Canadian Open betting: In-play tournament odds through 36 holes
As it sometimes happens in the early rounds of PGA tournaments, a highly-ranked player - in this case, Matthew Fitzpatrick - looked ready to run out to a hefty lead before the weekend. However, St. George's showed some teeth as the Englishman double-bogeyed the 14th hole to fall back from 10-under.
Fitzpatrick's rough go of it there and subsequent string of bogeys showed that one of Canada's most respected courses is no pushover. Throw in some weather this weekend, and this should be a great test. There are also some big names lingering near the top, with Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas, Sam Burns, and Tony Finau all within an arms' length of the lead. The oddsboard after Friday's second round reflects those players' reputations.
Canadian Open odds
| PLAYER | ODDS |
|---|---|
| Rory McIlroy | +300 |
| Matthew Fitzpatrick | +500 |
| Scottie Scheffler | +700 |
| Keith Mitchell | +1000 |
| Sam Burns | +1200 |
| Shane Lowry | +1200 |
| Alex Smalley | +1400 |
| Wyndham Clark | +1400 |
| Justin Thomas | +2200 |
| Tony Finau | +2500 |
| Doug Ghim | +4000 |
| Harold Varner III | +4000 |
| Patrick Rodgers | +4000 |
| Matt Wallace | +5000 |
| Charley Hoffman | +6600 |
| Austin Cook | +6600 |
| Chris Kirk | +6600 |
| Lee Hodges | +6600 |
| Adam Long | +8000 |
| Adam Hadwin | +8000 |
| Jim Knous | +8000 |
| Cameron Smith | +10000 |
Wyndham Clark finished Friday with a precarious one-shot lead, but he won't likely stay there. It isn't because he's the 293rd-ranked golfer in the world. His scoring just isn't sustainable as he's struggled with the third-most strokes gained from his putter.
In a narrative twist, McIlroy's hot putter has driven his score. His plus-2.71 strokes gained: putting also isn't sustainable, but he's capable of turning around an average performance with his ball-striking.
We thought having a solid short game would be important this week due to the course's long rough, especially around the greens. Matt Wallace is taking the biggest advantage of good play, saving a tournament-best 2.36 strokes around the green, according to datagolf.com.
Befitting of the world's No. 1, Scheffler is doing everything well this week except for putting. At just three strokes back from the lead, that means he's his usual dangerous self. At a minimal adjustment from his pre-tournament odds, it's not too late to back the Masters champion.
We may never know what Cameron Smith was doing on the front nine in Round 1. But he came out in Round 2 like a vigilante with a 65 on the strength of plus-4.57 strokes gained: tee-to-green. That was the second-best performance of the day. If Smith can do anything close to that this weekend, one of the great putters in the world can go mega low and make a run at the leaders by late Sunday, despite almost missing the cut.
Best bet
Shane Lowry (12-1)
We liked Shane Lowry to do well this week when we started targeting who to back. His strokes gained statistics are proving that prescient. Lowry is second in strokes gained: tee-to-green through two rounds at plus-4.47, but he's given almost a stroke back to the field with his putting (minus-0.88).
As even the weekend hacker can attest, putting is the most finicky part of the game to rely on. Slightly better than average putting could mean Lowry goes low Saturday, Sunday, or both.
Alex Smalley (14-1)
Alex Smalley doesn't have the brand value of those around him on the oddsboard, but he's the player atop the strokes gained: tee-to-green rankings so far at the tournament. Smalley's lack of name recognition means we're getting a deal, and he's playing every bit as well as his more famous cohorts.
Matt Russell is a betting writer for theScore. If there's a bad beat to be had, Matt will find it. Find him on Twitter @mrussauthentic.