US Open Field 2015: Predictions and Vegas Betting Odds for Notable Sleepers
While two players enter the 2015 U.S. Open as overwhelming favorites, there are plenty of challengers capable of surprises at the prestigious major tournament.
According to Odds Shark, Rory McIlroy is unsurprisingly the odds-on favorite, as the world No. 1 continues to dominate the sport. He ended last season with wins at The Open Championship and the PGA Championship, and most recently he won the Wells Fargo Championship.
Meanwhile, Jordan Spieth is right behind him with nine top-10 finishes this year, including a convincing victory at the Masters Tournament.
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If you were going to pick one person to do well at this tournament, choosing one of these two players would be the smart move based on their level of play in recent months. Still, there are others who can take home the championship and provide some great value for those looking to make some money.
| Rory McIlroy | 7-1 |
| Jordan Spieth | 8-1 |
| Dustin Johnson | 18-1 |
| Justin Rose | 18-1 |
| Phil Mickelson | 18-1 |
| Rickie Fowler | 18-1 |
| Henrik Stenson | 25-1 |
| Adam Scott | 28-1 |
| Bubba Watson | 28-1 |
| Hideki Matsuyama | 33-1 |
| Jason Day | 33-1 |
| Jim Furyk | 33-1 |
| Jimmy Walker | 33-1 |
| Sergio Garcia | 33-1 |
| Martin Kaymer | 40-1 |
| Matt Kuchar | 40-1 |
| Patrick Reed | 40-1 |
| Billy Horschel | 50-1 |
| Brandt Snedeker | 50-1 |
| Brooks Koepka | 50-1 |
| Tiger Woods | 50-1 |
| Byeong Hun An | 66-1 |
| Keegan Bradley | 66-1 |
| Lee Westwood | 66-1 |
| Paul Casey | 66-1 |
| Ryan Moore | 66-1 |
| Zach Johnson | 66-1 |
| J.B. Holmes | 90-1 |
Top Sleepers to Watch
Phil Mickelson (18-1)
He's not exactly a sleeper in the true sense of the word, but there is good value here compared to the favorites. After a rough start to the year, Phil Mickelson has earned top-five finishes at the Masters, Wells Fargo and the FedEx St. Jude Classic in the past couple of months.
He is also one of the few people actually looking forward to the tough course at Chambers Bay, as he told Mark Cannizzaro of the New York Post:
"I think it’s wonderful. It’s not going to be your typical US Open, hit and hack out of tough. You’re going to be able to control it much more like British Opens than I’ve ever seen, where there’s a lot of room [to hit it] and a lot of firm fairway cut. [...]
The first time you play it, you don’t know, so I can see why the first impression isn’t favorable for some. But I think the more you play it, the more you like it.
"
The course suits Mickelson's game as a true shot-maker, and his experience will help him handle the challenges of the unknown course. After six second-place finishes in his career at the U.S. Open, this might be one of his better chances to finally get that win.
Billy Horschel (50-1)
Despite just two top-10 finishes in 19 starts this season, Billy Horschel is trending in the right direction. In his last three starts, he ended up in 13th, 11th and most recently eighth place.
As the blog No Laying Up noted, his last round makes him red-hot going into the U.S. Open:
The 28-year-old golfer has not had a lot of positive moments at majors in his career, including a missed cut at the 2015 Masters. Still, the one tournament he has succeeded in is the U.S. Open, where he finished tied for 23rd last season and tied for fourth two years ago.
If he can play as well as he did last weekend, Horschel has a chance to continue this strong play.
J.B. Holmes (90-1)
After an excellent start to the season, J.B. Holmes has struggled a bit as of late. Since winning the Shell Houston Open, he has missed the cut at both Masters and Wells Fargo while finishing tied for 51st at The Players Championship.
Despite these struggles, Holmes currently ranks sixth in the FedEx standings, which shows just how good he has been overall this season.
Just as importantly, Holmes has the big-hitting ability necessary to succeed on a long course like this one. As Kyle Porter of CBS Sports noted, Chambers Bay will be one of the longest U.S. Opens ever, with some incredibly long par-four holes.
With Holmes currently ranking seventh on tour with an average drive of 306.2 yards, he appears to be in good shape to take advantage of the links-style course.
Odds for J.B. Holmes provided by Vegas Insider.
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