The App is Back! Don’t forget to download the NBC Sports EDGE app to receive real-time player news, mobile alerts and track your favorite players. Plus, now you can check out articles and player cards. Get it here!
The first round of the U.S. Open is nearly upon us, and the liabilities are starting to pile up.
Bettors have made their preferences known ahead of the opener at Torrey Pines, where Jon Rahm remains a betting favorite and where PGA champ Phil Mickelson will look to round out the career Grand Slam in his own backyard. Unsurprisingly, both players have received an outsized amount of attention this week, with Mickelson the most-bet player in terms of tickets at PointsBet Sportsbook and Rahm leading the way in terms of handle.
Mickelson is a six-time runner-up at this event and a two-time winner at Torrey Pines, albeit nearly 20 years ago and before a significant redesign. After winning the PGA as a triple-digit longshot his odds got down as low as +6000, and even now at +8000 he’s accounted for more tickets than any other player. Also among the most often bet are Xander Schauffele, whose odds were slashed from +2000 to +1200 Wednesday night, and two-time U.S. Open champ Brooks Koepka:
[[ad:athena]]
Most U.S. Open tickets (via PointsBet)
Phil Mickelson (+8000, 5.25% of tickets)
Xander Schauffele (+1200, 4.82%)
Jon Rahm (+1000, 4.42%)
Tony Finau (+2800, 4.34%)
Brooks Koepka (+1800, 4.03%)
Editor’s Note: Get an edge with our premium DFS and Betting Golf Tools that are packed with a DFS Optimizer, DFS Projections, Salary Tracker, Edge Driver, Prop Projections, Futures and much more. Gain access to both tools in our EDGE+Max tier and don’t forget to use promo code SAVE10 to get 10% off. Click here to learn more!
Rahm has maintained status as a betting favorite despite dealing with COVID-19 quarantine, and he’s still the shortest number on the board as he looks to win his first career major on the course where he won his first Tour title back in 2017. He’s the only player to crack the 10 percent mark in terms of pre-tournament handle (total money wagered), thanks in part to those short odds, but Schauffele, Finau and Mickelson also factor on both lists:
Most U.S. Open handle (via PointsBet)
Jon Rahm (10.79% of handle)
Xander Schauffele (7.17%)
Tony Finau (6.45%)
Phil Mickelson (5.37%)
Viktor Hovland (+2800, 4.90%)
A wide-open field creates some sky-high odds, with several in the field at Torrey teeing off Thursday at a price of 1,000-to-1. It doesn’t take much speculative action to create some significant liability at those prices, and four of PointsBet’s top five pre-tournament liabilities have a price of +40000 or higher. The other member of that group? That would be Mickelson.
Here’s a look at some of the notable wagers received thus far, with some bettors eyeing a monster payout if a longshot looks to follow in the footsteps of Rocco Mediate at Torrey (and perhaps finish one shot better):
Notable Wagers (via PointsBet)
Justin Suh (+100000): $150 to win $150,000
Robby Shelton (+100000): $130 to win $130,000
Harris English (+10000): $1,000 to win $100,000
Jimmy Walker (+40000): $250 to win $100,000
Wilco Nienaber (+40000): $150 to win $60,000
Sam Ryder (+50000): $100 to win $50,000
Cameron Young (+50000): $100 to win $50,000
Webb Simpson (+5000): $1,000 to win $50,000
PointsBet is our Official Sports Betting Partner, and we may receive compensation if you place a bet on PointsBet for the first time after clicking our links.
