Odds Are Long Tony Romo Misses NFL Broadcast For Safeway Open

Posted on: September 24, 2019, 10:58h. 

Last updated on: September 24, 2019, 11:30h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More

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Former Dallas Cowboys QB Tony Romo is once again teeing it up on the Professional Golfers Assn. (PGA) Tour. But the odds are long that the CBS announcer will make the cut at the Safeway Open, which would require him to miss his Sunday NFL broadcast with Jim Nantz.

Romo accepted a sponsor’s exemption into the Safeway field being played at the Silverado Resort in Napa, California. If he somehow manages to play the weekend, he would miss his planned 4:25 pm ET broadcast of the Minnesota Vikings playing at the Bears in Chicago.

Either Romo’s bosses at CBS are really understanding, or they’re simply being pretty realistic. After all, it’s highly unlikely Romo … will make the weekend cut at Silverado Resort and Spa, based on his three prior PGA Tour starts.” Golf Digest’s Alex Myers stated.

Indeed, CBS likely allowed its star color commentator to participate in the PGA Tour event for good reason – the odds of him making the cut are very long. The Westgate SuperBook has the four-time Pro Bowler at 10,000/1 to win. The second-longest odds are John Daly and Stuart Smith at 2,000/1.

CBS is expected to send Boomer Esiason to Chicago, should Romo find a way to play the weekend.

Sponsor Exemption

Tony Romo doesn’t have the on-course qualifications to be playing this week. This will be his fourth career PGA Tour event – all of which didn’t go through Monday qualifying. In all cases, he was simply handed a spot by tournament sponsors.

That can cause controversy among the golf professionals who are grinding each week for a spot. Sponsors defend their decisions by saying having a person such as Romo in the field elevates interest and media coverage in the tournament.

Oddsmakers certainly don’t mind having Romo in the field over a no-name pro golfer trying to make a buck. Romo will generate plenty of handle, and to take as much action as possible, the SuperBook offers an over/under of 78.5 (-110)  for his first round score.

Romo has missed the three cuts by a combined 40 shots.

As for the chances of him shocking the golf world and winning the Safeway Open this weekend, bettors who risk just $5 would net $50,000 on those 10,000/1 odds. The line implies a chance of 0.01 percent.

Real Contenders

There’s a strong chance Romo will be in Chicago Sunday for the NFL game. Back in Napa, Justin Thomas is the odds-on favorite to win the Safeway Open at 7/1.

JT is followed by Patrick Cantlay (10/1), Hideki Matsuyama and Adam Scott (16/1), with Bryson DeChambeau rounding out the top five at 20/1. Defending champion Kevin Tway is at 80/1, as is two-time Safeway champ (2016, ’17) Brendan Steele.

A couple notable fan favorites include Phil Mickelson (60/1) and Fred Couples (500/1).