2023 PGA WWT Championship Predictions & Preview

PGA WWT Championship predictions are locked in! After a short break, the PGA Tour is back this week for the FedEx Cup Fall Series. There are just two more tournaments left of the 2022/23 PGA Tour after the WWT Championship. 

Golfers will be competing at El Cardonal at Diamante in Mexico for the World Wide Technology Championship. Will any of Ludvig Aberg, Cameron Young, or Sahith Theegala be crowned champions? Or will we find a longshot winner? 

Check out my PGA WWT Championship predictions below as I go through the top contenders, longshots, and my picks for the tournament. 

2023 ZOZO Championship Results 

My last golf article previewed the 2023 ZOZO Championship that took place in Japan. Collin Morikawa was crowned the winner after shooting 14-under, easily defeating Eric Cole and Beau Hossler, who finished -8. 

Unfortunately, none of my ZOZO Championship picks managed to land. Let’s hope that I can bounce back this week with my PGA WWT Championship predictions. Head on over to my handicapper page, Ashlee Kiddell, to gain full access to this week’s picks! 

2023 PGA WWT Championship Preview

When: Thursday, November 2nd – Sunday, November 5th, 2023

Where: El Cardonal at Diamante, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

TV: Golf Channel / Peacock 

Field: 132 Golfers (Top 65 make Cut)

Purse: $8,2000,000 (Winner gets $1,476,000)

The tournament was previously known as the Mayakoba Classic and was first held in 2007. Fred Funk was crowned the champion of the first-ever edition at Riviera Maya-Cancun. It became known as the World Wide Technology Championship for the first time in 2021 when Viktor Hovland was crowned winner. 

The current holder is Russell Henley, who won the 2022 tournament with a score of 261, finishing 23-under. However, he is not in the field this time around. Interestingly, the last two editions have both seen the winners finish 23-under, also winning by four strokes. However, this year’s tournament will head to a new location. 

With just three tournaments left in the FedEx Cup Fall Series, golfers outside of the top 125 are fighting to earn their PGA Tour cards for 2024. The recent form at the Mexico Open is worth considering due to the same paspalum grass used here at El Cardonal. 

El Cardonal at Diamante Course Information

Par: 72 / Yards: 7,452

Greens & Fairways: Paspalum 

Par 3s: 4 / Par 4s: 10 / Par 5s: 4

El Cardonal was designed by Tiger Wood’s TGR Design firm and was opened in 2014. It will become the first course designed by Woods to host an event on the PGA Tour. 

One of the most notable aspects of the course is that the greens are huge. They are 23% bigger than the greens at the 2023 Ryder Cup course (Marco Simone Golf and Country Club). 

Due to the fairways being extremely wide at El Cardonal, accuracy off the tee doesn’t appear to be the most essential aspect to look at when trying to identify top performers. However, due to the length of the course, power will be significant. 

Those who have strong putting skills are expected to prosper. Approach play will also be important in order for golfers to try and position themselves appropriately on the large greens. 

Expert PGA WWT Championship Predictions for 2023

Could Hossler (+2300) have a chance at winning the WWT Championship? The 28-year-old finished T2 at the ZOZO Championship and secured another top-ten finish at the Shriners Children’s Open. That puts him in good form heading to Mexico. 

However, Hossler’s rank of 153rd in SG: Approach the Green may hinder him here. He will look to make the most out of his play around the green since he ranks 25th in SG: Around the Green. He has performed well on paspalum before, though, finishing T10 at the Mexican Open back in April. 

Another contender we need to consider for PGA WWT Championship predictions is Emiliano Grillo (+2800). He had been in poor form this fall, failing to make the cut at both the Sanderson Farms Championship and the Shriners Children’s Open. However, the Argentine bounced back in the ZOZO Championship, finishing T10 with a score of 5-under. He also finished T5 at the Mexican Open this year. 

Akshay Bhatia (+2800) finished even par at the ZOZO Championship last week, securing a T21 finish. That was an improvement on his T43 and T35 finishes at the Sanderson Farms Championship and Shriners Children’s Open, respectively. Finishing fourth at the Mexican Open in April, he will be looking to crack the top ten. The 21-year-old won the Barracuda Championship back in July and looks good value at that price. 

Top Contenders to Win the 2023 PGA WWT Championship

Aberg (+800), Young (+950), and Theegala (+1250) are all top contenders when it comes to PGA WWT Championship predictions. So, too, is major champion Lucas Glover (+2800), who also won the 2023 FedEx St. Jude Championship back in August. 

Theegala is the only one of those four to have played at the ZOZO Championship, and he finished T19. He also won the Fortinet Championship for his maiden PGA Tour triumph in September, and his ranking of 15th in SG: Putting could help him out on the large greens at El Cardonal. Despite the fairways being extremely wide and accuracy off the tee not being too crucial, he ranks 130th in SG: Off-the-Tee, so that is a drawback to consider. 

There has been a lot of hype surrounding 24-year-old Aberg after his Ryder Cup success. He has performed well in tournaments since as well, finishing T2 at the Sanderson Farms Championship and T13 at the Shriners Children’s Open. He is the current favorite to win the tournament and will be very popular for PGA WWT Championship predictions as a result. 

Longshots to Win the 2023 PGA WWT Championship

Matt Kuchar (+6000) last played at the Andalucia Masters on the European Tour last month and managed to finish T19. He is back on the PGA Tour here for the first time since the Fortinet Championship back in September. Nevertheless, Kuchar put in a very solid display in that tournament, finishing T7. He is an experienced pro who has won nine times on the PGA Tour already, the last tasting victory in 2019. 

Ranking second in SG: Putting, Taylor Montgomery (+5500) could be a very interesting selection for PGA WWT Championship predictions. He finished T16 at the ZOZO Championship and was only eight shots behind winner Tom Kim for the Shriners Children’s Open. 

Brandon Wu (+5500) should be considered after he finished third in the 2023 Mexico Open. That means he has proven success on paspalum before, but he is not in the best of form. Wu finished T62 and T51 at the Sanderson Farms Championship and ZOZO Championship, respectively. 

2023 PGA WWT Championship Predictions – Outright Winner

The first of my PGA WWT Championship predictions will look at outright winners. I have made three picks for this market. I have picked a number of correct outright winners already this season so hopefully, I can respond this week after the ZOZO Championship disappointment. 

Sign in to Sports Hub to find out which three golfers I am selecting to go on and win the tournament at El Cardonal. 

Best Bet: SIGN IN TO ACCESS PICK  

2023 PGA WWT Championship Predictions – Top 10 Finish

I usually make a couple of picks for a top-five finish for my golf predictions, but this week, I am heading on over to the top-10 market. 

A selection I like for PGA WWT Championship predictions for a top-10 finish is Montgomery. His strong putting skills should help him at El Cardonal, and he is in decent form of late, too. 

I am also back on Grillo this week, and I like his chances of finishing inside the top 10. He responded at the ZOZO Championship a couple of weeks ago and has already performed well on Paspalum grass this year. 

Best Bet: Taylor Montgomery (+450) & Emiliano Grillo (+270)

2023 PGA WWT Championship Odds

Here are the odds for the top 30 golfers at the 2023 PGA WWT Championship (subject to change):