The PGA Tour heads east without some of its top players for this week’s 2023 Honda Classic at PGA National. The event tees off Thursday in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., and with it coming on the heels of back-to-back designated events, the field is lacking in star power. But that means an opportunity for an unlikely player to break through — and some savvy bettors to cash in big. Sungjae Im and Shane Lowry headline a field that also features the likes of Billy Horschel and Matt Kuchar. Sepp Straka returns as the defending champion after overcoming a five-stroke deficit on Sunday last year to finish a stroke ahead of Lowry at 10 under par.
Im, the 2020 Honda Classic champion, is the 17-2 favorite in the latest 2023 Honda Classic odds. Lowry (14-1) is the only other golfer shorter than 20-1, and he is followed by Aaron Wise (22-1), Chris Kirk (25-1), Min Woo Lee (25-1) and Alex Noren (25-1) as top contenders in the Honda Classic 2023 field. Before making any 2023 Honda Classic picks, be sure you check out the PGA Tour predictions and best bets from SportsLine golf insider Patrick McDonald.
After spending time at FanSided and NBC Sports EDGE, McDonald joined CBS Sports as a golf writer in the spring of 2022. Now covering the sport from a broader perspective, McDonald still likes to dip his toes into the betting pools on a weekly basis on the PGA Tour. McDonald takes a measured approach to his outright selections and is having a profitable 2022-23 season. He is up almost 25 units this season, meaning a profit of nearly $2,500 for $100 bettors.
McDonald nailed the Farmers Insurance Open, backing Max Homa (25-1) as his top choice. The expert also just missed a massive 130-1 score at the Sony Open when Hayden Buckley finished as runner-up. He hit another 25-1 shot at the Houston Open, taking Tony Finau to win. The expert finished the 2021-22 season up 42 units on his outrights, including a monster 250-1 payout on Hudson Swafford at The American Express. Anyone who follows McDonald’s advice has been cashing in.
Now, McDonald has studied the 2023 Honda Classic field and has locked in his best bets, top sleepers and favorites to avoid. You can head to SportsLine now to see all of McDonald’s PGA picks and analysis.
Top 2023 Honda Classic expert picks
One shocker from McDonald: He is steering clear of Wise, “given his lack of winning upside and recent downturn in quality.” The 2018 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year has finished in the top 25 in four of his seven tournaments this season. But he comes in off consecutive missed cuts, and McDonald says his driving accuracy and problems on approach make him unlikely to contend this week. The 26-year-old is an excellent putter (17th in strokes gained), but he is 167th in strokes gained approach and 94th off the tee. He has one top-10 in his past 14 events.
On the flip side, the expert says Im “appears primed to break through once again in the Palm Beach Gardens area.” The 24-year-old has two PGA Tour victories, including his 2020 triumph at PGA National, and is “the clear belle of the ball,” McDonald says. The South Korean rising star ranks in the top 60 on tour in every strokes gained category and has three top-10 finishes in nine outings this season. He finished in the top six at the Phoenix Open and Farmers before stumbling last weekend and tying for 56th. Im is 24th on tour in scoring average at 68.82. You can see who he is backing this week at SportsLine.
How to make 2023 Honda Classic golf picks
McDonald has locked in his best bets for the 2023 Honda Classic, and he has tabbed five longshots coming in well over 60-1. One of these golfers is “simply elite off the tee” and almost always puts it in the fairway and hits the green in regulation. You can only see who it, and get the rest of the picks, at SportsLine.
So which 2023 Honda Classic players should you target or avoid? And which golfer in the Honda Classic 2023 field could bring a massive payday well over 60-1? Check out the odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Patrick McDonald’s top prop picks for Honda Classic 2023, all from the expert who is up almost $2,500 on his PGA Tour picks this season.
2023 Honda Classic odds, field, top contenders
See McDonald’s picks, best bets and predictions here.
Sungjae Im +850
Shane Lowry +1400
Aaron Wise +2200
Min Woo Lee +2500
Chris Kirk +2500
Alex Noren +2500
Matt Kuchar +2800
Denny McCarthy +2800
Billy Horschel +3000
Thomas Detry +3500
Taylor Pendrith +3500
Sepp Straka +3500
J.T. Poston +3500
Adam Svensson +3500
Harris English +4000
Cam Davis +4000
Adrian Meronk +4000
Jhonattan Vegas +4500
Lee Hodges +5000
Christiaan Bezuidenhout +5000
Will Gordon +5500
Robby Shelton +5500
Patrick Rodgers +5500
Nick Hardy +5500
Garrick Higgo +5500
Ben Griffin +5500
Ryan Palmer +6000
Justin Suh +6000
Danny Willett +6000
Byeong Hun An +6000
Stephan Jaeger +6500
Padraig Harrington +6500
Joseph Bramlett +6500
Hayden Buckley +6500
Aaron Rai +6500
Webb Simpson +7000
Lanto Griffin +7000
Davis Riley +7500
S.H. Kim +8000
Erik Van Rooyen +8000
Russell Knox +9000
Harry Hall +9000
Charley Hoffman +9000
Brandon Wu +9000
Ben Taylor +9000
Callum Tarren +10000
Matthias Schwab +11000
Matt Wallace +11000
Mark Hubbard +11000
Greyson Sigg +11000
Aaron Baddeley +11000
Zach Johnson +13000
Pierceson Coody +13000
MJ Daffue +13000
Michael Kim +13000
Kramer Hickok +13000
Dylan Frittelli +13000
Chesson Hadley +13000
Carl Yuan +13000
Ben Martin +13000
Adam Schenk +13000
Adam Long +13000
Sam Stevens +15000
Peter Malnati +15000
Matti Schmid +15000
Luke Donald +15000
Harry Higgs +15000
Eric Cole +15000
Danny Lee +15000
Austin Eckroat +15000
Akshay Bhatia +15000
Zecheng Dou +18000
Erik Barnes +18000
Dylan Wu +18000
David Lingmerth +18000
Satoshi Kodaira +20000
Ryan Moore +20000
Ryan Armour +20000
Kevin Tway +20000
Vincent Norrman +25000
