The truth is that every golf tournament is a unique beast. That's the nature of an individual sport that barnstorms its way around the world throughout the year. It's the same game, but a deep-field event played on a long track in Arizona in February is obviously different from a smaller-market tourney played on a short track in Ontario in July.
That's why, whether you bet or not, the oddsboard is a wonderful place to get yourself ready for the upcoming tournament. Most of the time, you'll be left generally unsurprised. The names you expect to see at the top, will be at the top. The same goes for the guys at the bottom.
However, I guarantee that as you scroll down the betting board, at least one name will jump at you. Sometimes it's at the top of the board, like when Tommy Fleetwood was the outright favorite at The Honda Classic two weeks ago, and other times it'll be further down the list.
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Since The PLAYERS Championship is almost always the deepest field in golf, there will always be some big numbers next to some big names. But this board is bananas, even by the PLAYERS' standards. It may be the deepest field in golf, but this is also the wildest oddsboard in golf.
Let's take a look at some of the most eye-popping numbers out in the market:
Brooks Koepka +4500 (DraftKings)
Imagine seeing Brooks Koepka at +4500 ($10 bet wins $450) and not betting him?
If you separate the mystique from Koepka for a moment, it makes sense that his odds have lengthened considerably. He hasn't come out of the gates flying in 2020, finishing T43-MC-T47 in his three starts on the PGA Tour in 2020. (He did have surgery in the offseason.)
Koepka did seem to find his game a little bit with a 71 this past Sunday, but over his past six rounds, the Florida native is 17 strokes over par. In a vacuum, these odds make sense.
But this is still Brooks Koepka, the sport's preeminent big-game hunter. He's +1200 to win the Masters in a month. Despite his poor form, it's hard to not give some serious thought to him at +4500 — it's possible we never see a number this high next to an in-his-prime Koepka again.
What we do know is that if Koepka is contending on Sunday, there will be a lot of people kicking themselves for overthinking this. I know I am struggling with that exact predicament. It's almost worth a small bet on 45-1 just so you can guarantee you're not the person who got too cute and decided to not bet on Brooks Koepka at +4500.
[Bet now at DraftKings. NJ, PA, IN and WV only.]
Justin Rose +7000 (FanDuel)
There were a handful of people in The Industry who had a hard time looking at the 40-1 on Rose at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and passing on it. One week and a third missed cut in four starts later, Rose is nearly double the odds at The PLAYERS.
[Bet now at FanDuel. NJ, PA, IN and WV only.]
More PLAYERS Championship Betting Coverage
- Joshua Perry's Betting Card: Loads of Value in the Mid-Tier
- Betting Picks for the Round 1 PGA TOUR Live Featured Groups
- The Top-25 Betting Values for the 2020 PLAYERS Championship
- Why Cantlay & Finau Are Worth a Look at Sawgrass
- Bet $5, Win $150 if Rory Makes a Birdie This Week
- What Bettors and DFS Players Need to Know for TPC Sawgrass
Ian Poulter +17000 (FanDuel)
Full disclosure: I have a bet on Poulter at 170-1.
Poulter's name may not have jumped off the page if he was in the 100-1 range — he is in that range at plenty of sportsbooks — but 170-1 seems a bit much for a player who has two runner-up finishes at this event.
Unlike most of the players on this list, Poulter is in decent form with four consecutive finishes of 32nd-or-better.
[Bet now at FanDuel. NJ, PA, IN and WV only.]
Daniel Berger +5000 (FanDuel)
So far this list has been about players further down the list compared to where we're used to seeing them. Berger is the opposite story.
There's a lot to like about Berger's game lately and he's been a trendy pick during the Florida Swing, so I get why he's up here. But just look at some of the names behind him in the odds. It's a little jarring.
[Bet now at FanDuel. NJ, PA, IN and WV only.]
Dustin Johnson +2900 (FanDuel)
Johnson hasn't played since The Genesis Invitational, but his form seems fine. He's got a pair of top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour in 2020 and he finished second at the Saudi International a few weeks ago.
If you're wondering whether you should bet DJ at this number, ask yourself this question: Does DJ win this tournament more often than Sungjae Im, Tommy Fleetwood or Hideki Matsuyama? Because these odds suggest he doesn't.
