The final men’s golf major of 2024 will get underway this Thursday, July 18, at Royal Troon Golf Club in South Ayrshire, Scotland. This will mark the 10th Open Championship to be played at Royal Troon. Brian Harman won last year’s Open Championship by six strokes and he will be in the field looking to defend his title.
Scottie Scheffler has only won one major championship in 2024, but he is the favorite to win at Royal Troon. Scheffler has been favored to win each of the previous three majors – The Masters, the PGA Championship, and the U.S. Open – this season. He may be the current world No. 1, but Scheffler has not fared well at the Open in recent years. Scheffler has failed to place in the top 20 in the last two Open events. Will his luck change in 2024?
The Favorites
Scheffler is the overall favorite to win The Open. He is listed at +450 odds, one of only two golfers given better than +1000 odds. The other, of course, is Rory McIlroy, who has come so close to winning several majors this season. He putted away a chance at the U.S. Open, which ended up going to Bryson DeChambeau.
One advantage for McIlroy is that he has actually won The Open championship previously. Back in 2014, McIlroy capped off a stellar season that saw him win both the PGA Championship and The Open.
Golfers from the U.S. have dominated The Open in recent years. Harman’s win last year made it four American winners over the past seven Open championships. Six of the last nine winners of the event at Royal Troon also hailed from the U.S. American Xander Schauffele is listed third on the betting board at +1100 at BetUS.
Can Scheffler Win?
There’s no question why Scheffler is the favorite in this event. He is a two-time major winner, winning the Masters this year and in 2022. He tied for eighth at this year’s PGA Championship and he’s been the best player on the PGA Tour this season.
However, Scheffler finished tied for 41st at the U.S. Open and he’ll compete in an event this weekend that hasn’t been all that kind to him. Scheffler’s best finish at The Open came in 2021 when he tied for eighth place. He’s only played The Open three times, finishing tied for 21st in 2022 and tied for 23rd last year.
Scheffler has won two of his last three starts. He won the Memorial Tournament at the beginning of June and then took the Travelers Championship after his poor showing in the U.S. Open. Can Scheffler rise to the occasion in an event in which he has struggled?
The Case for McIlroy
Right behind Scheffler in the world golf rankings is McIlroy. He only has one win this season. That came at the Wells Fargo Championship in May. Unlike Scheffler, McIlroy has a history of success at The Open.
McIlroy has seven career top-10 finishes at The Open, including his lone title in 2014. He tied for sixth place last year and was third in 2022. Since the 2022 golf season started, McIlroy has three second-place results and four top-three finishes at major events. The last time The Open was held at Royal Troon, McIlroy wound up in the top-5.
The knock against McIlroy, of course, was his finish at the U.S. Open. He followed that up with a T4 finish at last weekend’s Genesis Scottish Open. If anyone will give Scheffler a run for his money, it’s McIlroy, who is given +750 odds to win The Open at SportsBetting Sportsbook.
Other Top Contenders
The next four on the betting board are Schauffele, Collin Morikawa, Ludvig Aberg, and DeChambeau. Morikawa is the only one of the four that has ever won The Open, but in his last two appearances, he failed to make the cut.
DeChambeau has only placed in the top-10 once and Schaffele has never finished higher than 15th. Aberg has never even played in this event, but he has been playing well since the Masters. Aberg hasn’t shot higher than 70 on a Sunday since this year’s Masters.
Aberg, Morikawa, and DeChambeau are all listed at +1400 on The Open betting board. Cameron Smith (2022) and Shane Lowry (2019) are previous Open winners that will be in this year’s field. Both are given +4000 odds to win it this year.
Keep an Eye on Longshots
It’s interesting that nine Open Championships have been held at Royal Troon and Americans have won six of them. Golf legends Tom Watson and Arnold Palmer won here. What’s also interesting is a guy like Harman who won last year.
It was Harman’s first-ever major win and he was a huge longshot heading into the tournament. At +12000, Harman returned a boatload of cash for those savvy enough to pick him prior to the Open. He’s not the only longshot nor is he the only first-time major winner to take the Open.
The last time The Open was held at Royal Troon, Henrik Stenson pulled off the upset. To this day, it’s still Henson’s only major victory. He closed at +3000 at top sportsbooks before pulling off the win. Smith was a +4500 longshot in 2022 and Lowry was listed at +6500 in 2019.
