2021 Northern Trust Championship: Latest betting odds, favorites and sleeper picks for Liberty National

World No. 1 Jon Rahm is back in action and the clear favorite, but there's plenty of value to be found elsewhere

Wait, we thought you could only “ice the kicker” in football? Well, when you have a six-man playoff to decide a PGA Tour event, “icing the putter” comes naturally with all the loitering we witnessed on the final green.

The waiting and the pressure got the best of Adam Scott as he missed a 4-foot birdie putt to win the Wyndham Championship on the first playoff hole last Sunday. So, the window reopened for our midrange pick Kevin Kisner and he took full advantage while sticking a 9-iron to a similar length. Kisner was then able to withstand the long pause and secure his first win of the PGA Tour season and launch into the coveted top-30 for the Tour Championship in Atlanta. And for those keeping score, since Phil Mickelson’s win at Kiawah in May, no player with a 54-hole lead has held on for victory on Tour.

Elsewhere with our picks, Webb Simpson missed out on the large playoff by just a stroke and sleeper Patton Kizzire did not make the weekend.

It’s officially playoff time. The top 125 players of the 2020-21 PGA Tour season arrive at Liberty National Golf Club in Bayonne, N.J., this week for the Northern Trust to determine who will advance to the BMW Championship. The former Presidents Cup venue is known for tight fairways and jaw-dropping views of the New York City skyline. This will be the final week with a cutline as many players will not only be looking to contend but also jockey for a top-70 spot in the FedEx Cup standings to advance to next week.

According to William Hill, world No. 1 Jon Rahm is the clear favorite while making his first start since the Open Championship. He's at 10-1 odds. Next up are the resurgent Jordan Spieth and defending champion Dustin Johnson at 16-1. To follow is FedEx Cup points leader Collin Morikawa at 18-1. Closing out the notables are gold medal winner Xander Schauffele and Brooks Koepka at 20-1.

For our favorite, we’re going with the current leader of the FedEx Cup pack and “Champion Golfer of the Year” Collin Morikawa at 18-1. Since his career-altering win, Morikawa has only teed it up once, at WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational, where he had a decent 26th place finish. He should be refocused now with his eyes set on another first-time prize, the FedEx Cup. In key metrics over his past 24 rounds, Morikawa ranks first in strokes gained: tee-to-green and approach. He also ranks second in strokes gained: par-4s (450-500 yards) and that will be crucial at Liberty National. Morikawa should contend throughout the playoffs.

For a midrange pick, Masters Champion Hideki Matsuyama at 33-1 looks enticing. Even though he missed a cut last week (probably still getting over that lip-out to win the week prior), Matsuyama’s elite ball-striking should thrive on this layout. Like Morikawa, he’s excelling in key areas such as strokes gained (approach) and tee-to-green where he ranks third and fourth over his last 24 rounds, respectively. Before the Wyndham Championship, Matsuyama’s past two starts were a runner-up and a fourth. Look for the Masters champion to enjoy himself under the playoff lights.

For a deep sleeper, former U.S. Open Champion Gary Woodland is hard to pass up at 125-1. Like Matsuyama, he missed the cut at the Wyndham Championship last week, but we are not that short-sighted. Just prior, he finished 11th at the Barracuda Championship and seventh at the 3M Open. In 2013, Woodland led on Saturday during the Barclays before finishing T-2 at Liberty National, so look for him to carry some momentum into the playoffs.

2021 picks scoreboard:

Winners: 4
Top 10s: 20
Top 20s: 12
Misses: 52

Here are some notable odds, according to William Hill:

Jon Rahm 10-1

Jordan Spieth 16-1

Dustin Johnson 16-1

Collin Morikawa 18-1

Xander Schauffele 20-1

Brooks Koepka 20-1

Rory McIlroy 22-1

Justin Thomas 25-1

Bryson DeChambeau 25-1

Daniel Berger 28-1

Abraham Ancer 28-1

Scottie Scheffler 30-1

Viktor Hovland 30-1

Hideki Matsuyama 33-1

Patrick Cantlay 33-1

Webb Simpson 35-1

Paul Casey 35-1

Cameron Smith 35-1

Adam Scott 40-1

Harris English 40-1

Patrick Reed 40-1

Tony Finau 50-1

Sam Burns 50-1

Matthew Fitzpatrick 50-1

Corey Conners 55-1

Tyrrell Hatton 55-1

Kevin Kisner 60-1

Joaquin Niemann 60-1

Jason Kokrak 66-1

Sungjae Im 66-1

Shane Lowry 66-1

Brian Harman 66-1

Ian Poulter 66-1

Russell Henley 66-1

Si-Woo Kim 80-1

Sergio Garcia 80-1

Branden Grace 80-1

Billy Horschel 90-1

Marc Leishman 100-1

Phil Mickelson 100-1

Jason Day 100-1

Kevin Streelman 100-1

Seamus Power 100-1

Cameron Champ 100-1

Maverick McNealy 125-1

Keegan Bradley 125-1

Alex Noren 125-1

Lee Westwood 125-1

Gary Woodland 125-1

MacKenzie Hughes 125-1

Matthew Wolff 125-1

Charley Hoffman 125-1

Brendon Todd 125-1

Stewart Cink 125-1

Garrick Higgo 125-1

Cameron Davis 125-1

Bubba Watson 125-1

Sebastian Munoz 125-1

Emiliano Grillo 125-1

Ryan Palmer 125-1

Roger Sloan 150-1

Matt Wallace 150-1

Brandt Snedeker 150-1

C.T. Pan 150-1

Max Homa 150-1

Aaron Wise 150-1

Carlos Ortiz 150-1

Chris Kirk 150-1

Charl Schwartzel 150-1

Jhonattan Vegas 150-1

Harold Varner 150-1

Erik Van Rooyen 150-1

Talor Gooch 175-1

Pat Perez 200-1

Troy Merritt 200-1

Patton Kizzire 200-1

Lucas Glover 200-1

Joel Dahmen 200-1

Kyoung-Hoon Lee 200-1

Zach Johnson 200-1

Doug Ghim 200-1

Brian Stuard 200-1

Chez Reavie 200-1

Hank Lebioda 200-1

Adam Hadwin 200-1

J.T. Poston 200-1