It may not be as lucrative an opportunity like Tony Romo taking out Byron Nelson at the PGA, but the recent conclusion of another major golf event could still have produced some incredible winnings. Shane Lowry out of Ireland won The Open Championship at Royal Portrush to become the Champion Golfer of the Year, despite the fact that he went in to the event as a relative underdog who was never expected to place. However, he proved everyone wrong, taking the title by six strokes and, in doing so, overcame incredible odds. 80 to 1, to be exact, which means anyone who had put $100 up for him to win would have walked away with $8,000 grand in the pocket.
Westgate Superbook in Las Vegas had Lowry listed at 80/1 just before the event. Lowry would spend this past weekend breaking all expectations — he finished -15, shooting rounds of 67-67-63-72. His performance on Saturday was the best performance seen since Royal Portrush was updated three years ago. Lowry wasn’t listed in the top 10 by bets or ticket counts, according to Westgate.
Westgate most likely made up the difference already. Rory McIlroy turned out a dismal performance during the Open, dropping a 79 on the first round. He had been the favorite to win and was first or second in both ticket counts and bets across many sportsbooks, but starting the event with a quadruple-bogey 8-over on the first hole had everyone scrambling to reconsider their positions.
The 16-time PGA Tour winner took his loss in stride, though, saying on Instagram after the game was over, “Even though last week wasn’t the week I had envisaged for myself, I couldn’t be happier and more proud of Shane Lowry. How he handled everything over the weekend…. emotions, nerves and conditions tells you everything I’ve gotten to know about him over the past 15 years. 2019 Champion Golfer of the Year! Enjoy some good stuff out of the Claret Jug!”
Major golf tournaments are done for the year; it’s now time to start preparing for 2020. Right now, Brooks Koepka is the favorite to win the Masters at 10/1 odds, but Tiger Woods is right behind at 12/1. If McIlroy can find his rhythm, he could take the Augusta National to earn a grand slam and is currently sitting at odds of 14/1 for the Masters. Lowry is in the mix, as well, but as a longshot once again — $100 could once again produce $8,000 if he pulls off another surprise victory.
