2021 The America Express
Tournament Preview and Sleeper Picks
Originally known as the Bob Hope Classic and formerly the Humana Challenge, the CareerBuilder Challenge and the Desert Classic - The tournament returns in 2021 as the American Express. Played on 3 different courses the first 4 days, it is also a 3 day Pro-Am golf tournament with amateurs playing alongside the PGA Tour golfers throughout the 1st three rounds of the week. Which means if you are looking for American Express Sleeper picks - it's just that much harder!
For those unaware, the American Express began as the Bob Hope Classic which to this day is the only true Pro-Am tournament played with foursomes of two pros and two amateurs. In the past, some top PGA golfers stayed away from this tournament because the rounds took a longer time because of the amateur players involved. Still, being part of the west coast swing there will be plenty of top golfers to watch this week.
American Express Current Betting Odds – See who are the longshots and sleepers according to oddsmakers - The American Express Betting Odds
The PGA WEST TPC Stadium Course becomes the final round course and was once considered one of the most challenging courses in America. Although it’s hosted other important golf tournaments, in 1987 it made its first appearance as a PGA Tour course and was deemed so hard that PGA Tour pros signed a petition in 1988 to have it removed as a course played as a tour stop. Times have changed and the course has been set up easier for the 2021 American Express.
Daily Fantasy Golf games are in full swing at our affiliate partner site DraftKings.com. With some of the biggest payouts for DFS golf take advantage of our bonus offer of a FREE contest entry ticket when you make a deposit of $5 or more using the link here:
2021 America Express Tourney Preview
The 2021 American Express golf tournament will feature a solid field of players but you will want to rely on course history and playing the hot hand as your fantasy golf strategy when making your expert picks for your DraftKings lineup (our affiliate partner site). While two of the courses are familiar to players (La Quinta Country Club and the Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course) the 3rd course and the final round course - PGA WEST TPC Stadium Course we mentioned above may be unknown to some as it has only been in the tournament rotation for a few years. Some may have played at as a PGA Tour Q-school qualifying tournament but generally many golfers will be unfamiliar with it.
Our American Express Sleeper Picks are at the bottom of the page, keep reading or scroll down to check out our picks this week!
Dates - January 21 – January 24, 2021
Prize Pool - $6,700,000
First Place - $1,206,000
FedEx Cup Points - 500
2021 American Express Golf Course
Name of Course – PGA WEST TPC Stadium Course
Where is PGA WEST TPC Stadium Course - La Quinta, CA
Par – 72
Yards – 7113
Slope Rating - 150
Year Built – 1986
Designed by - Pete Dye
Past Champions
2020 – Andrew Landry
2019 – Adam Long
2018 - Jon Rahm
2017 - Hudson Swafford
Other American Express info - Trends, Tidbits
- Grew in popularity when its was known as the Bob Hope Classic
- Until 2012 the tournament consisted of five 18-hole rounds of competition
- 2020 marked the 1st year as the American Express took over from the Desert Classic
- Played on 3 courses (La Quinta Country Club, Jack Nicklaus Tournament Course) with a 54 hole cut
- Full tournament name -The American Express
How to find American Express Sleeper Picks
The tournament is played on 3 different courses: La Quinta Country Club, the Nicklaus Tournament Course, and the Stadium Course which is also the course that the final round is played on.
As mentioned above, the American Express is played on 3 courses and the Stadium course is also the course for the final round on Sunday. All three golf courses offer birdie chances in a tournament known for its low scoring average. The final round over the last 10 years has been over -20 so targeting players that take advantage of Par 5’s is a must this week.
Pay attention to how guys putted last week at the Sony Open as this is another Bermuda putting surface tournament and there are some guys that excel on Bermuda grass and some that don’t. Last week should give you an idea on whose putting could be a factor this week.
Other stats to look at for the week will be BOB% - Birdie or Better Conversion %, GIR % - Greens in Regulation and Strokes Gained Approach to Green.
Again, to win this tournament players will need to take advantage of the Par 5 holes and convert birdies on the 2 easier courses. Ball strikers and accuracy players seem to dominate these courses in the past but if some of the long bombers can keep their fairway accuracy in a high percentage they can dominate the Par 5’s and rack up birdies and eagles all weekend long.
2021 American Express Sleeper Picks
Charles Howell III - We had Howell in our DraftKings lineups last week (and on our sleeper list for the Sony Open) and he played really well and helped us cash in a few tickets. Howell had a string of 11 straight cuts made up until last year’s American Express but I like him to bounce back in this year’s event. Should be a decent price at all DFS sites.
Maverick McNealy - A low cost sleeper pick this week has played well at this tournament and only has really had one bad round. He is worth looking at this week for you DFS lineups and could be a big help in some of your tournament plays for American Express fantasy contests.
Why you need expert picks for the American Express
We promote GolfStats.com because they win us money over the course of the year. If you don’t want to join them, that’s cool, but please don't rely on guys that have a golf blog run out of their mom’s basement claiming to have expert golf picks for the American Express. Also, don’t rely on the experts at ESPN or PGATour.com or Yahoo or CBS…yes they know golf, but if you follow their record, they certainly aren’t experts. Do your own homework, use other sites for reference and knowledge but if you are simply Googling expert golf picks and then using those picks instead of doing your own research…then you will never win any money at either betting on golf or playing fantasy golf.
