The Open 2022 betting picks & best prop bets – July 14-17

Rory McIlroy is the clear betting favorite to win The Open Championship this week at the Old Course in St Andrews, Scotland, but there are plenty of other top players expected to be in the mix, including Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Jordan Spieth. Here’s our pick to win the 150th Open Championship, along with two more of our best bets for the tournament starting this Thursday.

Outright winner: Jordan Spieth

Jordan Spieth always seems to play his best golf at The Open Championship. He has three top-10 finishes in this event over the last four years, including a victory in 2017 and a runner-up finish last year. Spieth also earned a fourth-place finish at St Andrews in 2015, missing out on a playoff by one shot that year.

While he doesn’t enter this tournament with a ton of momentum, that shouldn’t matter too much given his history here. Spieth’s underwhelming results at the U.S. Open and the PGA Championship may be contributing to his long odds here. But he hasn’t been in terrible form, with four top-10 finishes in his last eight tournaments, and there’s a good chance he’s in the mix on Sunday this year.

The other top favorites to win the Open this year include: Rory McIlroy (+1000), Scottie Scheffler (+1800), Xander Schauffele (+1800), Jon Rahm (+2000), Justin Thomas (+2000), Matt Fitzpatrick (+2000), Shane Lowry (+2000), Cameron Smith (+2200), Patrick Cantlay (+2500) and Will Zalatoris (+3000).

Top 10 finish: Xander Schauffele

You won’t find a hotter golfer coming into The Open than Xander Schauffele, who has earned back-to-back wins in the Travelers Championship and the Scottish Open. Schauffele really hasn’t had a bad showing since missing the cut at The Masters, winning the Zurich Classic in his very next appearance and finishing top 20 in each of his next six tournaments.

A bet to finish in the top 20 at -110 is even safer, but we’re wiling to back Schauffele to make his way into the top 10 this weekend. He’s playing so well right now that it feels like he’s got a legitimate shot to win his first major here at St Andrews. However, with the price not quite right on that wager due to his recent hot streak, we’ll stick with a top-10 finish instead.

Top 20 finish: Will Zalatoris

It’s been boom-or-bust for Will Zalatoris this last few months. Over his last nine tournaments, Zalatoris has finished in sixth place or better six times and has missed the cut three times. To his credit, Zalatoris has risen to the occasion in big events, going tied-sixth at The Masters, second at the PGA Championship and tied-second at the U.S. Open. You could certainly make a case for betting on Zalatoris to finish in the top five or 10, but getting better than even money on a top-20 finish just feels like great value on a guy who has been so competitive this year.

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