The sport of golf collectively represents multiple professional tours and tournaments from around the world. Each year, individual players compete in hopes of gaining entry into the most prestigious tournaments, known as “the majors”, offering the highest prize funds. There are also a number of other important tournaments throughout the year, much like the smaller tournaments tennis players enter when they’re not vying for entry into one of the Grand Slams. Our guide provides a brief overview of each men’s major tournament, and explains how to interpret golf betting odds.
Top Global Golf Tours
The PGA of America was founded in 1916. The early PGA only kept player performance records from 1916-1932, after which it began keeping money lists in 1934. However, the PGA Tour wasn’t formally organized until 1968, when it took the form most people recognize to this day.
Other professional golf tours experienced the same uncertain evolution. While the European Tour technically started in 1972, it was born of the 1977 combination of the British PGA Circuit and Continental European Circuit. Initially, the British PGA and Continental Circuits had separate tournament events. However, the European Tour officially separated from the British PGA in 1984 and is now completely governed by European officials.
There are number of other noteworthy golf tours, all of which started in the mid to late 20th century: The LPGA (1950), The Sunshine Tour (1971), The Japan Golf Tour (1973), The PGA Tour of Australasia (1973), and the Asian Tour (1995).
The Majors golf tournaments include The Masters Tournament, The PGA Championship, The US Open Championship, and The Open Championship. Though most majors participants come from the PGA and European Tours, players from any of the other tours can gain entry by invitation or by qualification.
Below, you’ll see odds for these tournaments along with golf betting odds for other events, plus a quick guide to betting on golf futures.
Golf Futures Odds
|
Team |  BetMGM |
|---|---|
| Scottie Scheffler | +500 Bet |
| Rory McIlroy | +1100 Bet |
| Jon Rahm | +1200 Bet |
| Xander Schauffele | +1200 Bet |
| Ludvig Aberg | +1400 Bet |
| Bryson DeChambeau | +1600 Bet |
| Brooks Koepka | +2200 Bet |
| Collin Morikawa | +2200 Bet |
| Cameron Smith | +2500 Bet |
| Viktor Hovland | +2500 Bet |
| Hideki Matsuyama | +2800 Bet |
| Jordan Spieth | +2800 Bet |
| Patrick Cantlay | +2800 Bet |
| Joaquin Niemann | +3300 Bet |
| Justin Thomas | +3300 Bet |
| Tommy Fleetwood | +3300 Bet |
| Cameron Young | +4000 Bet |
| Dustin Johnson | +4000 Bet |
| Matthew Fitzpatrick | +4000 Bet |
| Max Homa | +4000 Bet |
| Tony Finau | +4000 Bet |
| Tyrrell Hatton | +4000 Bet |
| Will Zalatoris | +4000 Bet |
| Wyndham Clark | +4500 Bet |
| Sahith Theegala | +5000 Bet |
| Sam Burns | +5000 Bet |
| Shane Lowry | +5000 Bet |
| Jason Day | +6600 Bet |
| Patrick Reed | +6600 Bet |
| Russell Henley | +6600 Bet |
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Golf Betting Events
While various global tours have their own tournaments, there are four golf tournaments that are far and above all others. These are known as the Men’s Major Golf Championships, or simply “The Majors”. You’ll find golf betting odds at most sports betting sites, including futures odds, for each of the following tournaments:
The Masters
- Date – Weekend ending second Sunday in April
- Location – USA, Augusta National Golf Club – Augusta, Georgia
- Established – 1934
- Par – 72
- Format – Stroke Play
The Masters is the first major golf tournament of the year. It’s also the only tournament to be held at the same location each year.
The Masters Qualification
The Masters is also one of the most selective tournaments, having the smallest field of all the majors of between 85-100 players maximum. There are no alternate players or qualifying tournaments. Players attend on an invite-only basis, subject to publicized entry criteria. The top 50 players in the Official World Golf Rankings get automatic invites. All past champions are allowed to play subject to their own assessment of their tournament readiness and competitive abilities.
The Masters tournament consists of 4 rounds of 18 holes of golf for each round. It starts on Thursday and concludes by Sunday unless there are delays.
Each hole is named for a different tree. The 575 yard, par 5 second hole, “Pink Dogwood” is the longest hole of the course. There are also much shorter holes, like the 170 yard, par 3 sixteenth hole, “Redbud”.
The tournament winner is awarded the Green Jacket and has their name etched in The Masters trophy.
PGA Championship
- Date – Weekend before Memorial Day weekend
- Location – USA, selected annually
- Established – 1916
- Par – 70-72
- Format – Stroke Play
The PGA Championship is the second major golf tournament of the year. Unlike The Masters, its location changes each year. With occasional exceptions, the event is held in the Eastern half of the United States. New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio, respectively, have hosted the tournament the most times.
PGA Championship Qualification
A maximum of 156 players can play in the tournament. Unlike The Masters, the PGA Championship does not offer automatic entry to the top 50 golfers according to the Official World Golf Rankings. Instead, the top 50 ranked players coincidently gain entry by meeting the tournament’s selective criteria. Additionally, some players in the top 100 may also qualify. The following are a few of the most common ways to qualify for the PGA Championship:
- Former PGA Champions
- Winners of the last 5 tournaments: US Open, Masters, Open Championship, The Players Championship
- Top 3 on the Official World Golf Rankings
- Current Senior PGA Champion
- The low 15 scorers and ties in the previous PGA Championship.
- The 20 low scorers in the last PGA Professional Championship.
- The 70 leaders in PGA Championship points list
The tournament also does not invite amateurs unless they have won another Major, or if they’ve won a PGA Tour event playing on a sponsor’s exemption.
The winner of the PGA Championship is awarded the Wanamaker Trophy.
US Open Championship
- Date – Weekend ending third Sunday in June, or Father’s Day
- Location – USA, selected annually
- Established – 1895
- Par – 70-72, depending on the course
- Format – Stroke Play
The US Open Championship is the third major golf tournament of the year. Like the PGA Championship, the course varies from year to year. New York, Pennsylvania, and Illinois, respectively, have hosted the tournament the most. Unlike the PGA Championship, the tournament has taken place in a wider variety of regions, including the Northeast, South, Midwest, and West.
US Open Championship Qualification
The US Open Championship is limited to 156 players. The are two ways to qualify. One, professionals and amateurs with a USGA Handicap Index of 1.4 or less. These players must qualify through local and sectional tournaments. Two, a qualification exemption, accounting for about half of all tournament entries. The following are the most common US Open Championship qualification exemptions:
- The top 60 in the Official World Golf Rankings as of two weeks before the start of the tournament, and as of the date of the tournament.
- Winners of each of the Masters Tournament, Open Championship and PGA Championship for the last five years
- Winners of the last three Players Championships
- Winner of the current year’s BMW PGA Championship
- Winner of the last U.S. Senior Open
- Top 10 finishers and ties from the previous year’s U.S. Open
- Players who qualified for the previous year’s Tour Championship
Those who are not exempt must qualify through a two-stage process. First, the Local Qualifying stage. Entrants must play 18 holes at any one of 100 courses around the United States. Most top-ranked players don’t need to enter this stage.
Second, the Sectional Qualifying stage. Here the winners of the Local Qualifying round join top players who skipped the first stage. Multiple sites across the United States, Europe, and Japan host 36 hole tournaments. Top Sectional Qualifying players then gain entry into the US Open Championship tournament.
The winner of the US Open Championship receives the US Open Trophy.
The Open Championship
- Date – Week containing the third Friday in July
- Location – United Kingdom, links courses within rotation
- Established – 1860
- Par – 72
- Format – Stroke Play
The Open Championship is the only major tournament held outside the United States, annually held at rotating locations within the United Kingdom. Unlike the stateside majors, The Open Championship is always held on a rolling links course near the ocean, devoid of any heavy trees or vegetation. As a result, players must contend with nature at its finest, including the possibility of heavy winds and uncompromising natural terrain.
Winning The Open Championship at the Old St. Andrews course is considered one of the highest achievements in golf.
The Open Championship Qualification
The Open Championship is limited to 156 players. There are four ways to qualify. One, by local qualifying. Two, via the Open Qualifying Series. Three, top ranking players according to the Official World Golf Rankings when the 156 player limit hasn’t been met. Or four, by exemption, accounting for about 65% of the field. The following are the most common exemptions:
- Winners of any of the majors ranging from the past 5-10 years.
- Winners of other top golf tournaments ranging from the past 1-3 years.
- Top 10 from the previous year’s Open Championship.
- The top 50 players according Official World Golf Ranking for Week 21.
- Top finishers from global tournaments from the previous season.
- Select amateur title holders if they are still amateurs
Local qualifiers must enter any of the designated 36 hole tournaments around the United Kingdom. Players may skip the local qualifying stage if they meet certain standards. Top performers and those except from local qualifying then move to a final qualifying stage of 4 events of 36 holes, producing a total of 12 Open Championship qualifiers (3 from each of the 4 events).
The Open Qualifying Series allots entries to those who finish in the top spots of preselected international tournaments. In total, about 32-36 players gain entry into the Open Championship via this route. The Australia Open, the South Africa Open, the Singapore Open, and the Arnold Palmer Invitational are among the qualifying tournaments.
Winners receive the Golf Champion Trophy, also known as the Claret Jug.
Golf Futures Bets
A futures bet is a wager you can place on an event well into the future. The majors will have the most golf betting odds, including odds for each player grouping once a tournament begins. You can bet on the winner of each tournament at any time of the year. Like other sports, odds on the winner of next year’s event will be posted upon the conclusion of this year’s event.
Placing a wager well in advance means you’re taking a risk that the player will be healthy and in good form for the tournament. The tournament’s qualification process can influence a player’s chances to win, unless they are otherwise exempted. Each event’s futures odds will change accordingly based on these factors.
Golf Betting Odds Futures Example
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Jon Rahm | +750 |
| Rory McIlroy | +900 |
| Scottie Scheffler | +900 |
| Viktor Hovland | +1400 |
| Brooks Koepka | +1400 |
| Jordan Spieth | +1400 |
| Patrick Cantlay | +1600 |
| Collin Morikawa | +2000 |
| Xander Schauffele | +2000 |
| Cameron Smith | +2000 |
These odds suggest Jon Rahm is the favorite to win the 2024 Masters Tournament. You’d risk $100 to win $750. Rory McIlroy is considered an underdog at +900. You’d risk $100 to win $900 if McIlroy is victorious.
Finally, Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele, and Cameron Smith are all considered longshots. You’d win substantially more if any of these three players ended up winning the Masters. A $100 bet on any of them would produce a $2,000 win if they manage the upset.
Golf Betting Handicapping Strategies
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Do Your Research
Like in other sports, a wealth of information is available to you about professional golfers. For example, the PGA Tour regularly updates its player stats as each season unfolds.
Knowing what’s important to track can give you an advantage when deciding how to wager. Remember that while aggregate performance stats can be useful, they do represent the entire year. The rankings, like standings for other sports, don’t reflect recent player performance. They shouldn’t be the sole factor used to evaluate a player.
Key Golf Handicapping Stats
The following are the most important golf handicapping stats. Keep these in mind as you review golf betting odds for upcoming tournaments.
First, review how a player has performed on a particular course before. If it’s their first time, try researching their recent performance on comparable courses.
Second, analyze their current form. How has the player fared in recent tournaments? Do they have any nagging injuries? Have they been in a slump lately?
Third, review their past history in a specific tournament. Players capable of winning a specific golf tournament typically have finished in the later rounds one or more times. At a minimum, they should have good momentum heading into the tournament’s first round.
Target Underdogs in Smaller Tournaments
Each golf season is long and filled with tournaments of varying prestige and monetary value. The best players in the world typically try to peak for the spring and summer majors and may use smaller tournaments as tune-ups for those events.
Stars may not push themselves to the limit in these smaller events. However, big underdogs trying to make a name for themselves often have greater motivation to pull off an upset. On top of that, winning a smaller tournament may earn them entry into one of the majors based on their performance or by exemption. These players will push harder for a win to jump up the golf rankings knowing that star players are more concerned about the next major golf tournament.
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Golf Odds FAQs
The Men’s Major golf championships are the four most prestigious golf tournaments in the world: The Masters, The PGA Championship, The US Open Championship, and the Open Championship.
The most popular way to bet on golf is placing a futures bet on one or more players to win a golf tournament. US sports betting sites will offer moneyline odds for each player.
The Masters is the first major golf tournament of the year. It’s also the only tournament to be held at the same location each year, annually taking place at the Augusta National Golf Course in Augusta, Georgia.
Three of men’s golf majors are held in the United States: The Masters, The PGA Championship, and The US Open Championship.
The Open Championship is the only major tournament held outside the United States, annually held at rotating locations within the United Kingdom. Unlike the stateside majors, The Open Championship is always held on a rolling links course near the ocean, devoid of any heavy trees or vegetation.
The Open Championship, held in the United Kingdom, is the last men’s major golf tournament of the year, annually taking place in the week containing the third Friday of July.