Welcome to our PGA Tour gambling tips column, featuring picks from GOLF.com expert Brady Kannon. A seasoned golf bettor and commentator, Kannon is a regular guest on SportsGrid, a syndicated audio network dedicated to sports and sports betting, and is a golf betting analyst for CBS Sportsline. You can follow him on X at @LasVegasGolferand you can read his early picks below for the Masters, which begins April 9 in Augusta, Ga.
Let the madness begin! The NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament and the Masters really is a match made in heaven, right? For about the next 25 days, two of the biggest events in all of sports will dominate the headlines, viewers, content … in every media space! And what a wonderful thing that is.
I started betting the future of College Basketball back in December. The first bet I made this year “to win the Masters” was in early February. For several years now in my golf handicapping program, I've used the Hawaii and American Express events in La Quinta, Calif., as a “pre-season” of sorts, getting a feel for the players, their conditioning, new faces, and testing everything involved in a new golf year. Since the Plantation Course in Kapalua is a strong predictor of success at Augusta National, I usually make my first Masters bet during or after that tournament, the Sentry, however, that event has been canceled this year due to drought-like conditions in northwest Maui.
There are several other powerful indicators in the West Coast Swing that can predict Masters success. In addition to Kapalua, the connection between winners at the Riviera Country Club (Genesis Invitational) and the Masters is widely known and extensive. This year's Genesis winner, Jacob Bridgeman, dropped to anywhere from 60 to 70-1 to slide into the green jacket on the second Sunday in April. I didn't play Bridgeman after that win, and I didn't back Rory McIlroy to defend his Masters title after finishing second in Los Angeles. I did bet early, though, on a few guys who finished in the top 15 at the Riviera. We'll get to that soon.
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In addition to specific golf courses that can provide clues, strong performances, top 10 finishes, and tournament wins are a common thread we see early in the season of many Masters winners. It is not surprising that the current form is part of the degree. It's not often that a struggling player suddenly finds his game and wins a major tournament.
My first match though was a few weeks ago during the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale. A two-time Phoenix winner, former Masters champion, and recent Riviera and Kapalua winner, Hideki Matsuyama it was my first bet to “win the Masters” in 2026 at 39-1, which I got here in Las Vegas at Circa Sports. After seeing how the 2021 Masters tournament got off to a good start in Phoenix, I pulled the trigger. I did the same last year after winning in Kapalua but unfortunately he cooled off and ended up finishing 21st at the 2025 Masters four months later. Since finishing second in Phoenix, Matsuyama has recovered but the game is still strong. Struggles are out but the wide fairways at Augusta National can alleviate those problems. I don't mind playing Matsuyama at 30-1 or more.
I made my second bet that week on another former Kapalua and Masters champion. The hottest player at the time, and rightly so Patrick Reed. I was able to get through the game a bit, catching Reed at 46-1. Reed has left the LIV circuit and has been playing sparingly on the DP World Tour. He won twice and finished second once in a three-week period between the end of January and the beginning of February. I see his price now ranging from 25 to 35-1. I believe 35 is still a strong number. Reed recently recorded another top 10 finish earlier this month at the Joburg Open in South Africa. In seven Masters appearances since winning in 2018, Reed has never missed a beat and has finished in the top 10 four times.
I added two more games in February both players are from Australia. Min Woo Lee (80-1) and Adam Scott (125-1). Scott of course, is a former Masters champion and Lee suits me as a big hitter with a good short game. Lee's lone PGA Tour victory came at Memorial Park in Houston, which can also be Augusta National-like in course setup and layout style. Both players are off to a great start in 2026. Scott finished fourth at Riviera, a course he has won twice. He followed that up with an 11th-place finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. This year will be Scott's 25th Masters appearance. He has only missed out on the title once since winning it 13 years ago. I thought 125-1 was too high and recently I see anywhere from 80 to 100-1 for 45 year olds.
It will be Lee's fifth Masters appearance. His best finish is number 14. He missed the deadline and finished in 22nd place. Lee was 12th at Riviera this season, second at Pebble Beach, and tied for sixth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
I currently have six games in the pack. I might stop for a while, but I think if I add something, it will be something else. It's very easy to accumulate Masters bets when the board is there and available for such a long time but let's remember, this is a small field and overcrowding can happen much faster than a normal field of 130 players. When you start breaking down the Masters field, it feels like only 30 players have a chance to win. It probably won't be the first, since that hasn't happened since 1979, and we wouldn't expect it to be one of the older ones or one of the newbies. So again, six or seven futures is already a lot. We don't want to get too carried away or it starts to have a big impact on potential profits.
The last two games I did I did earlier this month. Collin Morikawa (30-1) and Jordan Spieth (60-1). I played Morikawa when he threatened at Bay Hill a few weeks ago, where he finished second last season. Morikawa is already checking the box for success this season, taking the title at Pebble Beach in February. In six visits to Augusta, he has never missed the cut. His last five games are as follows.. 14-3-10-5-18. Morikawa withdrew from The Players last week after experiencing pain in his back during practice on just the second hole of the tournament. I am confident that he will be ready to go next month.
As surprised as I was by the price on Scott, I was more than happy to get 60-1 on Spieth. I found this on March 8th at William Hill. Now I see a discrepancy between 35 and 45-1. Anything 40-1 or higher is good in my opinion. He was 12th at Riviera this season and followed that up with an 11th place finish at Bay Hill. At the time of writing, Spieth is off to a good start at the Valspar Championship. If that continues, his chances at the Masters will likely decrease even further.
The six-pack is currently for the Masters. As for the nets going down in Indianapolis that Monday of Professional Week, I hope that's either Gonzaga, Michigan State, Vanderbilt, Illinois, or Iowa State.
