Who Will Be A Hero On The Golf Course

Although the end of 2021 is soon approaching, there is still time for some of golf’s biggest names to take to the course and with the Hero World Challenge approaching on the horizon, it also offers an opportunity to pocket $1m before Christmas.
Something that did not happen in 2020, as the vice-like grip of COVID-19 continued to grab hold of sporting contests around the world and this meant the fans were deprived of one of the more popular end of your tournaments.
Thankfully the sporting landscape is a little more inviting to competition these days and when you look at the class of 2021, it is fair to say that although the field is small in number, it is certainly competitive.
A field that will have the online bookies ready to collect all numbers of bets on the winner and with 2019 winner Henrik Stenson in this year’s entry list, he will know what it takes to finish on top after 72 holes of action.
However, if Stenson is to repeat the efforts of two years ago, he is going to have to do something incredible or at least according to the bookmakers, as the Swede is currently considered as the rank outsider.
Then again, the beauty of golf is that everyone has a chance of success and if you are on the entry list, you have a shot at glory and if you think Stenson will do the unthinkable, you can back him at the lengthy price of +12500.
While that may be considered one of the more outlandish bets any punter can make, there are others that are perhaps shrewder and when it comes to backing the best, you cannot go much further than Justin Thomas.
At the time of writing the American is joint favourite at odds of +400 and with this year’s Players Championship already under his belt, he will now look to end his 2021 schedule on another golfing high.
Of course, when it comes to golfing highs, they do not get any bigger than capturing the Ryder Cup and with the 28-year-old being a part of the American dozen which return the silverware stateside, it has been quite a 2021 for Thomas.

With the Kentucky-born star being joint favourite in the outright market at the time of writing, he may not necessarily have things his own way and with Rory McIlroy sharing the same odds as the American, it seems as if the battle lines have been drawn.
Not only because McIlroy was one of the 12 men who found themselves a part of Europe’s losing Ryder Cup effort for 2021 and although that was a contest based around team activity, there is no doubt that the Irishman will want to exact personal revenge.
Going into the tournament, McIlroy finds himself currently ranked No.8 in the world and subsequently the second-highest ranked European player behind Jon Rahm – who himself is No.1 at the time of writing.
Golf in the United States is going through something of a purple patch at present and although there have always been big names on that side of the Atlantic Ocean, the current production line of talent is almost never-ending.
McIlroy will look to build on double tournament success in 2021 and after capturing both the CJ Cup and Wells Fargo Championship earlier in the year, it should set him in good stead in terms of potential December victory.
While if the winner is to come from someone outside the current joint favourites, then it could be someone who captured this year’s 149th Open Championship and if it is that man, then it means Colin Morikawa will come out on top.
Especially as victory in one of golf’s most prestigious tournaments, is not the only time Morikawa has finished top of the leaderboard in 2021 and after winning the Claret Jug, he can also look back on victories at both the Dubai World Tour and WGC – Workday Championship.
A trio of wins that suggest Morikawa is the real deal and with the American currently ranked number two, victory at the Hero World Challenge would also help him reel in Jon Rahm as the best player in the world today.