The 101st PGA tour season is upon us, and there are many amazing events to look forward to. The first tournament of the new year will be the Hyundai Tournament of Champions on January 10 in Hawaii, and you can bet on it, states that have sports betting and that accept U.S. residents include just about all 50. The odds are already posted on most prominent betting sites for the outright winner, 1st round leader, and the top American and European players. Will Jordan Spieth reign supreme throughout the tour? He is at the tops of most odssmakers lists. Let’s take a look at the playing field, and see where you should put your money.
Before we get into the favorites, let’s take a look at a possible dark horse for the tour, because we know that many bettors like to take risks, and this could be one worth taking. Russell Knox is currently at 40/1 at Bet365 and +4000 at Bovada, placing him around 14th place to become the outright winner. However, he has been doing great throughout the 2015 part of the Tour, winning the WGC-HSBC Champions Tournament. He is also the 2016 Money Leader with five events netting him $2,052,160. Coming out of basic obscurity to do so great in 2015 means that he might still be picking up steam, and could very well be a force to be reckoned with at the Hyundai Tournament and beyond. Watch out for this guy, dear bettors.
For both the Hyundai Tournament and the PGA Championship, Jordan Spieth is unanimously the favorite at all the best sportsbooks. However, Rory McIlroy is tied with Spieth for favorite to win the PGA Championship, but he is skipping the Hyundai event. Spieth recently built himself a ping-pong table as a reward for having one of the most stellar years anyone his age has ever had in the golf world. Winner of the 2015 Masters Tournament with a 72-hole result, a record only achieved by Tiger Woods, Spieth is the new wunderkind. He is currently at 9/2 to win the Hyundai Tournament, 13/2 to win the Masters, and 6/1 to win the PGA Championship. Only Rory McIlroy and, to a lesser extent Jason Day, are predicted to be threats.
Rory McIlroy is tied with Spieth at all the best sportsbooks to win the 2016 Masters and the PGA Championship. Most eyes will be on these two as a metaphorically gladiatorial spectacle. ESPN touts McIlroy as the top choice to win 2016 player of the year award, and his stats attest to that. However, a few missed cuts for the BMW PGA Championship and the Irish Open could be signs of burnout. McIlroy himself blamed the sub-par results on mental fatigue. Adding to the stress, he injured his anterior cruciate ligament late in 2015. However, he bounced back in the final tournament of the European Tour, winning by a single stroke. For a stellar year, he received the European Tour Golfer of the Year Award. He is tied with Spieth for the PGA Championship, but he will not be competing in the upcoming Hyundai Tournament Championship.
Jason Day could prove to be a monster in 2016, as he is coming off one of the most impressive years in recent golf history. The question is, can he keep up his momentum? He has already shown signs of fatigue such as dealing with a bout of vertigo at the Open Championship at St. Andrews. Adding to the reality of being a pro-athlete with a family, he recently took a ton of time off while his wife gave birth to their 2nd child. He will be coming off a three-month hiatus to compete in the Hyundai Tournament Championship. All that being said, he should be nothing but motivated by his stellar 2015 run which consisted of five major wins including the PGA Championship. He is currently 2nd to Spieth in the odds to win the Hyundai Tournament at 5/1 odds, or +550.
There are a lot of tournaments to look forward to, and you can get into a lot of wagering action until the PGA Championship on July 31st. After the Hyundai Tournament of Champions on January 10, we can look forward to The Honda Classic in February, the Cadillac Championship in March, The Masters in April, and many smaller tournaments. Check out the best sports betting sites in your state to get in on the action.