McIlroy, Rahm, Thomas top oddsboard for Charles Schwab Challenge
Golf betting is back.
The first PGA Tour oddsboard since the cancellation of The Players Championship in March has surfaced, with plenty of big names headlining the field for the Charles Schwab Challenge.
Rory McIlroy is favored to win at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas, with Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas close behind. Fifteen of the top 20 players in the world have odds listed on the board after committing to the event set to tee off on June 11. The field will be finalized on June 5 with few changes expected.
Here's a look at the top of the board:
Player | Odds |
---|---|
Rory McIlroy | +700 |
Jon Rahm | +1200 |
Justin Thomas | +1600 |
Bryson DeChambeau | +1800 |
Webb Simpson | +2200 |
Dustin Johnson | +2500 |
Brooks Koepka | +2800 |
Patrick Reed | +2800 |
Rickie Fowler | +2800 |
Sungjae Im | +2800 |
Xander Schauffele | +2800 |
Marc Leishman | +3000 |
Collin Morikawa | +3500 |
Tony Finau | +3500 |
Gary Woodland | +4000 |
Justin Rose | +4000 |
Matthew Fitzpatrick | +4000 |
Scottie Scheffler | +4000 |
Shane Lowry | +4000 |
Jordan Spieth | +5000 |
Jason Day | +5000 |
First look
A top three featuring McIlroy, Rahm, and Thomas makes sense. Still, it's unclear how the three-month break will affect the entire field. With no recent form to reference in an attempt to predict future performance, it will be tough to back the favorites in an event that seems more wide-open than usual.
The break has also created some interesting prices on players such as Brooks Koepka, who finished second at Colonial in 2018, and Xander Schauffele. In fact, the entire group at +2800 in intriguing. Though it's tough to predict how these guys will come out of the gates, that risk is baked into their prices, which are much longer than they would have been had the PGA Tour continued as usual. The last time Koepka was priced at +2800 would have been prior to his recent dominance in major championships.
Value play
Justin Rose at +4000 stands out for two reasons. First, he won this tournament in 2018. Second, he recently parted ways with the club company that signed him after he reached No. 1 in the world at the end of that year. Rose's game hasn't been the same since that deal, and the switch indicates a change in mindset for the Englishman; it seems he'd rather perform on the course with superior equipment - or at least clubs that suit his game - than collect endorsement money.
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