Do you believe it’s nearly twice as likely for Scottie Scheffler to win the U.S. Open than it is for the Dallas Mavericks to come back and win the NBA Finals?
At BetMGM, Scheffler’s odds to win the third major of the season are at just +333. The Mavericks, meanwhile, are at +650 to win the NBA Finals after dropping the first two games of the series to the Boston Celtics.
Dallas was +225 to win the series before it started but couldn’t get a road split in Boston. Now the Mavericks have to win four of the next six games — including at least one in Boston — to get a Finals win.
Scheffler, meanwhile, is making golf look easier than anyone has in years. Scheffler shot a 2-over 74 in the final round of the Memorial on Sunday but still won by a shot over Collin Morikawa. The win was his third victory in his last five starts and he’s finished outside the top 10 in just one of his 13 events this season.
The No. 1 player in the world is averaging a staggering $1.8 million per start thanks to his Masters win and his four signature event victories. Scheffler has won at least $3.6 million in each of his five wins this season.
Scheffler is far and away the best player from tee to green according to Data Golf’s rankings and that will be key at Pinehurst No. 2 this weekend. Players will be required to leave their approach shots in the right spots on Pinehurst’s contoured greens — and also stay out of the waste areas that line the fairways. Accuracy off the tee will also be imperative to avoid a big number.
The U.S. Open is also the third straight major where Scheffler has entered as the favorite. He easily won as the pre-tournament favorite at the Masters and still finished eighth at the PGA Championship at Valhalla despite his Friday morning arrest by a member of the Louisville Police Department. Scheffler still fired a round under par that day despite being booked and having his mug shot taken. (The charges against him have since been dropped.)
The man who won that PGA Championship, Xander Schauffele, is the No. 2 favorite all the way back at +1100. Schauffele has played consistent golf so far this season and came through in the final round at Valhalla after some frustrating Sundays earlier in the year while at the top of the leaderboard.
Schauffele’s odds are slightly better than Rory McIlroy at +1200 and Morikawa at +1400. Along with Scheffler, they are the only four players who are better than 20-1 to win the tournament.
Bryson DeChambeau is the top favorite from LIV Golf at +2000 ahead of Brooks Koepka at +2200 and Jon Rahm was at +3300 before he announced Tuesday afternoon that he would have to withdraw from the tournament because of a foot issue.
