The Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades has long been one of the premier stops on the PGA Tour. 1929 was the first time the iconic championship course of Riviera Country Club played host to an event previously known as the Los Angeles Open.
This year we have a stellar field which is nothing new to the event given the statue the course is held in having been a major championship venue on several occasions. Those major championships include the PGA Championship of 1983 and 1995 while it also hosted the 1948 U.S. Open. To add credence further to the allure of the Riviera Country Club, the course is scheduled to play host to the 2028 Olympics.
2022 Genesis Invitational
February 17th-February 20th at The Riviera Country Club
The course invariably sets a stern exam with challenging narrow tree-lined fairways that are crucial in supplying the foundation for strong approach shots to the firm Poa Annua Greens.
The winning score varies more than other venues but anywhere between 11 and 15 under gives the player a high finish and possibly a win while any score under par or better makes the cut in recent years. The cream usually rises to the top at the Riviera Country Club and multiple winners have been a regular occurrence.
Carlos Ortiz Trending Nicely For a Return to Riviera Country Club
Mexican, Carlos Ortiz had a low-key week in Arizona at the Phoenix Open until a hole in one at the iconic 16th in the final round to send the stadium crowds into pandemonium for the second day in succession.
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This week at the Riviera Country Club, Carlos Ortiz has an opportunity to make the headlines for the right reasons at a track he’s been building an affinity with for several seasons. Before last season’s renewal, the thirty-year-old had built an impressive plethora of form, never finishing worse than 26th.
Last year’s missed cut may have been due to being in contention the week previous at the Phoenix Open where he was 4th, so this year his preparation may mean he’s reaching a peak at the right time.
His one PGA Tour win was at the Houston Open, at the Memorial Park Municipal Course that has many championship-course traits, that I believe could tenuously end up tying in well with Riviera. Take Carlos Ortiz at +15000 with BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review) about him being the long-shot winner of this year’s Genesis Invitational while adding top 20 with the same firm.
Golf Pick: Carlos Ortiz to Win (+15000) at BetOnline
Golf Pick: Carlos Ortiz to Make Top 20 (+450) at BetOnline
Can Thomas Pieters Become the First European Winner Since Nick Faldo in 1997?
The Riviera Country Club is a track where class players come back and win for a second or third time. Why does that mean Thomas Pieters has a chance you may ask?
The young Belgian Pieters didn’t win in 2017 but was runner up to the runaway winner, Dustin Johnson. He has won, however, at the Riviera Country Club during his collegiate days, in the 2012 NCAA Division 1 Men’s Golf Championship, by three shots from a stellar field, leaving Patrick Cantlay, Justin Thomas, Max Homa, Corey Conners, and Keith Mitchell in his slipstream.
That must have been a stellar year of collegiate golf but since Thomas Pieters has gone on to fulfill his amateur promise with six European Tour titles and a World Cup of Golf win for Belgium with Thomas Detry.
He represented Europe in the Ryder Cup of 2016 and despite seemingly stalling around 2020, the thirty-year-old looks back to his best in 2022 with a win at the Abu Dhabi Championship. Thomas Pieters makes a compelling pick for me in this week’s 2022 Genesis Invitational at an attractive price of +7500 with GTbets (visit our GTbets Review).
Golf Pick: Thomas Pieters to Win at (+7500) GTbets
Golf Pick: Thomas Pieters to Make Top 5 at (+1400) GTbets
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
