{"id":511976,"date":"2026-04-04T05:23:12","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T05:23:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/511976\/"},"modified":"2026-04-04T05:23:12","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T05:23:12","slug":"draws-and-fades-value-on-hideki-matsuyama-as-valero-leaders-face-forecast-of-wind-rain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/511976\/","title":{"rendered":"Draws and Fades: Value on Hideki Matsuyama as Valero leaders face forecast of wind, rain"},"content":{"rendered":"

3H AGO<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

*:not(style){overflow:hidden;position:absolute;top:0px;right:0px;bottom:0px;left:0px;display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;width:100%;height:100%;}.css-17ygvlf>img,.css-17ygvlf>video{object-fit:cover;}.css-17ygvlf::before{height:0px;content:””;display:block;padding-bottom:56.25%;}]]>\"Highlights<\/p>\n

Highlights | Round 2 | Valero<\/p>\n

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A<\/p>\n

Change Text Size<\/p>\n

Written by Brad Thomas<\/p>\n

After a delayed start to the first round of the Valero Texas Open, play had to be completed early Friday morning, and Mark Hubbard held the solo first-round lead after a blistering 7-under 65.<\/p>\n

There were a handful of golfers who had to wake up early and complete their first rounds before turning right back around to play the second round on Friday. But even with that quick turnaround, no one in the chasing pack was able to catch Hubbard.<\/p>\n

The story of the second round came early, and that story was Robert MacIntyre (-155).<\/p>\n

MacIntyre birdied his opening hole and then caught fire, later in his front 9, going eagle-birdie-birdie on holes 14-16 (his fifth through seventh holes). He gave one back with a bogey on 17, but it didn\u2019t slow him down. After going out in 4-under 32, he came in with a bogey-free 4-under 32.<\/p>\n

MacIntyre\u2019s 8-under 64 stands as the best round of the day thus far, and for now, he sits atop the leaderboard with a four-stroke lead over Ludvig \u00c5berg (+500).<\/p>\n

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Robert MacIntyre\u2019s Round 2 highlights from Valero<\/p>\n

But much like the first round, the second round was suspended prior to completion. This time it wasn\u2019t darkness, but lightning in the area. There are still a fair number of golfers left on the course, but from the looks of it, it doesn\u2019t seem like anyone will be able to catch MacIntyre before play resumes.<\/p>\n

Now it turns into a race against the clock as Valero Texas Open officials push to get this tournament completed by Sunday night. With Masters week looming, they\u2019ll not only be fighting daylight, but the weather as well.<\/p>\n

The first two rounds have been relatively dry, though the wind picked up in the second round compared to the first. Saturday afternoon\u2019s forecast, however, could create some real problems\u2014especially for those at the top of the leaderboard with later tee times.<\/p>\n

The forecast is calling for afternoon showers and possible thunderstorms, with a 70% chance of rain. Sustained winds are expected between 10-20 mph, with gusts reaching as high as 32 mph. The morning forecast is slightly more forgiving, which could open the door for those with early tee times to make a move if conditions worsen later in the day.<\/p>\n

Winner without MacIntyre, Morikawa, Kim, \u00c5berg<\/p>\n

After Hideki Matsuyama (+10000) grabbed at his back late in the first round, there was some concern that he might mail it in or that the injury could impact his play. That didn\u2019t end up being the case.<\/p>\n

Matsuyama followed up his 70 in the first round with a 3-under 69 in the second and looked comfortable doing it. The ball-striking between Round 1 and Round 2 didn\u2019t change much. He gained 3.2 strokes ball striking in the first round, but was dreadful in the short game, losing 1.2 strokes putting and another 1.13 strokes around the green. It felt like he was bleeding strokes anytime he was on or around the greens.<\/p>\n

In the second round, the approach numbers weren\u2019t quite as sharp, but he still gained over a stroke ball striking and cleaned up the short game. He gained 1.13 strokes putting, and that\u2019s why this bet gets interesting. When Matsuyama is rolling it well, he instantly becomes one of the best players in the field. And it\u2019s unlikely he continues to gain just 0.26 strokes on approach like he did in the second round. If he plays to his baseline with his approach figures, he becomes dangerous.<\/p>\n

Matsuyama is currently T22, and his Top 20 price sits at -116. There\u2019s value there. If he\u2019s healthy, you know you\u2019re getting full effort, and he\u2019s a player who can go out and attack over the weekend.<\/p>\n

\"Hideki<\/p>\n

Hideki Matsuyama’s 252-yard shot from rough sets up eagle on No. 14 at Valero<\/p>\n

I\u2019m willing to take it a step further and back Matsuyama in the winner without market at +2700.<\/p>\n

Realistically, being nine shots back makes it difficult for him to win outright. But given the expected weather conditions and the potential for disruption at the top of the leaderboard, Matsuyama is one of the players in position to make a Saturday push.<\/p>\n

This is the same Matsuyama who was one drive on 18 away from winning the WM Phoenix Open. The same Matsuyama who blitzed the field at the Hero World Challenge. Coming into the week, the biggest question mark was the driver\u2014but he\u2019s answered that so far, hitting 9 of 14 fairways in Round 1 and 10 of 14 in Round 2.<\/p>\n

This is a longshot with 21 players ahead of him, no doubt. But if the weather cooperates and he can go out and post something in the mid-60s, it could push him right back into the mix. And if that happens, not only is the Top 20 well within reach, but there\u2019s a path for this outright to have life as well.<\/p>\n

*:not(style){overflow:hidden;position:absolute;top:0px;right:0px;bottom:0px;left:0px;display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;width:100%;height:100%;}.css-11jnzpa>img,.css-11jnzpa>video{object-fit:cover;}.css-11jnzpa::before{height:0px;content:””;display:block;padding-bottom:66.66666666666666%;}]]>\"Image<\/p>\n

Mar 30, 2026<\/p>\n

Hideki Matsuyama betting profile: Valero Texas Open<\/a>Betting Profile<\/a>\"Image\"Image<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"3H AGO *:not(style){overflow:hidden;position:absolute;top:0px;right:0px;bottom:0px;left:0px;display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;width:100%;height:100%;}.css-17ygvlf>img,.css-17ygvlf>video{object-fit:cover;}.css-17ygvlf::before{height:0px;content:””;display:block;padding-bottom:56.25%;}]]> Highlights | Round 2 | Valero *:not(style)~*:not(style){margin-top:0.5rem;-webkit-margin-end:0px;margin-inline-end:0px;margin-bottom:0px;-webkit-margin-start:0px;margin-inline-start:0px;}]]> A Change Text Size Written by Brad Thomas…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":511977,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[5904,101,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-511976","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-golf","8":"tag-golf","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511976","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=511976"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511976\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/511977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=511976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=511976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=511976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}