PGA Odds - Defending Champion Villegas Will Have To Fight Off Slump To Make It Two In Row
by Charles Jay
Those people who survey the PGA odds know that Camilo Villegas is the defending champion at the Honda Classic, but he will have to fight off a slump if he hopes to make it two in a row at PGA National. The tournament gets underway on Thursday and runs though Sunday at the Champion course at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, FL, with weekend coverage on NBC. The world's second-ranked player, Lee Westwood, is the +1000 favorite in the PGA odds for this event. Villegas is down the list, at +5000.
PGA Odds
The Honda Classic
March 3-6
PGA National
Palm Beach Gardens, FL
Purse: $5.7 million
TV Schedule
(All times Eastern)
Thursday & Friday - Golf Channel 3-6 PM
Saturday & Sunday - NBC 3-6 PM
PGA Odds - Honda Classic
Top Rest of World
Vijay Singh +450
Ernie Els +500
Charl Schwartzel +700
Y E Yang +700
CAMILO VILLEGAS +1000
Rory Sabbatini +1100
Jhonattan Vegas +1100
Brendon De Jonge +1200
Louis Oosthuizen +1200
Charlie Wi +1300
Stephen Ames +1800
Angel Cabrera +2000
Camilo Villegas is the defending champion in this event and he is +1000 in the golf betting odds to win the "Rest of the World" category. But just because he is not among the top four favorites here, that doesn't necessarily means he carries a whole lot of value with him. Villegas likes this course, obviously, but he has not been showing good form, and there has been good reason for it.
He had to withdraw from the Phoenix Open, citing a back problem. He did not get past the first round of the Accenture Match Play. The guy without an ounce of fat on him has not cashed any fat paychecks for a while. Well, at least since his tie for ninth at the Tour Championship.
PGA Odds
To Win Honda Classic
Lee Westwood +1000
Luke Donald +1200
Rory McIlroy +1500
Graeme McDowell +1500
Matt Kuchar +1500
Vijay Singh +2500
Rickie Fowler +3000
Ian Poulter +3000
Ernie Els +3000
Robert Allenby +3000
Charl Schwartzel +3500
Y.E Yang +3500
Robert Karlsson +4000
Anthony Kim +4000
CAMILO VILLEGAS +5000
Villegas is not getting an incredible amount of respect from the linemaker; he is +5000 in the PGA odds to win this event. That evaluation does not come without insight; in fact, his ledger for this year has not been sizzling, to say the least. His 2011 start was a nightmare; in fact, he was disqualified from the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in a most bizarre fashion.
He was hitting on the par 5 15th hole, and his second shot when trying to negotiate a very steep slope up to the green, his ball came rolling down toward him, and he swept aside a divot that was reportedly in its path. He had violated a rule that states, "When a ball is in motion, a loose impediment that might influence the movement of the ball must not be removed."
Believe it or not, a fan that was watching it on the Golf Channel actually called it in, so there was a stool pigeon involved. And as a result of this violation, Villegas was charged with signing an incorrect scorecard, which mandated the DQ. What are the PGA odds of THAT happening? To add insult to injury, all this took place on his 29th birthday.
Unfortunately, he has not rebounded all that well. Villegas missed the cut at the Sony Open, despite a second round of 69, then could manage no better than a tie for 44th at the Farmers Insurance Open. And as we mentioned, we withdrew in Phoenix and was no factor in the match play last week.
Quite obviously, he's hoping that getting back into some friendly surroundings will help him. Aside from the win last year, he ended 72 holes in a tie in 2007, but lost in a four-way playoff to Mark Wilson. Last year he shot 66-66-67-68 to romp to a five-stroke win over Anthony Kim (+4000 this week in PGA odds) and pick up more than a million dollars.
Most observers are obviously somewhat skeptical about his chances this week, but Villegas, a native Colombian, likes the atmosphere. He should, because he doesn't live very far away. "The Florida Swing is special," he told the Palm Beach Post. "I get a lot of support and have great memories." He WILL have a lot of support, and his backers are counting on "home cooking" to be a factor in making him a formidable underdog in the PGA odds.
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