Vik a ticket to Hov’ at 20/1 in The Open
The best golfer in the world — from an analytical perspective, at least — is Scottie Scheffler, whose ball-striking numbers are so admirable that we can’t help but compare them to those of Tiger Woods in his prime. The secondbest player, according to the world ranking, is Rory McIlroy, who leapfrogged Jon Rahm with last week’s victory at the Scottish Open. The fact of the matter, though, is that any of these three can quickly make us forget about the other two.
In today’s fickle world of what-haveyou-done-for-me-lately, all it takes is a couple of brilliant performances to move to the head of the class. Rather than trying to separate them, perhaps the bigger question to ask is which player will be the next to join them.
Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay have each made bids, though it’s tough to separate one from the other, let alone move one into the next echelon. Jordan Spieth hasn’t quite done enough recently, nor has Collin Morikawa or Tyrrell Hatton, despite the latter’s sublime play. Based on talent alone, Brooks Koepka and Cameron Smith should both be considered in this tier, though it’s difficult to rate them when they only compete against the world’s other best players four times each year.
We’re left with one name which I think will be the next to make this leap, perhaps with his first major championship victory this week at Royal Liverpool in the 151st
Open Championship.
Outright winner
Viktor Hovland (20/1)
— We’ve known for years that Hovland owns an immense amount of talent, and now that talent is manifesting into more title contentions.
Personally, I believe the tipping point came at the PGA Championship two months ago. In contention on the 70th hole of the tournament, Hovland lined a fairway bunker shot into the front end of that bunker, made double-bogey and essentially eliminated himself from the mix. Some 30 minutes later, he signed his scorecard, offered one short interview and skulked away.
This wasn’t the happy-go-lucky Hovland that we’re accustomed to seeing, but it also wasn’t a guy who was heartbroken over losing that big opportunity. No, he looked mad — as if he was ready to play another major championship that very moment, if they’d let him. Two weeks later, he won the Memorial Tournament in a playoff, showing off the kind of clutch performance necessary to claim major titles.
It might be ignorant to suggest a switch was flipped inside Hovland at Oak Hill which transformed him into a steely-eyed competitor, but something about that moment broke him and changed him and, in my opinion, hardened him for winning more big tournaments moving forward.
He’s contended in majors, he’s gotten a taste, and he’s won big events. It’s time for him to assert himself among the world’s best players — perhaps not quite on the same level with Scheffler, McIlroy and Rahm, but with a win this week, he won’t be too far behind them.
Top-10 finish
Tyrrell Hatton (+300) — When writing about golf betting every week, it can feel like regurgitating much of the same information on a regular basis. Case in point: I can’t tell you how many times I’ve written in recent months about Hatton’s impressive play and how he’s been better than most people realize, never having that true spike week of a victory.
He ranks third on the PGA Tour in Strokes Gained: Total and has top 10s in eight of 17 worldwide starts this year. Part of the reason he hasn’t quite gotten the recognition is that some of his poorest performances have occurred at the biggest events, as he finished T34 at the Masters, T15 at the PGA Championship and T27 at the U.S. Open. Not that those are anything to be embarrassed about, they just pale in comparison to many of his other results. At this one, he owns two top-10 finishes in the past six years and one other nearmiss at T11. Combine a knack for faring well on links courses with the most proficient streak of his career, and it stands to reason that a price of 3/1 should result in an end-of-week ticket cash on this one.