British Open Odds 2015: Vegas Projections for Top Stars in This Year's Field
Thursday, July 16, will see some of the best golfers in the world descend upon the Old Course at St Andrews in Fife, Scotland for the 2015 British Open, the third major championship of the calendar year and the oldest of the four Grand Slam events.
All eyes will be on American golfer Jordan Spieth, the 21-year-old wunderkind who's working on a Grand Slam after winning the 2015 Masters and U.S. Open, dominating the former and showing impressive nerve in the latter.
Unfortunately, world No. 1 Rory McIlroy won't be defending the Claret Jug this year after suffering an ankle injury. Any tournament without McIlroy is missing a player who provides serious star power, but there should still be plenty of other competitors willing and able to step up and fill the void left by his absence.
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Here's a look at the latest Vegas projections for some of the bigger names in this year's Open Championship field.
| Jordan Spieth | 9-2 |
| Dustin Johnson | 12-1 |
| Justin Rose | 16-1 |
| Rickie Fowler | 16-1 |
| Adam Scott | 18-1 |
| Henrik Stenson | 20-1 |
| Louis Oosthuizen | 20-1 |
| Tiger Woods | 20-1 |
| Jason Day | 25-1 |
| Martin Kaymer | 25-1 |
| Phil Mickelson | 25-1 |
| Sergio Garcia | 25-1 |
| Bubba Watson | 28-1 |
| Paul Casey | 28-1 |
| Hideki Matsuyama | 33-1 |
| Branden Grace | 35-1 |
| Patrick Reed | 40-1 |
| Shane Lowry | 40-1 |
Note: Odds courtesy of Odds Shark and updated as of Monday, July 13 at 6 a.m. ET.
Golfers With Top Odds
Jordan Spieth
It should be a surprise to absolutely no one that Spieth carries the best odds of winning this tournament. He's currently on a months-long run of fantastic play. Since winning the World Challenge on December 4, Spieth has won four tournaments (including the two majors in that time) and finished in the top 10 in 11 events.
The Texas native's latest conquest was the John Deere Classic, in which he overcame a relatively poor start to play some of his best golf to date and beat Tom Gillis, a man 25 years his senior, in a playoff on Sunday. His career-best 61 in the third round provided more evidence he's practically capable of lapping the field when at the top of his game.
"To be able to shoot 20-under in three rounds is nice momentum," Spieth said, via ESPN's news services. "The finish, when I really didn't feel like tee to green I had much [on Sunday], gives me a lot of momentum to draw on if I don't have my best stuff. "
Spieth stuck with the John Deere Classic, the site of his first PGA Tour win in 2013, rather than play in Scotland. ESPN Stats & Info noted it was, in a way, a historic decision:
There's more than one summit for Spieth to reach should he win the British Open, per the New York Times' Karen Crouse:
"If Spieth extends his winning streak next weekend at the British Open at St Andrews, he will supplant Rory McIlroy as the world No. 1 while becoming the first player since Ben Hogan in 1953 to win the first three legs of the Grand Slam in a calendar year."
St Andrews can be a diabolical course at times, and the field will be tough, but there's little doubt Spieth will be hovering around the top of the leaderboard come Sunday.
Dustin Johnson
When Spieth won the 2015 U.S. Open outright, it was in no small part down to a devastating final hole for Dustin Johnson.
After a brilliant approach shot on the 18th at Chambers Bay golf course, Johnson had a chance to win the tourney with a manageable eagle putt or at least force a playoff with a birdie. Instead, he missed both putts, the second from three feet out, meaning Spieth took home top prize.
Its the kind of defeat you wouldn't blame a professional golfer of any caliber for agonizing over for months on end. Johnson, however, insists he's OK, via the Daily Star's Tony Stenson: "I am in a good place right now."
Johnson in a good place is fine golfer indeed. He's currently fourth in the FedEx Cup standings this year, even though he hasn't played since the U.S. Open.
He's yet to win a major, but the 31-year-old has fared quite well at the British Open before, finishing tied for second place in 2011. Despite recent failures, at least one analyst thinks he might even be the favorite to win it.
"Dustin Johnson, I think, and probably Henrik Stenson, I would say, are neck-and-neck to be the favorites," said NBC analyst Brandel Chamblee, via the State's Bob Gillespie (h/t PGA.com). "If you're looking for a way to get over a disappointing or devastating loss, nothing like a victory would do that."
Johnson and Spieth will face elite competition in the form of players such as Stenson and Rickie Fowler, who won the Scottish Open with a final round of 68 on Sunday.
Fowler and Spieth both winning in the buildup to the Open Championship is essentially a dream scenario for golf fans. It pits two bright, young Americans against each other and almost makes up for the absence of McIlroy. St Andrews could end up being the foundational site of a nice rivalry between these two, one that could carry golf for years to come.
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