The top two players arrive at Memorial Park as massive favorites. Here are the full odds and picks for the Texas Children’s Houston Open.
The Florida Swing is now behind us, which means The Masters is quickly approaching. Even though every golfer, fan, and pundit alike have Georgia on their minds, the PGA Tour takes a two-week trip to Texas before descending upon Augusta National.
First up is the Texas Children’s Houston Open at Memorial Park, a municipal course renovated by Tom Doak with Brooks Koepka’s consultation in 2019. Memorial Park welcomes roughly 60,000 visitors per year, making it somewhat comparable to Bethpage Black and Torrey Pines, two of the more famous public courses in the country.
But unlike the Black and Torrey Pines South, Memorial Park does not feature thick rough and punishing lies if you miss the fairway. Instead, this course’s defense is around the greens, placing a premium on iron play and missing in the right spots. Short game will be paramount, and as golf statistician Justin Ray noted earlier this week, those who have finished among the top 10 at Memorial Park have gained 19.5% of their strokes from around the greens. To provide further context, Ray noted that only the U.S. Open has had a higher percentage in this regard since 2020, when the PGA Tour returned to Memorial Park for the first time in nearly 60 years. Long story short: it’s all about the short game this week.
Top-10 finishers at Memorial Park, which has hosted the Houston Open the last 4 times it’s been played, have got 19.5% of their strokes gained total from shots around the green.
Only the U.S. Open has a higher percentage in recent seasons.
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) March 24, 2025
That said, Memorial Park is a bomber’s paradise. At 7,475 yards, this is the third-longest course on the PGA Tour so far this season. It’s also a par-70, which makes it play even longer. The tour has fielded only one other event on a par-70 thus far, doing so at Waialae Country Club for the Sony Open in Hawaii — a course that measures only 7,044 yards.
Memorial Park is quite the contrast from Waialae, though. You can miss big off the tee and still have a chance at par or better. The rough at Memorial Park is a perennial ryegrass overseed that measures 1.25” long. Sure, some players will get swirly lies here and there, but it’s a stark contrast from the hack-and-sack approach at other long tracks like Torrey or Bethpage.
Weather is expected this week, as rain will soften the golf course on Thursday and Friday. That makes the course play longer but also makes the fairways wider. Greens are more receptive too.
Players who can drive it well off the tee and those with nifty short games should contend this week. That helps explain why Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy arrive as massive favorites, but they are currently the two best players in the world too. And yet, at this point, for the game’s top players, it’s all about getting one last repetition in before Augusta.
Texas Children’s Houston Open Odds:
Here are the latest odds for players to win the Texas Children’s Houston Open, courtesy of FanDuel:
Scottie Scheffler +350
Rory McIlroy +650
Aaron Rai +2800
Wyndham Clark +3300
J.J. Spaun +3500
Davis Thompson +3500
Jason Day +3500
Tony Finau +3500
Michael Kim +3500
Min Woo Lee +3500
Sungjae Im +4000
Si Woo Kim +4500
Stephan Jaeger +4500
Taylor Pendrith +4500
Jacob Bridgeman +4500
Maverick McNealy +5000
Sahith Theegala +5000
Ben Griffin +5500
Thomas Detry +6000
Max Greyserman +6000
Taylor Moore +6000
Alex Smalley +6000
Keith Mitchell +6500
Kurt Kitayama +7000
Joe Highsmith +7000
Mackenzie Hughes +8000
Kevin Yu +8000
Jake Knapp +8000
Harris English +9000
Andrew Novak +9000
Harry Hall +9000
Nick Taylor +9000
Seamus Power +9000
Samuel Stevens +10000
Rasmus Højgaard +10000
Nicolai Højgaard +10000
Patrick Rodgers +10000
Rickie Fowler +10000
Photo by Leslie Plaza Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Playing Through’s Picks:
Jack Milko — Staff Writer, Golf
It’s time for the chef to get the job done.
I am taking Min Woo Lee to emerge victorious at Memorial Park this week, as he will rely heavily on his nifty short game and distance off the tee. The young Australian ranks ninth on the PGA Tour in strokes gained around the green and third in total driving distance, a perfect combination for this golf course.
His putting metrics are solid, too. Lee is 15th in strokes gained on the greens and ninth on tour in converting putts from inside 10 feet. The putter has been hot lately, as well. At The Players, where he held a share of the 36-hole lead with Akshay Bhatia, Lee ranked third in strokes gained putting. He did come undone at TPC Sawgrass due to a wildly inaccurate day on Saturday, in which he missed seven fairways and shot a 6-over 78. But gusty winds certainly played a role in his demise on a course that requires precision off the tee.
This week’s course is much different. Lee can spray the ball wherever he pleases and still find a way to score from almost anywhere. Driving accuracy has long been his Achilles heel, but Lee will not have to worry about that at Memorial Park.
FanDuel Odds: Lee to win at +4000
Photo by Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
RJ Ochoa — Senior Producer, Blogging the Boys
To this point in the PGA Tour season, it feels like we have had results from all over the field.
Big names, small names, and everyone in between have won at some point or another, and with The Masters now within striking distance, things need to get properly calibrated so we can figure it all out.
In that spirit, I simply cannot envision a world where Scottie Scheffler is winless heading into his title defense at Augusta. The lowest-hanging fruit is the sweetest for a reason, and I am going to go as chalk as you can and pick Scottie to take it in his home state.
FanDuel Odds: Scheffler to win at +330
Mark Schofield — Staff Writer, NFL and Formula 1
Memorial Park is, as our fearless leader indicated up top, a “bomber’s paradise.”
Rory McIlroy is fifth on the PGA Tour right now in driving distance (averaging 315 yards off the tee) and first on the Tour in strokes gained off the tee (.905). That alone makes him a solid pick this week.
But there are other reasons. After all, he leads the Tour in total strokes gained (2.289) and in scoring average. He arrives in Houston after finishing in the Top 25 in all four of his events this year, including a pair of wins.
It is an absolutely chalky pick, but we’re looking for a win here, friends.
FanDuel Odds: McIlroy to win at +650
Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
Jed Meshew — Staff Writer, MMA Fighting
First off, let me just say that I very nearly delivered a winner last week in my debut with this fine group. I was even hitting up Jack on Sunday when Justin Thomas was up two shots with three holes to play, asking for details about where and when my coronation would be. And then JT completely collapsed with horrible decision making and Viktor Hovland flexing his clutch gene. Alas, what almost was.
Anyway, I am sorely tempted to back Sahith Theegala this weekend after having one of the most relatable moments on tour last week, but — and I know this is lame — the smart money is on Rory this weekend, for all the reasons Mark outlined. Memorial Park is longer than a giraffe’s necktie, which plays nicely into McIlroy’s hands. And given how well those hands have been swinging the stick lately, I’m also lamely backing Northern Ireland’s favorite son.
FanDuel Odds: McIlroy to win at +650
