2022 LPGA Season Tees Off With Tournament of Champions

The LPGA Tour season tees off this Thursday with the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions. Taking place Jan. 20-23 at Lake Nona Golf Course in Orlando, Florida, a field of 29 golfers will be vying for this $1.5 million purse.

To celebrate the season’s opening event, we take a look at the tournament’s top players according to US sportsbooks.

Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions preview

The Tournament of Champions is the first of 34 events in this year’s unprecedented $85.7 million LPGA circuit.

Bettors will find the event listed as the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions at BetMGM and DraftKings or simply the Tournament of Champions at Caesars Sportsbook.

Below, we’ll list some of this week’s major contenders and assess their odds of securing a victory.

Nelly Korda

America’s favorite female golfer, World No. 1 Nelly Korda, returns this season as the favored player in yet another LPGA tournament. Lake Nona is a course Korda has already championed, winning the Gainbridge LPGA last February to catapult her into a successful 2021 season.

BetMGM situates her in the lead with +350 odds of becoming the tournament winner.

DraftKings predicts Korda will become the first-round leader, then advance to win the tournament. In addition, the sportsbook also provides the ability to wager on a player’s potential for a top-five finish. For Korda, her chance of the latter sits at a likely -300 odds.

Lydia Ko

Jin Young Ko was expected to be Korda’s primary competition in this season-opener. But since Ko opted out, another top golfer rises to the occasion.

Former World No. 1 Lydia Ko returns to the dance floor with a fresh eye on the crown. At 24 years old, Ko is no stranger to the 18 holes of Lake Nona. In fact, she frequents the course as a member. Moreover, she finished second during the Gainbridge last year, bested only by Korda herself.

Ko sits directly behind Korda in current odds. DraftKings gives her +450 odds of a victory and -225 odds of a top 5 finish.

Patty Tavatanakit

Talk about coming out of the gate strong. The first win this 22-year-old golfer logged in her short LPGA career was a Major — a first-place victory at the 2021 ANA Inspiration last April. Earlier in the season, Tavatanakit finished fifth in the Gainbridge at Lake Nona.

DraftKings gives her a lengthy +1600 odds of becoming the winner and +200 odds of a top 5 finish.

Brooke Henderson

Canadian 24-year-old Brooke Henderson prepares to launch into the 2022 season after seven top 10 finishes last year — three of those were top 5 finishes.

DraftKings gives her +1400 odds of becoming the leader after Round 1 and +1100 odds of winning the overall tournament.

Those that aren’t sold on Henderson just yet can find reasonable value in her finishing in the top 5 at +150 odds.

Fellow top 10 contenders

As with any new season of professional golf, it’s always wise to expect the unexpected. In addition to the major players listed above, a bevy of other top contenders look to make a splash in the 2022 LPGA Tour pool. But to do so, they’ll have to finish at the top of this leaderboard.

Danielle Kang, Inbee Park, Nasa Hataoka, Yuka Saso, and Korda’s sister, Jessica Korda, are all vying for a top spot and have roughly the same odds of successfully doing so.

DraftKings’ current odds for the field’s top 15 players at this week’s Tournament of Champions are as follows: