Golfers hit the links at Royal St. George this Thursday, July 15 for the 2021 British Open, golf’s final major of the year.
Going into the first round, Tennessee sportsbooks favor six-time PGA Tour champion Jon Rahm to take home the weekend’s victory.
Jon Rahm favored in 2021 British Open odds
Twenty-six year-old Jon Rahm has played the best golf of his career these past two seasons, most recently winning the US Open Championship in late June and placing fifth at the Masters in April. The Spaniard is currently favored to win the British Open with +800 odds at BetMGM TN.
Rahm, along with 2010 British Open winner Louis Oosthuizen and defending champion Shane Lowry, will be looking to claim a second major title win on Sunday.
Brooks Koepka is the weekend’s second favorite, with +1600 odds. The Florida native tied for second at the PGA Championship earlier this year and boasts a total of eight PGA Tour victories.
The last time the British Open was played at Royal St. George was in 2011, when Irishman Darren Clarke took home the gold and both Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson placed runner up.
Johnson sits at +2200 odds of winning this year and +450 odds of making the cut. Mickelson sits a ways down the leaderboard at +8000 odds of winning and +750 odds of a top-10 finish.
While eight-time PGA Tour champ Bryson DeChambeau may have finished first at both the 2020 US Open and the Arnold Palmer Invitational, his 2021 performances have been touch and go. Going into this week’s event, DeChambeau sits at +3500.
British Open sportsbook promos
In addition to the wide variety of British Open betting markets available, some sportsbooks are sticking it even closer to the pin with promotions.
Top 5 golfer insurance
Along with BetMGM’s various golf specials, the operator is offering “Top 5 Golfer Insurance” to bettors whose golfer doesn’t quite make it to a first place finish.
Users who opt in for this insurance and place a wager on any golfer to win the Championship will receive up to $25 back in the form of bonus bets if the golfer loses but still places in the top five.
Bet $1 To Win $50 At DraftKings
If any golfer birdies a hole during the tournament, new users have a chance to win $50 at DraftKings.
To qualify, new users have to make a deposit of $5 or more into their account and place a wager of $1 or more on any British Open line. As soon as any player logs a birdie, new DraftKings customers will be gifted with a $50 bonus.
Open Championship bet types
The number of ways a bettor can wager on golf is about as vast as the number of club combinations a golfer can carry in his bag.
Of course, there’s traditional British Open betting on a player’s overall tournament finish. For instance, bettors can grab +400 boosted odds of Phil Mickelson logging a top-20 finish at William Hill.
Wagering can also be broken down by round. BetMGM’s special bets include wagers on which player will:
- Lead after the first round
- Place top five after the first round
- Make the cut
The “King of Sportsbooks” even offers individual player specials for each round. Bettors can wager on the likelihood of a golfer to:
- Make four or more birdies/eagles
- Shoot 68 or lower
- Birdie the first hole
- Make an eagle
- Log a bogey-free round
DraftKings Tennessee and FanDuel offer matchup betting as well. Bettors can wager on the better golfer out two. Group betting is similar, allowing bettors to wager on the top-performing golfer out of a group of five.
Players tee off for the first round of the British Open on Thursday, July 15. After four rounds of play, the tournament concludes Sunday, July 18.
Bettors can stream the action live on NBC, Golf Channel, Peacock, and fuboTV.
