT&T Pebble Beach | Ludvig Aberg | WD | |
| WM Phoenix Open | Rasmus Hojgaard | T12 | 195,500 |
| Genesis Invitational | Will Zalatoris | T24 | 168,857 |
| Mexico Open | Patrick Rodgers | T25 | 59,350 |
| Cognizant Classic | Daniel Berger | T25 | 73,721 |
| Arnold Palmer | Keegan Bradley | T5 | 800,000 |
| THE PLAYERS | Collin Morikawa | T10 | 656,250 |
| Valspar Championship | Sepp Straka | T28 | 55,844 |
| Houston Open | Aaron Rai | MC |
LAST WEEK – Texas Children’s Houston Open
With the two heavyweights battling it out. I’m down to two players: Finau and Rai.
Rai gets the benefit of the doubt on current form, and he did run T4 at Vidanta.
THE CHOICE: Aaron Rai – MC
Only my second MC of the season, but it feels like every week has been a disaster. Finau didn’t provide any “second guessing” with his Twhatevernotclosetothetop10, so that’s my consolation prize.
Whatever
Others to consider:
Tony Finau, Min Woo Lee, Davis Riley, Mackenzie Hughes
Nothing better than having the winner and 10th place on the bench!
THIS Week – Valero Texas Open
No brainer.
Next week, I’ll have to burn some RAM for the first major championship, but I’m heading north of the border this week.
THE CHOICE: Corey Conners
Others to consider:
Akshay Bhatia, Sam Stevens, Gary Woodland, Charley Hoffman
Glass Houses 