Arnold Palmer Invitational
By NCG
The Arnold Palmer Invitational 2024 takes place at Bay Hill Club & Lodge in Orlando, Florida from March 7th – 10th and is named after Arnold Palmer, one of the biggest names in golf history.
The course is a par-72 course that was designed by Arnold Palmer and Dean Refram which has a challenging layout. This includes changes in elevation and water hazards in 15 of the 18 holes making it a difficult course to play.
This tournament is considered one of the most prestigious in the golfing world and any winner is considered with high regard. Some past winners include Kurt Kitayama, the most recent winner in 2023, Rory McIlroy in 2018, and Tiger Woods in both 2012 and 2013. As you can see, there are plenty of well-known golfers who have taken part and won in this tournament.
Format
The competition is limited to 70-80 players which is unlike other PGA Tour events that feature many more players instead. There are pros and cons to this: it makes it a little harder to pick the winner due to less selection but if you like to bet on an underdog then they have higher odds of winning.
The Arnold Palmer Invitational is a ‘Signature Event’ on the PGA Tour and is one of only five competitions on the tour with the title of Invitational. As well as this, at just under 7500 yards it’s one of the longest courses on the tour.
The tournament boasts a $20 million purse, with the winner’s share standing at $4 million, even fourth place will get a nice slice of that.
Many well-known players will be there, fighting for the trophy and the prestige that comes with it. These include Rory McIlroy, the Northern Irish golfer who used to hold first place in the Official World Golf Ranking and held it for over 100 weeks. Hideki Matsuyama, the Japanese golfer who became the first professional Japanese golfer to win a men’s major golf championship (2021 Masters Tournament), certainly an impressive achievement. Another big name is Adam Scott, the Australian golfer who has previously been ranked number one and has won an impressive 31 tournaments.
Among the group, there are plenty of big names you’ll recognise and it’s certainly to be highly anticipated. Ludvig Åberg will be returning after narrowly missing out on the title last year to Kurt Kitayama, he’ll be hoping to push that little bit harder to reach the trophy.
Betting market options
- Outright winner – Betting on the outright winner is one of the most popular betting markets for this tournament and it often turns out this way. This means that you can bet on who you think will win, not win a round but win the entire tournament.
- Top 5, top 10, top 20, or top 40 – You can bet on a golfer you think will end up in the top 5 or top 10, and so on. The odds will go down the more people in the category. For example, if you bet on someone to get the top 5, you’ll end up with more of a return than betting on them being in the top 40.
- Leader in the first round – This market is not the easiest to bet on as it can change quite quickly and it doesn’t matter who you think will win because they won’t necessarily be the leader in the first round. You can bet on the other round leaders as well as the first.
- Head-to-head – Your bookie will pair two players together in a head-to-head and then you bet on who will get the lowest score, you need to feel confident in the player you pick.
If you’re looking for odds on specific golfers you’re interested in then the best betting sites in Ireland will have these answers for you. They will always have up-to-date odds on the golfers for you to bet with ease.
You can also bet on the Arnold Palmer Invitational live, lots of bettors prefer this as you can see the state of the golfer and how well they’re doing before coughing up the cash, this can often be safer than just betting based on reputation.
Arnold Palmer
Nicknamed “The King”, it’s unlikely any golf fan doesn’t know Palmer or at least know his name. Between 1955 and 2011, Palmer collected an impressive selection of victories mounting up to 92 (US – 26, international – 18, and seniors – 12) with his earnings from these tournaments reaching the millions.
He’s certainly left a legacy behind after he died in 2016, he’s transformed golf and the Arnold Palmer Invitational is here to remind us of his legacy.
He was one of the most successful, popular, and well-liked golfers ever due to his charismatic nature and unique, more aggressive style. If we listed all of his achievements we’d be here all day but it’s important to remember the man who shaped the golfing world.
