British Open Odds: Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth Among Royal Birkdale Favorites
After missing the cut at two European Tour events earlier this month, Rory McIlroy travels to Southport, England, this week as a diminished +2000 wager on the odds to win the British Open at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
The native of Northern Ireland failed to rebound from an opening-round 74 at last weekend’s Scottish Open, missing the cut and finishing in a tie for 91st place while sporting +1000 odds. McIlroy also made an early exit at the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open two weeks ago, and has failed to break par in six of 14 rounds ahead of Thursday morning’s opening round of the 146th British Open at Royal Birkdale Golf Club.
McIlroy opened the season strong, posting top-10 finishes in four of his first five outings, including a share of seventh place at the Masters while sporting +700 odds. But the 2014 British Open winner has struggled since, missing the cut at three of five events, including a brutal plus-5 performance at the U.S. Open as a +1200 bet.
Despite his recent struggles, McIlroy remains pegged at No. 4 in the Official World Golf Ranking, and has enjoyed past success at this tournament. In addition to his victory at Royal Liverpool in 2014, McIlroy has twice finished in the top five at the British Open, tying for third in 2010, and finishing in fifth place a year ago.
McIlroy tees off Thursday partnered with American Jordan Spieth, who joins Dustin Johnson atop the British Open odds as a +1400 co-favorite.
The 23-year-old is coming off a victory at last month’s Traveler’s Championship, paying out as +1000 chalk, but has been a disappointment in his past five majors, failing to crack the top 10, and finished in a tie for 30th at last year’s British Open while sporting +1100 odds.
Johnson, the world’s top-ranked golfer, looks to bounce back after missing the cut in his past two events, including the U.S. Open, where he failed to make the cut after teeing off as a heavy +750 favorite, and the Memorial Tournament two weeks earlier, which he opened with a 78, marking his highest scoring round in over two years.
Rickie Fowler and Jon Rahm round out the front of the British Open betting pack, deadlocked at +1600, ahead of Masters winner Sergio Garcia at +1800. McIlroy is joined at +2000 by Justin Rose and Hideki Matsuyama, while defending champion Henrik Stenson trails at +2500 at sports betting sites.
Thumbnail photo via Rob Schumacher/USA TODAY Sports Images
