PGA Betting Guide to Specials and Props: The 150th Open Championship
Picking winners for a golf tournament is incredibly difficult and requires -- we hate to say it -- tons of luck to get it right.
One wayward drive, one plugged bunker shot, or one shanked approach is all it takes to turn your magical big money payout into a stone-cold zero. Fortunately, we can play the prop market on Golf odds for The 150th Open Championship and find a few other golf betting opportunities to wager on this week's tournament without that all-or-nothing downside.
Whereas outright bets only pay out if the golfer wins the event, specials and props can keep bettors interested all the way through the end of the tournament. So let's focus on some of those opportunities: finishing position, leader after round one, tournament props, and a miss the cut parlay offered by FanDuel.
Finishing Position
Louis Oosthuizen Top-5 Finish (+850) - Louis won his major championship here in 2010 and lost in a playoff in 2015. Frequently a close call at majors, Louis gets another shot at one of his favorite courses this week and has terrific odds to finish near the top.
Justin Thomas Top-10 Finish (+270) - Thomas has only approached this number once at an Open Championship, but St. Andrews is his best shot at a Claret Jug, and he knows it. FanDuel has him priced well below market value relative to the other top players, giving us a great opportunity to wager on one of the truly good guys on Tour.
Two-Leg Parlay Odds: +3415
Min Woo Lee Top-10 Finish (+1200) - Lee missed the cut at the 149th Open Championship after winning the Scottish Open the week prior, and we like him to flip the script this season after missing the cut last week at The Renaissance Club. He did well for a T14 at Augusta and T27 at the U.S. Open, and he makes for a good long shot to record his best major finish.
Ian Poulter Top-20 Finish (+1000) - Poulter is feast or famine at the Open, having now played in 19 installments and posted 5 finishes of T11 or better, 3 between 20th and 30th, and the rest outside the top 45. The form is suspect given his defection to LIV Golf, but if he has one last hurray in him we can capitalize with a nice payout.
Four-Leg Parlay Odds: +502545
Leader After Round 1
Min Woo Lee (+10000) and Ian Poulter (+12000) - Both our bets on the top-10 and top-20 finish rely on a fast start by our two long shots. Lee is in the first group out of the gate on Thursday, and Poulter is just three groups behind him. The logic here is that they can attack the course before the wind picks up and play at their own pace without groups in front of them, establishing a good rhythm in the process. If either can run away and hide after round 1, we'll be freerolling the rest of the week.
Tournament Props
Sungjae Im Top Asian Player (+380) - It is a crowded but not deep market for Top Asian, and we like Im's consistency and patience. If conditions are calm, the former will boost him, and if things get ugly, the latter will save him. Si Woo Kim (+850) is the only other intriguing name in this market, but his Open record is lacking.
Min Woo Lee Top Australian Player (+750) - Eleven Aussie's arrive at St. Andrews, and while favorite Cameron Smith (+190) is always a decent bet, we are adding cars to our Min Woo Lee train in this market at another nice payout. The names behind Lee are afterthoughts with very little chance of making the cut, and with the more experienced Aussies on the wrong side of their careers, we're happy to back Lee once again.
Miss The Cut Parlay
Bryson DeChambeau (+132), Sergio Garcia (+148), Brooks Koepka (+160), and Dustin Johnson (+235) Four-Leg Parlay to Miss the Cut: +4911 - What could be better than getting almost 50/1 on the LIV contingent failing to make the weekend?
