Mexican Open: Rahm opens as big favorite against Ancer and Berger

Mexico Open 2022 Odds

Odds via BetMGM.

Vedanta Vallarta is hosting the first-ever Mexican Open this week on the PGA TOUR, with some top golfers looking to get back in shape with summer approaching.

The headliner of the peloton is world number one. 2 Jon Rahm, who hasn’t won since last year’s US Open. With another major (the PGA Championship) fast approaching, this could present the Spaniard with a great opportunity to start finding his elite form against.

To say Rahm struggled in 2022 might be a little harsh. He hasn’t missed nine sweet starts this year, and he’s finished in the top 20 six times. Rahm’s last start was at the Masters, where he finished T27 and was never in contention.

Also on the pitch are Ryder Cup winners Daniel Berger and Tony Finau, who have both struggled (compared to their high standards) so far in 2022. Both players were in the top 20 of the world rankings Golf Official (OWGR) at the end. of 2021, but Berger is now 24th and Finau 25th.

This week, many eyes will be on the Mexican pair of Abraham Ancer and Carlos Ortiz. Ancer finally earned his first PGA TOUR victory last August at FedEx St. Jude, while Ortiz won the 2020 Houston Open.

Ortiz mostly needs to get his form back. He ended 2021 as the 56th ranked player in the OWGR but found himself 87th at the start of the week. Ortiz has missed his last four cups – the Arnold Palmer Invitational, PLAYERS, Valspar and RBC Heritage.

One player who will consider himself “in shape” is likely Kevin Na, who finished T14 at the Masters and T26 next week at RBC Heritage. Prior to that, he qualified for the WGC-Dell Match Play Round of 16 in late March.

The lesson

Obviously, there is no historical data to prepare for the Mexican Open. However, we do know a few things.

Vedanta Vallarta plays 7,456 yards as a par 71, which means it’s longer than average compared to other runs regularly seen on the PGA TOUR.

One thing players should be able to expect this week is plenty of fairway to land. Unlike recent stops all over Florida, it won’t be as difficult for players to find the short grass from the tee.