The U.S. Open teed off on Thursday morning from Los Angeles Country Club, but bettors should make sure to set aside some of their bankroll for in-play wagering.
The USGA’s mission is to make the U.S. Open one of the toughest challenges on the golf calendar and that always leads to carnage — and plenty of changes on the leaderboard — throughout the four days.
That, in turn, makes the U.S. Open one of the great live-betting events in sports.
Here are a few tips for finding value over the last three rounds at LACC.
Can a slow-starting star make a charge?
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Rickie Fowler and Xander Schauffele stole the show on Thursday morning with dueling 62s, but there’s plenty of golf left and any early lead in the U.S. Open is precarious.
That’s especially true of a player with Fowler’s career path.
The 34-year-old has not won a tournament since 2019 and has never won a major despite owning runner-up finishes at three of them and a T3 at the other, so the pressure will be palpable.
Fowler also walked off the course knowing he had three superstars — Schauffele, Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau — putting the pressure on him.
But while everyone is going to focus on the top of the board, the betting value could be found a little further down with some slow-starting superstars.
Jon Rahm was up and down on Thursday, but he was able to salvage his round despite some troubles off the tee.
His odds bounced around the teens for much of the afternoon and could be tempting.
But the price that really caught my eye was Collin Morikawa in the low triple-digits.
Morikawa finished the day +1 and walked off the course nine strokes behind Fowler, but he could feel OK about the shape of his game.
The two-time major champion gained strokes from tee to green but gave them back with his putter.
If he can turn that part of his game around, he can find a run.
Another player who fits that bill is Sungjae Im.
The South Korean was already unfancied at 70/1 to win the tournament before Round 1, so I don’t think his 1-over performance on Thursday is gonna earn him any friends in the market.
That said, he did gain strokes in every area except for Around the Green, so his game seems to be in decent enough shape to hang around in this field.
Im was a massive price (250/1) at the time of writing.
Lesson of Nick Taylor
You only have to go back to Taylor’s win at the Canadian Open last week as inspiration for keeping some money stowed away for an in-play punt at the U.S. Open.
Taylor, who defeated Tommy Fleetwood with a 72-foot eagle putt in a playoff to seal the win, was tied for 120th after Round 1 at Oakdale Golf & Country Club.
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Taylor was around 70/1 to win the tournament before Round 1, so his odds were downright massive after he opened with a 75.
According to Justin Ray, Taylor was in the worst position after Round 1 of any PGA Tour winner since Ian Poulter at the Houston Open in 2018.
Taylor’s performance at the Canadian Open is obviously one-of-a-kind and I’m not suggesting go find a player who is eight strokes back at LACC after play on Thursday, but it is a reminder that any of these golfers can get hot on a moment’s notice and make a run.