Sport
Valero Texas Open preview: Si Woo might be the Ancer in Texas
The countdown to the first Major of the year is very much on but first we’ve got some good action on the PGA Tour to get our teeth into. We’re off to Texas this week for the Valero Texas Open and with the likes of Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth in the field, there is plenty of quality on show.
And before the action gets underway on Thursday, here’s our take on how we see things unfolding over the four days.
Abraham the Ancer
With question marks over plenty at the head of the market, particularly Rory McIlroy, who will surely see this as a prep for next week, Abraham Ancer looks a more than likely contender at 20/1. Although of Mexican heritage, he was, in fact, born in Texas and perhaps more interestingly lives just down the road from this week’s venue where he practices regularly. As such, this is very much a week at home for the 31-year-old similar to the Mayakoba Classic where his last four visits have yielded finishes of 8th, 12th, 12th and 7th. In short, this is a player that warms to the task when he’s able to enjoy so-called home comforts.
Granted, his record around here isn’t as strong as one might hope, but that’s not to say there hasn’t been promise. Ancer has made all four cuts, with his best finish coming 12 months ago where he placed 23rd. That came largely because of better approach play and that has continued for the most part since. The glaring exception was at the Valspar where he might have been feeling the effects of the Monday finish at the PLAYERS Championship. Whether or not that was the case, he bounced back really well to reach the quarter-finals of the Match Play where his Saturday demolition job of Collin Morikawa was one of the performances of the week.
He was beaten by Corey Conners in the afternoon subsequently, but it wasn’t like he played badly and he’ll surely take great heart and confidence from his performance in Austin. That was his first top 10 since the aforementioned tie for seventh at Mayakoba and for a player of the Mexican’s quality, he’ll be keen to get back on track over the next few months.
Amex form points to Si Woo
Ancer has form at the American Express and that looks a good guide this week. Andrew Landry won here having been runner-up at PGA West earlier in the year and keeping with that mantra, Si Woo Kim looks of interest at 35/1. Kim won the Amex in 2020 and followed that up with a solo fourth here, so the fact he finished 11th at PGA West this year points to the fact he’s more than entitled to go well again here. His solid performances at both courses once again affirm that Kim really thrives at Pete Dye-designed courses with two of his three wins coming at tracks put together by the acclaimed designer in TPC Sawgrass and PGA West.
While the South Korean only has one top 10 this year, he’s only missed the cut once in 13 completed tournaments, so he’s been solid if not spectacular. He also comes into this off the back of a good showing at the Match Play where he was quite unlucky not to get out of his group having been beaten by a solitary hole to Tyrrell Hatton – a margin that ended up seeing the Englishman going through. He finished the week with a 6&4 victory over Christiaan Bezuidenhout where he was eight-under for 14 holes, so it’s pretty obvious his game is in pretty fine fettle.
