The PGA Tour returns this week with the best golfers in the world headed to Ayrshire, Scotland and the Royal Troon Golf Club for The Open Championship. 80 of the top 85 players in the world will tee off this week with a chance to add a major title to their trophy case at one of the most prestigious events of the season. Only three of the last eight champions at this event went on to win another major so the outliers will be playing with confidence as they look to break through on the big stage this week.
Event Details
Event: The Open Championship
Category: PGA
Date: July 14-17
Location: Royal Troon Golf Club, Ayrshire, Scotland
Zach Johnson managed to win last year’s Open Championship in a playoff but there is only so much we can take from his performance since the tournament was played at a different course. Factor in the potential for weather to have a major impact and we could see a similar winning score to those we saw in the years before Rory McIlroy won it in 2014.
Past Five Winners
2015: Zach Johnson -15 (Playoff)
2014: Rory McIlroy -17
2013: Phil Mickelson -3
2012: Ernie Els -7
2011: Darren Clarke -5
What To Know About The Course
This will be the ninth time that The Open Championship is held at Royal Troon, but the first time since 2004. This course is home to the longest and the shortest holes on The Open Championship circuit and if we look back to the results from 2004 we can get a pretty good idea of what it will take to win here. Each of the top six finishers here that year ranked in the top-33 in Driving Accuracy and all six of those golfers finished in the top-15 in Driving Distance. Power should be the most important factor to consider this week and it will be very interesting to see how golfers adjust based on how the weather factors in to this tournament.
The Field
The defending Open champion Zach Johnson is listed at long odds to repeat here this year in part because it is a different venue and in part because he hasn’t exactly lit it up on the PGA Tour this season. It’s actually Dustin Johnson who is listed as the outright betting co-favorite to win this event at +900 odds now that he is suddenly one of the hottest golfers on the planet. World No. 1 Jason Day is also a co-favorite at +900 odds followed by Rory McIlroy at +1000 and Jordan Spieth at +1100. There are plenty of outliers to choose from if you decide to go that route as well, which might not be a bad idea considering the excellent long odds and the past history of this tournament.
A Good Matchup To Bet: Rory McIlroy over Jordan Spieth
Spieth delivered a strong performance at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational a couple of weeks ago when he finished tied for third but even with that result it’s hard to be confident in his potential for this week’s tournament. There is some value betting McIlroy to finish with the better result in the head-to-head sports betting matchup and we prefer to take him with the hope that he can produce a similar result to 2014 when he won The Open Championship. McIlroy missed last year’s event because of an ankle injury but he has had plenty of success here in the past and he should be well rested after arriving overseas a couple of weeks ago to play in the Open de France, where he finished third.
Top-Five Pick: Dustin Johnson
How long can Johnson continue to play at such a high level? We are willing to bet on him to extend his hot streak this week. Johnson is coming off back-to-back wins at the U.S. Open and the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and after his breakthrough there really isn’t any reason to expect regression. His power should translate well at this event and while he might not end up recording a third-straight victory he should be able to find a way to finish in the top-five at The Open Championship.
Top 10 Odds To Win The Open Championship
Jason Day +905
Dustin Johnson +805
Jordan Spieth +1015
Rory McIlroy +630
Branden Grace +2550
Adam Scott +920
Sergio Garcia +2250
Henrik Stenson +2550
Rickie Fowler +2850
Justin Rose +3050
