The golf scene is set to kick into overdrive this week with the FedEx St. Jude Classic beginning June 11 and the US Open on June 18. The big storylines heading into the next two weeks will focus on Tiger Woods, who just played one of the worst rounds of golf in his entire career, and the brewing rivalry between Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth. For golf bettors, there will be plenty of opportunities to wager on big-name events all summer. Let's take a closer look at a few prop bets and figure out which have the best value to wager on. All odds come from Bovada.
2015 PGA Tour Money List Winner
Jordan Spieth: Even
Rory McIlroy: +250
Dustin Johnson: +1800
Jimmy Walker: +2000
JB Holmes: +4000
Spieth currently sits at the top of the 2015 PGA Tour money list with $6 million in earnings over the first half of the year. Walker and McIlroy are sitting a cool $2 million behind with roughly $4 million in earnings this season. Over the last three years the PGA Tour's top earner has produced $8 million in purses. If that number holds true in 2015,Spieth is only $2 million away from winning. Walker, who is currently second on the money list, has value at +2000 because of the number of events he plays. McIlroy has only played seven events this year, while Walker has played 17. Spieth at even money is also a solid wager to make, but if you want some bang for your buck, throwing something down on Walker at +2000 feels like an excellent way to "gamble".
One: -250
Two: +200
Three: +1400
Four: +6500
Spieth is coming off a Masters win, and the younger player may still be "hungover" from that career highlight. McIlroy recently won consecutive majors, so it would not be shocking to see Spieth do the same and capture the US Open next week. The safest bet, however, is taking the "no" on Spieth wining another major this year. The young pro winning three and four majors is out of the question unless he is on course to becoming the greatest golfer of all time.
Will Tigers Woods Shoot an 85 or More Again This Year?
Yes: +1400
If you follow golf with any regularity, you probably already know that Woods recently shot the worst round of his career with an 85 at the Memorial Tournament last weekend. Prior to 2015, however, Woods had not shot worse than an 80 since 2002. The trouble for the struggling golfer is that he shot the second-worst round of this career (an 82) in January at the Phoenix Open. The odds are Woods will not have another round that horrific this year, but at +1400 does it really hurt to bet that he will?
US Open Top 5 Odds
Rory McIlroy: +500
Jordan Spieth: +600
Dustin Johnson: +1300
Justin Rose: +1700
Rickie Fowler: +1700
McIlroy and Spieth are becoming a two-man show and have replaced the Woods-Mickelson combo that ruled golf for the last decade. The young golfers have won the last two majors, and another win at the US Open would be an historic feat for either player. Both McIlroy and Spieth are excellent players, but at this point there is no real reason to suspect that either is an all-time great golfer. The smart play is to wager on another player to break through and win a major next week.
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