Golf is one of the few sports with year-round opportunities to watch and wager, but picking the winner of a tournament hosting 120 golfers is difficult. Fortunately, golf offers a wide array of golf betting opportunities, from long shots to 50-50 head-to-head matchups. Let’s look at what bets you can make on golf. I’ll also share my favorite type of bet when it comes to maximizing our win percentage with golf.
Future Golf Bets
A popular public wager is picking the outright tournament winner. Even a golfer in the Top 10 will have odds of 12-to-1 or 18-to-1—a terrific payday, but still a tough nut to cash. Even the tournament favorites can be 5-to-1 or 10-to-1. Odds are due to the large field of players, typically 120, with the PGA Championship having a maximum of 156. The cut rule comes into play after the first 36 holes, with the top 65 players advancing to the final two rounds. So, you can lose your bet halfway through the tournament if the golfer fails to make the cut. Futures are difficult to hit, with one winner out of 120+ golfers.
First Round of Golf Leader
Equally challenging is FRL, or picking the first-round leader after 18 holes. There's more volatility, as lesser-known, long-shot golfers can have a hot start. This shakes up the field and the betting board. The odds will be high, so the idea is to look for golfers who have been playing well over the last few tournaments or, isolate golfers who are familiar with the course, having played well on it in the past. Additionally, a favorable tee time, based on anticipated weather conditions (such as wind, excessive heat, or rain later in the day), can also be a factor.
Place Bets
Place Bets cover a range of final finishes. It packages a golfer to finish on the leaderboard in a specific range, such as Top 10 or 20. This increases your odds of cashing compared to picking the outright tournament winner. Many golfers will be plus-money (+170, +250) with place betting, also known as a Finishing Position Bet. Major marquee tournaments can offer a Top 30 or even a Top 40 place bet range.
Each-Way Golf Bets
These are two bets in one: winning the tournament and finishing within a specific range. Picking a golfer to have a Top 20 finish on an each-way bet means the payout is high if the golfer wins the tournament. If the golfer doesn't win but finishes 11th or 19th, for instance, you still cash, although the payout is far smaller than if they were No. 1 on the leaderboard. There are two ways to win with less risk than trying to pick only the tournament winner, increasing your chances of a return.
Missing the Cut
Yes, you can bet on losers, too! Actually, missing the cut means you're wagering against a golfer. In most tournaments, the cut is made after 36 holes, played on Thursday and Friday. A pro golfer fails to make the cut when their score isn't high enough to qualify for the final two rounds on Saturday and Sunday. A Miss the Cut wager cashes when the golfer is eliminated from the competition late Friday afternoon. You can also do the reverse with Make the Cut wagers.
Head-to-Head Matchups (My favorite golf bets)
This matches up two golfers against each other over the entire tournament. It's a popular type of golf bet, as the goal is not to pick the overall tournament winner out of 100 golfers, but to back one golfer to finish with a better score than another. This is where handicapping effectively comes into play, weighing the course layout against the strengths and weaknesses of two golfers. Golfers with power have an edge on long courses, while those who struggle with accuracy can be at a disadvantage on courses that have obstacles such as tree-lined fairways and water hazards. In addition, recent play is worth a look, revealing struggles and hinting at injuries few are aware of.
Wunderdog take on Head-to-Head Matchups: This is my preferred type of bet when it comes to golf. My premium picks are Head-to-Head Matchup picks and where I see the most value. This is where I find unique opportunities to find errors in the lines and make winning picks as a result.
Golf Prop Bets
Oddsmakers put their thinking caps on to create prop bets. How many pars will X have? Will a player hit a specific number of fairways? Which left-handed golfer will have the highest score? Will any golfer get a hole-in-one? Props focus on individual player performance, such as head-to-head matchups between two golfers or tournament-specific events, like which country the winner will be from. The bigger the PGA tournament, the more prop wagers that will be posted.
Round Matchups
These are a game within the game, with sportsbooks pairing golfers against each other in groups of two or three. The bettor backs one of the golfers to have the lowest score and win the day. A standard PGA tour tournament has 72 holes played over four days, but Round Matchups take place in one day over 18 holes. What if two players end up with the same score? This is where a bettor needs to read the fine print. The bet may be refunded in the event of a tie, but some sportsbooks offer "draw" as a wagering choice, such as "Player A -130, Player B +120, Draw +110". This is a plus for the books as they're not refunding any money, unless one of the golfers fails to make the cut.
Live/In-Play Betting
Live, or In-Play, betting takes place throughout the tournament. It's placing wagers on shifting, live odds, such as who will have the longest drive on a particular hole, or which player will hit the next water hazard, or who will win the tournament. Live hole-by-hole betting is what a certain player will do on each hole, such as birdie, par, bogey, or double-bogey. There are also live Over/Unders on how many total strokes a golfer will have in a round.
Golf offers a wide variety of wagering opportunities. Bets can be made on tournament winners (Futures) or on players to finish within a certain range (Each-Way Bets, Place Bets). Prop bets can package players into groups against one another (First-Round Leader, Round Matchups, Head-to-Head Matchups) or focus on individual players making or missing the cut. And it's one of the few sports where you hone your wagering prowess year-round. I find the most value for my clients in betting Head-to-Head Matchups.
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