Golf Betting – Westwood Has His Mind on the Majors

Golf betting fans who intend to plunge in on the St. Jude Classic in Memphis this weekend know that they won’t be seeing all of the best players in the world, but they will certainly be seeing some of them, including Lee Westwood, who has his mind very much on the majors right now as we slide into the U.S. Open.

Westwood is ranked third in the world, but has not captured a major title, and as he tees it up at TPC Southwind on Thursday, he finds himself (probably not knowingly) in a tournament betting proposition with Rory McIlroy, who may have more talent than any youngster who has come along in quite some time. In the prop, Westwood is a -135 betting favorite, with McIlroy checking in at +105.

St. Jude Classic
TPC Southwind – Memphis, TN
June 10-13

TV Schedule
Thursday  3-6 PM ET – Golf Channel
Friday  8:30-11:30 PM ET – Golf Channel
Saturday  3-6 PM ET – CBS
Sunday  306 PM ET – CBS

Tournament Betting Matchup
LEE WESTWOOD  -135
RORY McILROY  +105

Westwood, who is the +1000 in the betting odds to win this week’s tournament, certainly can’t be counted out of anything; we know that. He has not played in the States since his fourth-place tie at the Players Championship on May 9, and after playing in the BMW Championship overseas, his plans are to play in the St. Jude Classic as a way of preparing for the U.S. Open. Westwood’s mentality is to concentrate all his efforts in the major championships, because at #3 in the world, he is probably the best player on the tour who has never won a major. In the last three majors he’s played in, he has tied for third in the U.S. Open and the PGA Championship, then was runner-up in the Masters. This weekend’s tournament will serve as a tune-up for this year’s U.S. Open, but sometimes when it is treated as such the contest itself isn’t played solely for the purposes of winning.

So far Westwood has had four top-ten finishes in seven tournaments, and has made the cut in all seven. He has hit 72% of his greens in regulation, and his scoring average is 69.55. He has not played in enough tournaments to qualify for the official PGA statistics, but if he did, he would rank second on the tour to Anthony Kim.

Rory McIlroy had a nice week at the Memorial Tournament, tying for tenth place, though he could have done better after a final-round 71. Of course, he won the Quail Hollow Championship five weeks ago, with a 62 in the final round that stunned the crowd in attendance. That has been in accordance with the way he has finished up his tourneys, as he ranks 4th in Final Round Scoring Average with a 68.75. However, bettors need to take note that McIlroy has missed the cut in three of his last five events, and in each of those, he played terribly. McIlroy is 15th on tour in terms of driving distance, although he has to work on his game on the greens. He averages 29.41 putts per round, which is no better than 129th in the PGA.

As far as winning the tournament is concerned, McIlroy is tied with Padraig Harrington as the second betting favorite behind Westwood, at +1500. He is ranked tenth in the world, and without a lot of the big names like Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods available to play in this event, the field is a little more wide open with opportunity for both of these players. The issue with McIlroy, from his performances and his statistics, is getting to the weekend. That’s where he’s dangerous.

JAY’S BETTING PLAY:  McILROY (+105) ***
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)