US Open Odds 2013: Tips for Golf-Betting Novices

There are a couple of things to keep an eye on at Merion Golf Club this weekend at the 2013 U.S. Open when it comes to betting on the second major of the year.

Las Vegas is continually updating the odds of each golfer winning it all as well as intriguing prop bets that will leave bettors drooling at the mouth. There are hundreds of different things to bet on when it comes to golf, especially at the U.S. Open, and some are tough to resist.

With so much variety, it’s important to stay informed about some of the trends of the U.S. Open. You certainly don’t want to make a bet on something you don’t know the facts about. So, here are three things to keep in the back of your mind when placing bets this week at Merion.

*All odds and prop bets are current as of 8:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday, June 11 and were obtained via Bovada.

 

Don’t Count on a Repeat

Odds of Webb Simpson Winning: 40-1

Webb Simpson will tee off at Merion this weekend aiming to win back-to-back U.S. Open titles. Being victorious in consecutive years isn’t a very frequent feat, though. There have been 21 golfers to win multiple U.S. Open titles, but just six of them have defended their titles successfully.

Aside from a playoff loss at the RBC Heritage in mid-April, Simpson hasn’t played too well the last few months. He didn’t get to play the weekend at Augusta, getting cut after shooting five over the first two rounds. Three weeks later, he shot even par at the Wells Fargo Championship, finishing tied for 32nd.

While Simpson shot six under at The Players Championship, that wasn’t enough to earn himself a spot in the top 10. At the Memorial Tournament two weeks ago, Simpson was a disaster on the course. He shot seven over through two rounds and was knocked out before the weekend began. He doesn’t enter this week playing his best golf.

Lefty Only Finishes Second

Odds of Phil Mickelson Winning: 16-1

There’s no question that Phil Mickelson is one of the favorites to win this week at Merion, but he’s had trouble finishing first at the U.S. Open in the past. In fact, he’s never won golf’s second major of the year. He has, however, come very close very often. In his career, Lefty has finished second on five occasions.

The last time Mickelson was the runner-up was in 2009. Since, he’s finished tied for fourth, tied for 54th and tied for 65th. It might be safe to say a downhill trend forming instead of a trend that would lead us to believe that he can finally break the streak this year.

Mickelson didn’t play well at the Masters, but has been relatively good the last three tournaments he’s played. He finished third at the Wells Fargo Championship but was then cut at The Players Championship. He bounced back nicely with a great performance at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, finishing in a tie for second.

While betting on Lefty might look tempting, there’s a much better chance that Mickelson ends the weekend as the runner-up than he does as the golfer who’s raising the trophy.

One and Done

Odds of a Hole in One: +135

One of the toughest things to do in golf is to get the ball into the cup with just one shot. Yes, we’re talking about a hole-in-one. Most recently, John Peterson finished a hole after just one shot at the U.S. Open a year ago at Olympic Club. In total, 42 golfers have done what was thought to be impossible.

Keep in mind, though, that making a hole in one at Merion Golf Club isn’t easy. It’s actually never been done. Then again, the U.S. Open has only been held at the course four times in the tournament’s history. The conditions this week at Merion aren’t going to make things easy for the golfers either, according to USA Today.

Vegas doesn’t like the chances of many of the contenders making a hole in one at the U.S. Open. The odds are +10000 for 14 stars to make a hole in one at Merion, according to Bovada. There are four par-threes on the scorecard, which means each golfer will have at least eight chances at a hole-in-one, and some will have 16 tries.