Tiger Woods will be on hand as host, but he had to withdraw from playing in his charity tournament at Albany Golf Course in The Bahamas. Still, several of the world's top players will be competing starting Thursday, led by Jon Rahm and 2022 major champions Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas and Matt Fitzpatrick. Viktor Hovland is back to defend his 2021 title and will also be up against the likes of red-hot Tony Finau, Jordan Spieth and Collin Morikawa. PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Cameron Young and rising star Tom Kim are among those making their Hero World Challenge debuts.

Rahm, who won by four strokes in his event debut in 2018, is the 5-1 favorite in the latest 2022 Hero World Challenge odds from Caesars Sportsbook, followed by Scheffler (8-1), Finau (10-1) and Xander Schauffele (10-1). The loaded field brings shorter odds, with most golfer priced 20-1 or lower, including Hovland (12-1) and Thomas (12-1), though Kevin Kisner is the 60-1 longshot as he plays on a sponsor exemption.     

Before you lock in any 2022 Hero World Challenge picks, be sure you check out the PGA Tour predictions and best bets from golf insider Patrick McDonald.

After spending time at FanSided and NBC Sports EDGE, McDonald joined CBS Sports as a golf writer in the spring of 2022. Now covering the sport from a broader perspective, McDonald still likes to dip his toes into the betting pools on a weekly basis on the PGA Tour. 

He takes a measured approach to his outright selections and finished the 2021-22 season up 42 units on those plays, having hit Cameron Smith (22-1) at the Tournament of Champions, Hudson Swafford (250-1) at The American Express, Joaquin Niemann (70-1) at the Genesis Invitational and Justin Thomas (66-1) live at the PGA Championship. 

McDonald is having a profitable 2022-23 season in every category, and he NAILED the Houston Open, backing Finau at 25-1. The expert also has been on the money on his matchup plays and cashed in HUGE on Brendan Steele (80-1) as the first-round leader at the Zozo Championship. Anyone who followed McDonald's advice been cashing in!

Now, McDonald has combed the 2022 Hero World Challenge field for the best value and locked in his best bets and favorites to avoid. One thing we can tell you is that McDonald is fading Sam Burns (16-1), even though the 26-year-old tied for third in his Hero debut last season. But Burns came in with momentum last year, and he has been trending downward since putting up three victories in 2021-22.  

Instead, McDonald is targeting an overlooked star to win who brings excellent value given his course history! The expert says this golfer is the best in the field in terms of strokes gained and should continue to excel on this seaside course. In a field of superstars, this veteran can pull off the victory and bring a SIGNIFICANT payday for anyone who backs him! You ABSOLUTELY need to see who it is before locking in any Hero World Challenge 2022 picks of your own!

So which 2022 Hero World Challenge players should you target or avoid? And which golfer has the best value in this stacked Hero World Challenge field? ... Join SportsLine right now to see Patrick McDonald's top picks for the 2022 Hero World Challenge, all from the expert who NAILED this month's Houston Open, and find out!