The American Express gets a strong field this week with a number of highly ranked players in action including Jon Rahm who is listed as the betting favorite at BetRivers. Half of the world’s top 10 players are expected to play this week. Most players bypassed the event at Waialae last week, so they are rested for this week in Southern California. It was a bit of a struggle last week in Hawaii with the matchups, as we went 2-3, so we’ll look to bounce back in California this week. Let’s look at The American Express matchup picks.

Defending Champion: Hudson Swafford

Tournament Notes: This event takes place over three courses with the Stadium Course at PGA West getting two rounds. There will be 156 players in the field, but there will be far more players on the course, as each pro is teamed with an amateur for the first three rounds. The Stadium Course averaged 70.6 a year ago so the scoring was fair. The weather for this week looks great with no rain and very little wind.

The American Express Matchups

Rahm, Jon -129 vs. Scheffler, Scottie

Rahm, Jon -176 vs. Finau, Tony

Scheffler, Scottie -118 vs. Cantlay, Patrick

Cantlay, Patrick -125 vs. Finau, Tony

Tom Kim -143 vs. Si Woo Kim

Pendrith, Taylor -137 vs. Theegala, Sahith

Zalatoris, Will -125 vs. Young, Cameron

Sungjae Im -186 vs. Day, Jason

Harman, Brian -159 vs. Poston, J.T.

Sigg, Greyson -137 vs. Todd, Brendon

Grillo, Emiliano -150 vs. Rai, Aaron

Burns, Sam -120 vs. Hoge, Tom

Wise, Aaron -159 vs. Putnam, Andrew

Kyoung-Hoon Lee -120 vs. Davis, Cameron

Mitchell, Keith -125 vs. Clark, Wyndham

Smalley, Alex -143 vs. Lipsky, David

Zalatoris, Will -164 vs. Tom Kim

Harman, Brian -142 vs. Hoge, Tom

Wise, Aaron -126 vs. Davis, Cameron

Theegala, Sahith -118 vs. Putnam, Andrew

Montgomery, Taylor -142 vs. Poston, J.T.

Hadwin, Adam -118 vs. Kirk, Chris

K.H. Lee -152 vs. Rose, Justin

Day, Jason -142 vs. Fowler, Rickie

Golf Picks

Tom Kim -143 vs. Si Woo Kim

This first matchup is right in my wheelhouse, as we get the better player and we go against last week’s winner. I know that Si Woo Kim has played well in the past on this course and that he won last week but Tom Kim is the better player and I expect him to bounce back in a big way this week from last week’s missed cut. I’ll lay the price and take Tom Kim in this matchup.

Sungjae Im -186 vs. Day, Jason

I don’t know that you can make a line high enough on this matchup for me. Im is simply the better player than Day right now. I know that Im didn’t play well last week at Waialae, but it gives him a little rest since he missed the cut. He has always played well in this event and I expect him to contend this week. I’ll lay the price and take Im in this matchup.

Burns, Sam -120 vs. Hoge, Tom

I know that Hoge has played well in this event with a tie for 6^th and a second-place finish last year but Burns is simply the better player. He has also played well in this event with a tie for 18^th and a tie for 6^th. Anytime I can get the better player at a short price I am taking him, so I will lay the small price and take Burns here.

Theegala, Sahith +107 vs. Pendrith, Taylor

I am surprised that Theegala is listed as the underdog in this matchup. He played well in his tournament debut in this event a year ago and he comes into this event playing well with three top-six finishes. I will take Theegala in this matchup at the underdog price.

Montgomery, Taylor -142 vs. Poston, J.T.

Montgomery continues to play well, as he has made all eight cuts this season and has seven finishes in the Top 15. He tied for 12^th last week in Hawaii. I think he is the clear choice in this matchup against Poston.

Check out the latest The American Express matchups at BetRivers.