Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods and 10 others with the best odds to win the Open Championship at Royal Portrush
- This weekend the best golfers in the world will meet at Royal Portrush to compete in the Open Championship.
- Heading into the tournament, fan favorites Rory McIlroy, Brooks Koepka, and Tiger Woods are all expected to be present near the top of the leaderboard.
- Looking at the odds in Las Vegas, there's a compelling mix of veterans, young upstarts, and the usual suspects projected to take home the Claret Jug.
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This Thursday, golf fans around the world will turn their attention to Royal Portrush for the final men's major of the year, the Open Championship.
This year, there's plenty of compelling players to cheer for — Tiger Woods is looking to continue his comeback with his second major of the year, Rory McIlroy is hoping to win the Claret Jug for a second time after his dominant performance in 2014, and Brooks Koepka will look to continue his near-unprecedented streak of major success.
Take a look below and see who Las Vegas believes has the best chance to win at the Open this weekend. All lines are courtesy of Jeff Sherman and the Westgate Las Vegas Superbook.
Rory McIlroy
Current odds: 8/1
World ranking: No. 3
Best Open finish: Won — 2014
One thing to know: Rory McIlroy enters the weekend as the favorite to win the Open, riding top-10 finishes from the past two majors of the year. He's a proven links player as the wire-to-wire winner of the 2014 Open at Royal Liverpool, and he'll have the home crowd behind him at Royal Portrush.
Brooks Koepka
Current odds: 10/1
World ranking: No. 1
Best Open finish: T6 — 2017
One thing to know: Brooks Koepka's recent run of success in majors is one for the history books, having won three of the past six majors and finished second in two more. Koepka has said that he finds majors the easiest tournaments to compete in, and his play over the past two years has given bettors no reason to doubt him.
Dustin Johnson
Current odds: 10/1
World ranking: No. 2
Best Open finish: T2 — 2011
One thing to know: Dustin Johnson's style of play might not seem to translate to links golf as smoothly as others, but he's finished in the top 15 five times in the past decade. That said, Johnson might be a better bet to end the weekend on the leaderboard rather than atop it — he has 17 top-10 finishes at majors in his career, but still just one major win to his name.
Jon Rahm
Current odds: 16/1
World ranking: No. 8
Best Open finish: T44 — 2017
One thing to know: Jon Rahm might be the hottest golfer in the game right now, riding a T3 finish at the U.S. Open, a T2 finish at the Andalucía Masters, and a win at the Irish Open two weeks ago. He's been far from great at the Open the three times he's played in the tournament, but Rahm appears to be firing on all cylinders this year.
Tiger Woods
Current odds: 18/1
World ranking: No. 5
Best Open finish: Won — 2000, 2005, 2006
One thing to know: Tiger Woods hasn't lifted the Claret Jug in more than a decade, but after his unbelievable performance at the Masters he's impossible to dismiss from contending at any major. At his best, Woods is still capable of beating the field at any tournament.
Justin Rose
Current odds: 20/1
World ranking: No. 4
Best Open finish: T2 — 2018
One thing to know: Justin Rose has finished in the top 20 at five of the past seven majors, including tying for second at the Open Championship last summer. If he can put it all together this weekend, it's not hard to imagine him lifting the Claret Jug on Sunday.
Francesco Molinari
Current odds: 20/1
World ranking: No. 7
Best Open finish: Won — 2018
One thing to know: Francesco Molinari enters the Open as the reigning champion, having stormed back from a three-stroke deficit entering the final round last year to win the first major of his career. Should he win again at Royal Portrush, he'll be the first back-to-back Open champion since Padraig Harrington won his second title in 2008.
Xander Schauffele
Current odds: 20/1
World ranking: No. 11
Best Open finish: T2 — 2018
One thing to know: Xander Schauffele has finished in the top-3 of two of this year's three majors so far, and finished tied for second at the Open last year. While he has yet to break through with a major win, chances are he'll be a popular bet this weekend.
Rickie Fowler
Current odds: 25/1
World ranking: No. 14
Best Open finish: T2 — 2014
One thing to know: For years Rickie Fowler has been considered the next man in line to win a major, but has still yet to take down one of the four biggest prizes in golf. That said, Fowler's versatile style makes him an intriguing choice for links play, where wind, weather, and rough terrain can all prove challenging to even the best players in the world.
Patrick Cantlay
Current odds: 25/1
World ranking: No. 10
Best Open finish: T12 — 2018
One thing to know: Patrick Cantlay has been a force this season, having finished no worse than T21 at the three majors thus far and winning the Memorial Tournament in June with a massive 8-under final round on Sunday.
Tommy Fleetwood
Current odds: 25/1
World ranking: No. 20
Best Open finish: T12 — 2018
One thing to know: Englishman Tommy Fleetwood will be another popular pick this weekend thanks to his experience playing links golf. Having played the majority of his career on the European Tour, he'll be more familiar with the challenges Royal Portrush presents than the PGA Tour mainstays who only cross the pond for one or two tournaments a year.
Justin Thomas
Current odds: 25/1
World ranking: No. 9
Best Open finish: T53 — 2016
One thing to know: Justin Thomas has been far from his best at the Open, having made the cut just once in his career. But after a T9 performance at the Scottish Open last weekend, it's possible this is the year we see Thomas playing at a level true to his talents.
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