0 of 4
Warren Little/Getty Images
Rory McIlroy could not have asked for better preparation for the 2022 U.S. Open.
McIlroy enters The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts, off a win at the RBC Canadian Open in which he beat out Justin Thomas and Tony Finau.
McIlroy is the favored golfer to win the U.S. Open, and based on the season’s first two majors, someone high on the odds board will win the tournament.
Scottie Scheffler and Thomas won The Masters and PGA Championship as one of the top-10 golfers on the odds board at DraftKings Sportsbook.
McIlroy, Scheffler, Thomas and reigning U.S. Open champion Jon Rahm are the four betting favorites for the event.
McIlroy and Thomas each finished inside the top 10 at The Masters and PGA Championship, while Scheffler won at Augusta and Rahm is in solid form and can never be counted out at a major tournament.
1 of 4
Warren Little/Getty Images
Rory McIlroy produced two different types of top 10 finishes at the season’s first two majors.
McIlroy used a final-round 64 to nab second place at The Masters after spending the first three rounds in the 70s.
He followed that up with a first-round 65 at the PGA Championship. He faded a bit in the second and third rounds before he carded a 68 on Sunday to land in eighth place.
At minimum, McIlroy should be considered for a top-10 bet based on his season form and his three straight top-10 finishes at the U.S. Open.
The four-time major champion recorded ties for seventh, eighth and ninth in the last three years to add to his lengthy resume.
McIlroy could be poised to win his first major since the 2014 PGA Championship because he comes into The Country Club off a win in Canada against some tough competition.
He could well back up his favorite status to win the U.S. Open, but if you are betting on him, make sure to take him at +140 to finish in the top 10, that way you can cash in on him even if he contends and does not win.
Prediction: Top-10 finish
2 of 4
Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images
Justin Thomas is likely the best challenger to Rory McIlroy’s quest to end his major drought.
Thomas ended a four-year drought of his own at the PGA Championship. That victory came in the middle of a solid run of form.
He has four top-10 finishes in his last six starts. He landed in a tie for eighth at The Masters, and he took third behind McIlroy at the Canadian Open last week.
Thomas missed two cuts in that span, but one of them can be thrown out for research since he competed in the Charles Schwab Challenge the week after his PGA Championship triumph.
Like McIlroy, Thomas is worth a top-10 bet at +140 because of how consistent he has been at major tournaments and on the PGA Tour this season.
Thomas has experience navigating tough U.S. Open courses. He has two top-10 placings in the event from 2017 and 2020. He landed inside the top 25 in four of his last five U.S. Open starts.
The consistency and form is there for Thomas to make a run at back-to-back majors, but achieving that will be so difficult with plenty of title contenders in the field.
Prediction: Top-10 finish
3 of 4
Graham Stokes/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Jon Rahm’s major performances this season have not lived up to the high standard he set in 2021.
The 2021 U.S. Open champion produced a victory and three other top-10 finishes on the major circuit.
The Spaniard finished in a tie for 27th at The Masters and a tie for 48th at the PGA Championship.
Rahm’s results have not been ideal, but he has been in solid form elsewhere on the PGA Tour, which suggests he will be in contention during his attempt for a title repeat.
Rahm won in his first start after The Masters at the Mexico Open, and he finished in a tie for 10th at The Memorial after his PGA Championship outing.
He finished in the top three in two of his last three U.S. Open starts, and he will likely be in the mix again this weekend.
Look for Rahm to rebound from his outings at Augusta and Southern Hills to at least challenge for the win, and potentially repeat as champion, if he manages the course well.
Prediction: Top-five finish
4 of 4
Andrew Redington/Getty Images
It may seem like an easy prediction to say that each of the four favorites will finish in the top 10 at the U.S. Open.
However, that could be the case since each member of the quartet enters The Country Club in strong form.
Scottie Scheffler is in the best form of all the favorites. He produced four wins in a two-month span, including his first major title at The Masters.
Scheffler missed the cut at the PGA Championship, but he rebounded with a second-place mark at the Charles Schwab Challenge and a tie for 18th at the Canadian Open.
One bad weekend at Southern Hills did not deter Scheffler, and his form suggests that he will be in the mix in Massachusetts.
Scheffler finished inside the top 20 in all but one major he entered since the start of 2020, and he owns five top-10 placings at majors in that span.
All of Scheffler’s numbers tell us that the PGA Championship was an outlier more than anything. We should see Scheffler back in the mix for a victory at the U.S. Open.
Prediction: Top-10 finish
Gambling problem? Call (877-8-HOPENY) or text HOPENY (467369).
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL/IN/MI/NJ/PA/WV/WY), 1-800-NEXT STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO/NH), 888-789-7777/visiting ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), 1-877-770-STOP (7867) (LA), visiting OPGR.org (OR), or calling/texting TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) or 1-888-532-3500 (VA).
Odds and lines subject to change. 21+ (18+ NH/WY). AZ/CO/CT/IL/IN/IA/LA/MI/NH/NJ/NY/OR/PA/TN/VA/WV/WY only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions.
For all the latest Sports News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
