The Open Championship returns to the home of golf, the St Andrews Links Course and Rory Mcilroy looks a worthy favourite.
The Old Course at St Andrews plays to a par 72 and this will be the 29th time the Open Championship has been played there. The course’s main defence is the wind that often blows as well as some pot bunkers scattered throughout the course. Key to victory this week is likely to be an excellent putting performance in particular lag putts from distance.
Rory Mcilroy is currently the ruling favourite at 10/1 with last week’s Scottish Open winner, Schauffele 16/1 and you can get 18/1 about Rahm, Scheffler and Spieth with 20/1 the US Open Champion, Fitzpatrick.
The shortest price South African in the betting is Louis Oosthuizen at 40/1 and the next best amongst the South Africans is Christiaan Bezuidenhout at 150/1. Oosthuizen is the 5/2 favourite to be the Top South African with Bezuidenhout 5/1 and if you fancy someone to roll back the clock then how about Ernie Els in this market at 18/1. Click here for the Top South African betting
BETTING – Click here to bet
Rory Mcilroy 10/1
Xander Schauffele 16/1
Jon Rahm 18/1
Scottie Scheffler 18/1
Jordan Spieth 18/1
Matthew Fitzpatrick 20/1
22/1 and better the balance, prices correct at the time of posting but are subject to change
SELECTIONS: I am going to allow myself the liberty of 5 selections this week, 2 towards the top of the betting boards where I will go “win only” and then “each way” selections on some much bigger prices.
World Sports Betting are betting each way to 6 places
Rory Mcilroy win only at 10/1
Mcilroy hasn’t finished outside the Top 20 in his last 6 starts and that includes a victory and 2 Top 5 finishes. He won the Open Championship back in 2014 and since then has had 3 Top 5 finishes although last year was a disappointing 46th. Mcilroy’s game seems to have found maturity perhaps lacking in the past and I have a feeling that this is going to be his week.
Scottie Scheffler win only at 18/1
The US Masters Champion was 8th on debut in last year’s Open Championship and while his game has dipped a bit since his US Masters win, he has had a couple of runner-up finishes and contended at the US Open a couple of weeks back, but was pipped to the post by Fitzpatrick.
Scheffler had a missed cut last week at the Scottish Open, but I am starting to think that this man is targeting the big Tournaments and he has the perfect game for St Andrews.
Justin Rose each way at 70/1
Rose has been a bit inconsistent, but there are times that his game has come together as evidenced by a Top 5 finish three starts back. He is a man who loves links golf and he has a solid Open record.
Adam Scott each way at 110/1
From 2012 to 2014 Scott didn’t finish outside the Top 5 in the Open and since then he has put in a number of solid finishes. It is his most recent appearance that caught the eye though namely a Top 15 at the US Open and in a Tournament where players with experience often go well I like Scott’s chances at a triple figure price.
Christiaan Bezuidenhout each way at 150/1
Bezuidenhout is in good nick with a Top 20 finish last week on the back of a runner-up finish the week before. He doesn’t have much of an Open record to talk of, but he is clearly a player on the up and I also quite fancy the 5/1 that he finishes the Top South African.
