The final golfing major of the year is upon us as players decend on arguably the most famous golf course in the world this weekend for The Open. The Old Course at St Andrews in Scotland will host The Open Championship for a record 30th time and as always, we have you covered with a full preview and betting tips for the action below.
The Open Championship Betting Tips
St Andrews, Scotland, Thursday 14th July, 2022
The Field
As you'd expect for a major championship, the field is absolutely jam packed full of talent for The Open. All of the LIV contracted players have been cleared to play, so the likes of Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson will all be in action. The biggest name in golf will also be back in action as Tiger Woods will suit up for his first event since the PGA Championship.
Other names headlining the field will be the likes of Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas and the U.S. Open Champion, Matthew Fittzpatrick.
The Course
What more needs to be said about the Old Course at St. Andrews that hasn't already been said? The oldest and most famous course in the world will host its 30th Open Championship this weekend, having already contributed some of the most well known moments in golfing history.
When you first look at the Old Course, it doesn't look like it would be an extremely challenging golf course, with wide fairways and set on what is basically a flat piece of land. However, it's main defences come in the form of the heavy undulations throughout the course as well as the absolute abundance of extremely deep bunkers. The greens are also severly undulating, but without doubt the most difficult test that faces golfers at St Andrews is the wind. Strong links style players that have plenty of experience playing in high winds are going to be a focus for us this week.
Betting Tips
There are a few big dogs as well as a few dark horses that I'm liking the look of this weekend. The first of which has to be Rory McIlroy ($10). The Northern Irishman is as close to a homegrown hero as the Scotts are likely to get this week so he should have the full support of the crowd. He has barely put a foot wront this season, racking up these results since his last missed cut.
Masters - 2nd, Wells Fargo - 8th, Memorial - T18, Canadian Open - WON, U.S. Open - T5, Travelers - T19. Also finished 3rd the last time The Open was played at the Old Course.
Other big dogs I like this week include Jordan Spieth ($17), Will Zalatoris ($26) and Tommy Fleetwood ($29).
My favourite dark(ish) horse this week is Louis Oosthuizen ($41). The South African found some form at the BMW Invitational a few weeks ago, finishing T8 in his last prep tournament for The Open. He won The Open when it was held at the Old Course back in 2010 and almost did so again in 2015, finishing 2nd to Zach Johnson.
Other outsiders I like this week are Ryan Fox ($56), Gary Woodland ($81) and Marc Leishman ($101).
