Finally, we can go back to the business of playing golf.
It’s been a weird few months in the world of golf and the US Open is only around the corner, which means that it couldn’t have come at a sooner time. No more public squabbling and no more inappropriate “fried chicken” references. It’s time to move on and start playing some serious golf.
This year, the US Open will be played at Merion Golf Club for the first time in 32 years, a fact that’s both odd and intriguing considering that some of the best moments in all of golf happened on this very course. Remember Ben Hogan’s one-iron shot on the 18th hole to force a playoff in 1950? I wasn’t around back then but my grandfather was and he always used to talk about it with the sharpness of mind as if that moment was frozen in his memory.
But all that’s history. What we can look forward to this weekend is a steady diet of mental fortitude from these golfers. Lee Trevino once called Merion a “thinking man’s golf course” so expect a sand trap’s worth of action that will only get even trickier with forecasts of rain expected throughout the weekend.
As far as the betting odds are concerned, it comes as no surprise that Tiger Woods is the clear-cut favorite to win the US Open. Bodog has listed the 14-time Major winner as a 5/1 favorite. Surprisingly, no one’s even close to Woods on the betting board with Phil Mickelson and Matt Kuchar the closest at 18/1 odds.
Adam Scott and Graeme McDowell are both at 20/1. Take a long look at McDowell because he’s been pretty steady at the US Open in the past three years, highlighted by his win in 2010 at Pebble Beach. Maybe worth a look here, if you ask us.
Rory McIlroy sits alone at 22/1 odds, pretty high considering his caliber as one of the world’s best golfers. From there, its Charl Schwartzel and Justin Rose being given 25/1 odds with Lee Westwood sitting pretty at 28/1 odds.
Sergio Garcia, the man that stole golf headlines with his “fried chicken” joke towards Tiger Woods, is at 35/1 while defending champion Webb Simpson has been posted at 40/1 odds.
