Genesis Invitational 2026 preview, picks & analysis

Another week, another Signature Event and another elite field. The PGA Tour season is now in full swing and this week the best of the best rock up at Riviera for the Genesis Invitational, the event hosted by Tiger Woods.

The likes of Scottie Scheffler, Chris Gotterup and Justin Rose have flown out the gates, and there has been some encouraging form from the likes of Matt Fitzpatrick, Si Woo Kim and Hideki Matsuyama.

But for others, the year has yet to get going. England’s Tommy Fleetwood had a sensational end to 2025, winning the Tour Championship and also winning in India before starring for Europe in the Ryder Cup and reaching a career-best world ranking of three. But he would be the first to admit that before finishing fourth at Pebble Beach he had struggled to find his best in 2026. 

And he is not alone. You can take it from me that Ludvig Aberg will not be happy with the way he has kicked off his campaign but he is the defending champion this week.

Last year's tournament had to relocate to Torrey from Riviera because of the wildfires in Los Angeles.

Aberg said: "It was nice to come here starting to feel like myself again and physically getting there. It means a lot. This is the best feeling in golf, and to be able to do what I did today is definitely going to help me going forward in the future.

"It's very reassuring to know that I can go from where I was a couple weeks ago to winning a tournament in sort of a quick turnaround."

By an unfortunate coincidence, as he did in 2025's Farmers Insurance Open, Aberg suffered more health issues at Torrey Pines this year and has been a shadow of himself ever since.

As the season continues to unfold, it will be fascinating to watch the progress of Matsuyama. The Japanese golfer had the WM Phoenix Open at his mercy before a final round that saw him hitting just three fairways. During that round he holed a succession of unlikely putts and produced some stunning recovery play but his driving was shocking. It is worth noting that after winning the Tournament of Champions in January 2025, Matsuyama struggled for the rest of the year. In fact, his runner-up finish in Phoenix was his first top 10 since that win.

You may recall that Collin Morikawa also had a flying start to 2025. He finished second to Matsuyama and was on course to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational until Russell Henley came up with an unlikely finish to snatch the title from Morikawa’s grasp. He wasn’t the same player for the rest of the season but finally bounced back to his best by winning at Pebble Beach.

We have also seen Xander Schauffele miss a cut this year, although he immediately bounced back and showed something like his best form in Phoenix. This is an important year for the two-time major champion. He enjoyed a spectacular 2024, winning both the US PGA Championship and The Open but his 2025 campaign was affected by injury. There were plenty of top-20 finishes but he never looked like winning and will want to put that right quickly.

I am expecting big things from Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre, who made his intentions for the year perfectly clear by opting to give the Dubai Desert Classic a miss and instead headed straight over to the PGA Tour. There has been some decent early play from the Scot but he has now taken his game - and his expectations, to the next level and is interested in one thing and one thing only and that is winning.

Yet again, Viktor Hovland has been working on swing changes. Why on earth he would want to change anything is a complete mystery to me but here’s the thing - he says that he is happy with the way that he is striking the ball, and he has already played some sparkling golf on both the DP World Tour and PGA Tour. Had he holed a few more putts at TPC Scottsdale then he may well have challenged Gotterup and Matsuyama.

Tournament Winners:

It was won in 2016 and 2018 by Bubba Watson, in 2017 by Dustin Johnson, in 2019 by JB Holmes, in 2020 by Adam Scott, in 2021 by Max Homa, in 2022 by Joaquin Niemann, in 2023 by Jon Rahm, in 2024 by Hideki Matsuyama and last year by Ludvig Aberg.

The Course:

Riviera Country Club is a par 71 measuring 7,321 yards. It was established almost 100 years ago and was designed by George Thomas and William Bell. The course record is 61. It has staged the US Open and the US PGA Championship on two occasions.

Form Guide:

I have a sneaky feeling that Norway’s Viktor Hovland might be doing something right with his latest swing tinkering - and he is due a win.

Prize Money:

This is a signature event, with a total prize fund of $20m. The winner will collect a cool $4m and 700 FedEx Cup points.

How to Watch:

Thursday, February 19, Sky Sports Golf, 3.15pm; Friday, February 20, Sky Sports Golf, 3.15pm, Saturday, February 21, 3.15pm; Sunday, February 22. Sky Sports Golf, 2.45pm.

To Win:

Viktor Hovland. Fabulous ball striker

Each Way:

Scottie Scheffler. Certain to be there or thereabouts 

Each Way:

Robert MacIntyre. Has moved to the next level

Five to Follow:

Viktor Hovland. Some really good signs

Scottie Scheffler. Unstoppable

Robert MacIntyre. Brilliant short game

Cameron Young. So impressive

Patrick Cantlay. In need of some decent finishes