It’s a bittersweet week in the world of golf with The Open Championship — or for the unwashed, the British Open — upon us. Yes, it’s arguably the best tournament of the year, but it also signifies the end of major season in men’s golf.
At least we’re going out with a bang. The 150th Open Championship returns to the home of golf, The Old Course at St. Andrews, to crown the champion golfer of the year.
With the first round rapidly approaching — gotta love those early-morning tee times — dive into our Open Championship picks before getting some quick shut-eye ahead of Round 1.
Here are some Open Championship outright picks, with odds from DraftKings Sportsbook.
THE FAVORITES (+900 to +2000)
Jordan Spieth (+1600): Would love to have two kicks at the can here, as it came down to the two buddies: Spieth and Justin Thomas. Ultimately, there were too many potential red flags for Thomas, who has never finished better than 11th at The Open and has dealt with a back issue. Spieth, meanwhile, won the Claret Jug in 2017 and just missed a playoff at the Old Course in 2015. He’s got four top-10 finishes at the British, too. He’s hitting the ball as far as he ever has, but he also has the creativity to get himself out of trouble around St. Andrews. The putting is even coming around, gaining more than a stroke per round on the field in his last five tournaments.
Other considerations: Justin Thomas (+1600), Scottie Scheffler (+1400)
THE SECOND TIER (+2200 to +5000)
Will Zalatoris (+2500): Zalatoris is on an insane run despite missing the cut at the Scottish Open last week. Dating back to the Masters, he either has finished top six or missed the cut, and those top-six finishes came at Augusta, the PGA Championship, the Memorial and the US Open. Those are, um, pretty big tournaments on difficult courses. He’s actually added some length, so that should play, and the putter — which has been his biggest issue — has played as a strength in the majors for whatever reason.
Other considerations: Dustin Johnson (+3500), Hideki Matsuyama (+5000)
MID-RANGE LONG SHOTS (+6000 to +9000)
Keith Mitchell (+8000): We already talked about Mitchell among long shots earlier in the week, in large part because of his unique ties to the course and the area. But he’s also just been really good. He’s eighth in strokes gained off the tee over the last 12 rounds of anyone in the field, and his putting has been sensational. He’s parlayed that into two top-10s in his last three starts, and he had a respectable 34th-place finish at the PGA Championship. The approach game isn’t great, but maybe firm, fast conditions will allow him to keep the ball on the ground and get a wedge where in the past he might be playing a longer iron.
Other considerations: Justin Rose (+6500), Bryson DeChambeau (+9000)
LONG SHOTS (+10000 to +15000)
Patrick Reed (+10000): OK, so the chaos call last week with Ian Poulter was misguided. But can you even imagine what it would be like if Reed was in the running for the Claret Jug this weekend? The LIV defector isn’t in great form, unless you want to count his top-five finish at the LIV event in Portland. But he has a top-10 Open finish and he finished 20th at St. Andrews in 2015. His around-the-green game might be his biggest strength, and that figures to be key this week with the burnt-out turf and undulating greens. Getting a former major winner at 100-1 is hard to resist.
Other considerations: Marc Leishman (+10000), J.T. Poston (+15000), Russell Henley (+15000)
BOMBS (+20000 and longer)
Kevin Kisner (+20000): There’s a theory or belief that you have to be long here to win. If that’s the case, Kisner has no shot. But if that were actually true, Zach Johnson wouldn’t have won in 2015, either. Anyone and everyone who’s been on the grounds this week says the course is basically playing like pavement, which means there will be plenty of run-out on tee shots. That could actually neutralize the bombers’ advantage. Kisner missed the cut in his Open debut but has made it to the weekend in his five starts since then. He could get hot enough to hang around, and his bulldog mentality plays up even more if the weather gets tough.
Other considerations: Emiliano Grillo (+20000), Stewart Cink (+25000)
