The U.S. Open has historically played difficult, especially at Winged Foot. Carnage will ensue and when it does, you’ll want the golfers who will weather the bogey storm and grind out four days of challenging golf.
Defending champion Gary Woodland (+8500) and all the golfers who competed in the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach will face an entirely different golf course this week. Last season you could’ve found Woodland anywhere between +6000 to +9000 to win and Brooks Koepka, the year before, was +2500 to win. Even though Dustin Johnson (+850) and Jon Rahm (+900) are playing the best golf at the moment, there’s value all over the board this week. One of my favorite quotes about the U.S. Open comes from Sandy Tatum, a USGA Executive committee member back in the 1970s. He was speaking to the press before the 1974 U.S. Open at Winged Foot when he said, “What we try to do is not to confound the best golfers in the world but to find out who they are.”
For a full course preview and key statistics breakdown, refer to the DraftKings Preview on DraftKings Playbook. Here are the bets we should be considering this week on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Place your PGA TOUR golf bets at DraftKings Sportsbook or by downloading the DK Sportsbook app.
Bryson DeChambeau to win +2800
Bryson’s number was +800 right after the PGA Championship and has since ballooned over 3x in the past four weeks. The accuracy off the tee is erratic, the irons are a little off and his putting is volatile. Still, it’s hard to argue with the value we’re getting from the No. 1 golfer in driving distance since the restart and one of the game’s top tacticians at a difficult course.
The Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner tweeted on Tuesday that, “Bryson plans to wail away on driver this week at Winged Foot, hitting it as far as he possibly can.”
Bryson plans to wail away on driver this week at Winged Foot, hitting it as far as he possibly can. After the US Open, he will start testing a 48-inch driver shaft––the maximum length allowed.
— Ryan Lavner (@RyanLavnerGC) September 15, 2020
"We'll see how far I can go."
Part of me wishes he’d club down and choose accuracy over distance this week but maybe more so than finding the fairway, we need him to have confidence in his game if he’s going to contend. Brian Wacker interviewed Bryson after East Lake about the U.S. Open a couple of weeks ago, and he said, “My ultimate goal is to be able to drive the ball 400 yards in the air so I can drive the greens every week and have it be an unfair advantage.” Let’s hope he’s close to that goal this week, mainly because he ranks fourth in putting since the restart.
Set your DraftKings lineups here: $2.25M Fantasy Golf Millionaire [$1M to 1st + ToC Entry]
Patrick Reed to win +3300
Similar to Bryson, Reed presents value in this range with the combination of current form and winning upside at a major (2018 Masters). He’s also shown the ability to play well at U.S. Opens, ranking fourth in SG: Total over the previous four years. Reed’s gained off the tee in seven straight tourneys and ranks inside the top 7 in SG: Par 4 since the restart. Reed isn’t short on confidence, which is precisely the type of golfer I want at a major.
Matthew Wolff -137 over Sebastian Munoz
Munoz has back-to-back top 8s (one being at the difficult Olympia Fields) but Wolff ranks fourth in driving distance and 36th in fairways gained since the restart — the skillset tailor-made for Winged Foot. Munoz has missed the cut in all three of his major starts, while Wolff flirted with the lead at TPC Harding Park on Sunday, finishing fourth. Munoz can catch fire with the putter but this is less about sinking birdies and more about saving par; Wolff ranks 11th in bogey avoidance over the past 24 rounds.
Place your bets at DraftKings Sportsbook or by downloading the DK Sportsbook app.
Set your DraftKings lineups here: $2.25M Fantasy Golf Millionaire [$1M to 1st + ToC Entry]
Put your knowledge to the test. Sign up for DraftKings and experience the game inside the game.
All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL). Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ/WV/PA), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (NH/CO) or 1-800-BETS OFF (IA). 21+ (18+ NH). NJ/PA/WV/IN/NH/IA/CO/IL only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions.
I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is reidtfowler) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.