The third of four major golf tournaments this season will begin in June 16 at the Country Club in Brookline, Mass. The U.S. Open will start amid a bit of controversy over the LIV Tour. The PGA Tour has suspended 17 golfers, including Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson. A number of golfers have actually resigned their membership from the PGA Tour to join the new LIV.
The 2022 U.S. Open will still go on with the world’s No. 2-ranked golfer Jon Rahm among the favorites at odds of +1400. Rahm won the event last year, the first major victory of his career. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and four-time major winner Rory McIlroy are at the top of the board at +1200. Bettors can check odds from online sportsbooks to find the best bets for this year’s U.S. Open.
Can Rahm Repeat?
There are plenty of reasons why Rahm is among the favorites to win a second straight U.S. Open. He is averaging 306.9 yards per drive this season. That ranks 23rd on the PGA tour. The course at The Country Club will be the third-longest in history and golfers with big drives tend to do well on it. Rahm is ranked third on the tour in strokes gained of the tee (.859). He’s also an above average putter, which should put him right into the thick of the race this year.
Scheffler, McIlroy Is Hot
Scheffler took over the world’s No. 1 ranking in large part because he has four PGA Tour wins this season including the 2022 Masters. That victory was the first major of Scheffler’s career. His previous best U.S. Open finish is seventh.
McIlroy is also given +1200 odds to win. He was the runner-up to Scheffler at this year’s Masters, but he hasn’t won a major tournament since 2014. McIlroy has won the U.S. Open once before. That was back in 2011. McIlroy has five top-10 finishes this season already.
Other Contenders
Justin Thomas won this year’s PGA Championship event and is listed at +1600 to win the U.S. Open. Thomas has two major tournament wins both coming at the PGA Championship.
Collin Morikawa is given +2000 odds for this year’s U.S. Open. He finished fifth at the Masters this year and tied for fourth at last year’s U.S. Open. Cameron Smith, who is ranked third in the FedEx Cup standings, is listed at +1800. Smith has two tour wins – Sentry Tournament of Champions and The Players Championship – this season. He tied for third at the Masters and tied for 13th at the PGA Championship.
Xander Schauffele (+2200) is one to watch this year. He doesn’t have a major victory, but he has finished second at the 2018 Open Championship and the 2019 Masters as well as a third-place finish at the 2019 U.S. Open.
Tips for Betting the 2022 U.S. Open
The most popular bet on golf tournaments is on the overall winner. It is a tougher bet to win, but typically offers great odds even on favorites. A $100 bet on Scheffler, for example, would return $1200 if he wins.
There are other markets where bettors can have greater success. The Top-5 or Top-10 finish are strong bets. You wager on a golfer to finish among the top five or ten at the end of the tournament. The odds aren’t as great as on the overall winner, but you have a better chance of winning. The same is true for head-to-head matchups or group bets.
Regardless of the bets you choose, look at the key factors related to every golfer – course history, player’s current form, and key statistics (average drive, for example).
