While the weather wasn’t as bad as other Open Championships, it paid dividends to tee off early in Thursday’s first round.
The scoring average for Groups 1-13 was 71.49, which increased as the day went on. It was capped off by Groups 40-52 having a scoring average of 73.51. This impacted the latest British Open odds.
Cameron Young took advantage of the good conditions early, firing an 8-under par 64. The rookie finished his round before many even teed off. Young will go into the second round with a two-shot advantage over Rory McIlroy and three shots over Cameron Smith and Robert Dinwiddie.
There are dozens of betting options at the BetMGM online sportsbook for Friday’s second round, ranging from live golf odds for every player in the field to betting on individual players within threesomes.
This is called 3-ball betting, i.e., which golfer within a threesome will have the lowest score for the round. As all three in any given wager face the same conditions, you can rest assured no unforeseen advantage can be gained by one player over the other.
Here’s a look at 3-ball betting for Friday’s featured groups.
Matt Fitzpatrick (+110) / Max Homa (+190) / Tiger Woods (+280) – 4:58 a.m. ET
It was a frustrating Thursday for this group. Fitzpatrick (E) lost strokes on the greens, which is not the norm for the U.S. Open champion. He entered the week 35th in Strokes Gained: Putting. For the year, Fitzpatrick is 44th in second-round scoring, with a scoring average of 69.93.
Homa (+1) made bogeys on two of his last four holes to finish the day over par. The second round has been his worst of the four this season. His 70.71 scoring average ranks 119th.
Woods (+6) had a tough day all-around. He lost over strokes to the field in putting, Strokes Gained: Approach and Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. The best round of his season came in the second round of the PGA Championship (69, his only round of the 60s).
Jordan Spieth (+120)/Jon Rahm (+145)/Harold Varner III (+350) – 5:09 a.m.
Overall, it was a solid day for Spieth (-1), but he did make three bogeys on the back-9. Spieth lost strokes off the tee, which is unusual for him. He entered the week ranked 32nd in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee.
Rahm (+1) was 2-under through his first seven holes but made three bogeys on his final nine holes to finish over par for the day. Putting was his biggest issue, losing over two strokes to the field. The world No. 3-ranked player is 63rd in Strokes Gained: Putting. His 69.50 second-round scoring average is 16th.
Varner III (+1) made three birdies on the back-9, but he was 3-over after 11, which didn’t help his cause. The 31-year-old couldn’t get any part of his game going all day. However, he does rank seventh in scoring during second rounds this season (69.19).
Rory McIlroy (+125)/Xander Schauffele (+165)/Collin Morikawa (+280) – 9:59 a.m.
McIlroy (-6) excelled on the greens, gaining almost 3.5 strokes against the field. This goes in line with how he’s performed this season, ranking seventh on Tour in Strokes Gained: Putting. McIlroy has struggled in second rounds, though. He currently ranks 115th in second-round scoring.
Schauffele (-3) continued his impressive play of late. He was third in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, gaining over four strokes against the field. Second rounds have been his worst this season, ranking 44th on Tour.
Morikawa (E), the defending champion, made four birdies with four bogeys in what was an up-and-down day. He’s had some issues in the second rounds this season, ranking 124th in scoring average.
Justin Thomas (+170)/Shane Lowry (+175)/Viktor Hovland (+190) – 10:10 a.m.
Thomas (E) could have had an even better day as he made a costly double-bogey on the 17th hole. Losing strokes in Strokes Gained: Approach was not what he had in mind, as he came into the week ranked sixth this season. However, he does rank first on Tour in second-round scoring (68.25).
Lowry (E) is slightly more satisfied with his score after starting the day +3 through his first four holes. He lost over 2.5 strokes to the field putting, which is not what he’s accustomed to. Lowry ranks 33rd on Tour in Strokes Gained: Putting.
Hovland (-4) didn’t let some issues getting out of a bunker on the fourth hole get in his way. He made six birdies overall, including on his last three holes, to trail Young by four shots. He’s 40th on Tour (69.87) in second-round scoring.
