At this point, players who haven’t already qualified for the Masters have two options to get to Augusta National. 

The first option: Call in a favor from friends in high places to score tickets and hope it works.

The second option: Win the Valero Texas Open. 

That’s it. The field is set for the year’s first major April 6-9, but there’s one tee time remaining if a player who hasn’t won already this year or isn’t otherwise eligible gets it done at TPC San Antonio. 

The golf betting field isn’t exactly stacked, with most of the top players preferring to fine-tune and get dialed in from their course of choice rather than play a tournament a week before the Masters. For others, like Rickie Fowler, this is a do-or-die week in order to make something happen and secure an invite with a victory. 

Regardless of player caliber, this week is always a good reminder that every tournament is potentially life-changing for its participants. Corey Conners got into the field at the last minute by winning this event in 2019, securing his first Masters appearance – he hasn’t looked back, finishing T-10 at Augusta in 2021 and T-6 last year. 

We’ll see if any Augusta hopefuls can answer the bell in 2023 and squeeze into the Masters field for last call with some magic in San Antonio. 

RELATED: Tiger Woods Odds To Win A Major In 2023

Last week: Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy both faltered late in semifinal matches at the WGC Dell Technologies Match Play, where a dream final vanished and gave way to Sam Burns’ 6 & 5 win over Cameron Young in the championship match. Now the Match Play is off the schedule for 2024, and we’ll have to wait and hope that one of the most unique and enjoyable betting and daily fantasy sports tournaments can eventually find a new home outside of Austin.

2023 Valero Texas Open Details

Course Location: San Antonio, Texas

TPC San Antonio: 7,438 yards, Par 72. Greens: Bermuda

Past Valero Texas Open Winners

• 2022 – J.J. Spaun, 275 (-13)
• 2021 – Jordan Spieth, 270 (-18)
• 2020 – Cancelled
• 2019 – Corey Conners, 268 (-20)
• 2018 – Andrew Landry, 271 (-17)
• 2017 – Kevin Chappell, 276 (-12)
• 2016 – Charley Hoffman, 276 (-12)
• 2015 – Jimmy Walker, 277 (-11)
• 2014 – Steven Bowditch, 280 (-8)
• 2013 – Martin Laird, 274 (-14)

2023 Valero Texas Open DFS Picks By Price

11K-9K Range 

Rickie Fowler, $10,200: It feels like the old days again, with Fowler priced about 10K for the first time in God knows how long. On this course, against this field, it’s justified. Fowler’s game has absolutely turned a corner from the depths of his years-long slump – he’s up to No. 59 in the world after falling as far as No. 173 last summer, and he’s made nine consecutive cuts with three top-10s and seven top-20s in his last 10 starts. The irons are finally sharp again and this course demands precision with often-windy conditions, in which Fowler always thrived when his game was on top. This could definitely be the week he breaks out and puts it all together.

RELATED: Masters Scoring Average For Every Golfer In The Field

Ryan Fox, $9,000: Fox is getting his first taste of PGA Tour life after rising in the world rankings thanks to two wins on the DP Tour last year. He took to it right away, finishing T-14 in his Arnold Palmer Invitational debut and T-27 the following week in his first Players Championship. Those were two of the heaviest-hitting fields of the year, but Fox knows this is a week where he can make some real moves and get closer to securing full status moving forward. The ballstriking has been on point and we don’t see a lot of people gong with Fox at this price, which makes him all the more tempting for the big DFS tournaments this week. 

9K-8K Range

Ben Griffin, $8,700: Griffin hasn’t done anything spectacular in recent months, but the 26-year-old just keeps grinding out paychecks. He’s made the cut in 14 of his last 15 starts, with six top-25s in that stretch. He thrived in difficult, windy conditions at the Honda Classic and Arnold Palmer and that bodes well this week. Griffin has also made more birdies than any other player on Tour so far this season, which is always a massive plus in DFS. Steady iron play and an excellent touch around the greens has us feeling good about Griffin in San Antonio. 

Nicolai Hojgaard, $8,000: We’ll roll the dice and go with a high-upside selection on Hojgaard at the bottom end of the 8K group. At first glance the course doesn’t look like a good fit, but the 22-year-old is playing great and quickly making a name for himself. He crushes it off the tee and the iron play is above-average, and he’s coming off a solo second finish at the Corales Puntacana Championship. Overall, Hojgaard has four top-10s in his last seven starts, and he knows what it would mean to play well again this week having done damage on the European Tour all season. Risky play, for sure, but one that could pay off big. 

8K-7K Range

Sam Ryder, $7,800: Ryder isn’t the most consistent ballstriker, but his putting has been absolutely off the charts in recent weeks with four top-20s in his last six starts – including a T-4 at the Farmers Insurance Open. His lack of pop off the tee isn’t a big deal at a course like this, and further down the board we’ll take a shot on guys who are elite at one thing rather than average everywhere. Ryder is an elite putter, and he’s been good enough everywhere else to rack up nice results for the past several months. We like Ryder to make the cut for sure and perhaps make a weekend charge if the irons are close to decent. 

Eric Cole, $7,300: Cole’s results have been all over the map lately, but solid iron play has been a constant. He’s missed three of the last six cuts, but he made the most of the weekends with a T-15 at Pebble Beach, solo second at the Honda Classic and T-27 at the Players Championship. His game definitely fits the course and we imagine he’s playing with more confidence than he has in years after seeing several solid finishes against elite fields. 

RELATED: What Are My Odds Of Getting Masters Tickets?

7K and Below

Lucas Glover, $6,900: As far as bargain bin options go, Glover has more than a few things to like. The 43-year-old has shown signs of life in recent starts, making the cut at the Players Championship and Valspar in his most recent starts. He also logged a T-3 last year in St. Jude, so there’s still a little something left in the tank. And this is the course where he’s most likely to rekindle the magic. Glover has been excellent at TPC San Antonio in recent years, finishing T-14 in 2019, solo fourth in 2021 and T-18 last year. He hits a ton of fairways and that matters this week. We could see Glover sneaking in for a solid finish. 

Doug Ghim, $6,800: Ghim has burned us on more than one occasion over the past several years, but we’re willing to give it another go this week. He doesn’t have a lot of distance off the tee for a player his age, but he makes up for it with accuracy and – when things are going well – precision iron play. We haven’t seen a ton of it lately, but a T-16 last week in Puntacana after a T-27 at the Valspar is promising. We’ve long expected Ghim to come out of nowhere and seriously contend from this position on the board. He has the talent to do it. Hopefully, this is the week he puts it all together. 

2023 Valero Texas Open, Date & TV

When: Thursday-Sunday, March 30-April 2

Where: TPC San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas

TV: Golf Channel, NBC