Mountain State bettors regard the PGA circuit as a recurring new sport, nestled right behind the NFL, college football, the NBA and MLB.
The proliferation of gambling options and television coverage has created a nice wagering niche. That means every tournament has a built-in audience, including the 3M Open, taking place Thursday-Sunday in Minnesota.
It arrives on the heels of The Open, which was conducted half a world away in England just a couple of days ago. Yet some big names and hungry players looking to rebound make this a good field to wager into.
Currently, DraftKings Sportsbook West Virginia has the following odds for the favorites to win, place in the Top 5, and place in the Top 10:
- Dustin Johnson +700, +170, -125
- Tony Finau +1400, +280, +125
- Louis Oosthuizen +1400, +200, +110
- Patrick Reed +1600, +330, +145
- Cameron Tringale +2500, +450, +250
Betting update:
Matthew Wolff may be a bit of a long shot at +2800, but DraftKings figures released Wednesday show him as the leading revenue draw, at 9% of the handle. Wolff has been struggling in 2021 but captured this event in 2019.
How to Watch:
- Thursday-Friday, 2:30-6:30 p.m. EST (Golf Channel)
- Saturday-Sunday, 1-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6 p.m. (CBS)
3M Open Odds At WV Sportsbooks
This used to be a down week on the tour.
But this field sports four of the top 25 money winners, and two entrants (Johnson and Finau) have a 2021 tour victory.
One of the spotlights will be on Oosthuizen, who nearly went wire to wire in The Open last week. But he hit a speed bump in the final round and finished tied for third.
Will he maintain the consistency from the first three rounds, which he led, or will he become deflated about losing the lead to eventual winner Collin Morikawa?
“It is so tough for these players to sustain their consistency in all that pressure,” Johnny Avello, the director of race and sportsbook operations for DraftKings, told PlayWV. “But he comes back this week, and there is a good mix in this field. Some of the biggest players are not there, but many very good competitors are.”
Wire-to-wire victories are rare but would pay well if accomplished. DraftKings has a prop of +1200 for a player who can accomplish the feat.
If you bet the momentum angle, Johnson finished a good eighth at The Open with a strong final round.
Finau, also respected in the early wagering, came on strong to finish 15th.
Sergio Garcia, at a nice plump +3500, is worthy of consideration. He played well at The Open, finishing 19th.
PGA Tour Betting Guide
Here’s some course data for consideration for “next hole” betting. This has become extremely popular, as gamblers obtain action on many individual holes. And it can be played throughout the entire weekend. This is a nice feature, enabling gamblers to wager into patterns they observe.
The best birdie holes in the 2019 tournament were 12 and 6, both long par 5’s.
The 12th had 89 birdies and only one bogey. It played to a stroke average of 4.37.
The sixth had 80 birdies and seven bogeys. It played to a stroke average of 4.37. Both holes also had more birdies than pars.
Best bogey chances? Holes two and nine. Both are long, difficult par 4’s.
The ninth had 18 birdies and 33 bogeys in 2019, along with 84 pars. It’s a 502-yard par 4 and played to a stroke average of 4.36.
The second had 24 birdies and 36 bogeys, along with 82 pars. The 468-yard par 4 played to a stroke average of 4.24.
William Hill Shots Prop
Margin of victory is an interesting consideration. Can you nail it?
William Hill Sportsbook WV provides the following odds on how the tournament will be won:
- Four shots or more +333
- Three shots +450
- Playoff +300
- Two shots +350
- One shot +250
This will be a good one to track and handicap. The pros are so tightly matched that one or two strokes is usually the ticket.
Will this field, which is strong but without the top money-winners, produce a little more separation?
BetMGM Hedge Bet
This is another good shopping outlet for gamblers who want to back a particular player. Some numbers will be different than at other WV sportsbooks, providing options.
BetMGM Sportsbook WV also has a few props across the top of its page, as in Reed and Finau both making the Top 20 at +250.
It also clarifies an important book-wide distinction for players: All ties are paid out. You take a player to finish in the Top 5, and if he finishes tied for fifth with several other players, you win.
Unlike the actual sport of golf, which has tiebreaking procedures including match-of-cards, books reward most ties in golf.
