US Open Field 2016: Best Odds, Picks for Oakmont Sleepers and Favorites
The U.S. Open is a severe grind for the best golfers on the tour.
It is almost always the toughest tournament of the year in terms of course conditions, and the conditions at Oakmont Country Club in Western Pennsylvania include the deepest rough imaginable and perhaps the most difficult greens that golfers will see all year.
Throw in the history of both the event and the Oakmont course, and you have an event that will leave a good percentage of the field quaking in their golf shoes.
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
But which golfers are up to this challenge and capable of making a good showing at the U.S. Open starting on Thursday? Notice that words such as "thriving" or "excelling" were not used in that description. The last time the U.S. Open visited Oakmont, Angel Cabrera won the event with a score of five over par.
It may not go quite that high this time around, especially with the trio of Jason Day, Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy in the field.
Day is the No. 1 player in the world and has shown the kind of game that will allow him to win under any conditions. His ability with the driver and putter is impressive, but it is his skill at honing in with his short irons that has made him the favorite in the field.
Day goes into the event as the plus-650 favorite (bet $100 to win $650), according to Odds Shark. That puts him slightly ahead of McIlroy at plus-750 and Spieth at plus-850.
| Jason Day | +650 | Sharp, talented, confident |
| Rory McIlroy | +750 | Needs to avoid run of bogeys |
| Jordan Spieth | +850 | If his putter is hot, watch out |
| Dustin Johnson | +1200 | Still waiting for major breakthrough |
| Phil Mickelson | +2800 | U.S. Open always torments him |
| Bubba Watson | +4500 | Watch out if he keeps it in the fairway |
| Patrick Reed | +5000 | Is this his moment? |
| Louis Oosthuizen | +7000 | Can rise to the occasion |
| Martin Kaymer | +7000 | A forgotten man at this point but quite capable |
| Kevin Kisner | +12500 | Great value for this player |
It would be folly to count out either one of those rivals, although McIlroy has not played with the kind of consistency this year that his backers would like to see. He is among the biggest hitters on the tour and can run off a string of good holes when he is not overthinking, but he also tends to make bogeys when he needs pars, and that could sink him here.
Spieth won the U.S. Open a year ago on the heels of his victory in the Masters. He appeared to be a couple of hours from winning his second consecutive green jacket in April, but he collapsed on the back nine and lost a five-stroke lead.
If that had not happened, Spieth would almost certainly be the clear-cut favorite, and the golf world would be talking about him in Tiger Woods-like tones.
None of the players in the rest of the field enters the tournament with odds of less than 1000-1. Dustin Johnson is still looking for his first major championship and comes to Oakmont at plus-1200.
Johnson was unable to win last year's U.S. Open at treacherous Chambers Bay when he three-putted his final hole, which knocked him out of contention. If he had made a 12-foot eagle putt, he would have won the tournament outright, and if he had followed with a short birdie putt, he would have been in a playoff that Spieth eventually won.
Phil Mickelson is among the golfers who come in with odds of plus-2800, and this is the tournament that has slipped out of his grasp a number of times. He has won the other three major championships, but he has been a six-time runner-up at the U.S. Open.
Mickelson is playing well right now, but his go-for-it mentality has kept him from winning this national championship in the past. There's no reason to think this is the year he decides to manage his game and avoid the head-slapping mistake at an inopportune time.
Bubba Watson is not listed with the favorites at plus-4500, which would be a tremendous return for a golfer who hits the ball as far as this two-time Masters champion. He is averaging 305.8 yards off the tee, which ranks eighth on the tour in that category. If he can keep those drives in the fairway consistently, he has a chance to contend for the title.
Fifteen golfers in the field have better odds than Patrick Reed, and that gives the 25-year-old Texan excellent value. While he has not come through in a major at this point in his career, he is sixth in FedEx Cup points and is also the 11th-ranked golfer in the world.
If Reed deserves consideration, Louis Oosthuizen may be a true bargain at plus-7000. He tied for second in last year's U.S. Open, as he was sharp after a tough opening round. He also finished second in the 2015 British Open.
Oosthuizen is widely recognized for his near-perfect swing, and that allows him to be consistent in even the most challenging conditions.
Kevin Kisner may be one of the most intriguing long shots in the field. He comes into the event at odds of plus-12500, but despite that huge number, he ranks eighth on the FedEx Cup points list. Kisner has earned more than $2.7 million on the tour this season and has a victory and a second-place finish to his credit.
While his recent form looks shaky—he failed to make the cut in three of his last four tournaments—he has shown he can play with the big boys and collect a fat check.
Don't write off Kisner because of his recent form.
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
