After a delightful Solheim Cup saw Europe retain the trophy after tying the event 14-14 with the U.S. side, this week’s Ryder Cup gives casual golf fans one final fall showdown worth watching.
The 2023 Ryder Cup, which begins Friday in Rome, features a U.S. team hoping to break a road losing streak after a historically great 2021 performance. The Americans dominated the Europeans in 2021, winning 19-9, but they haven’t won the Ryder Cup in Europe since 1993.
Can this be the year the U.S. team finally secures a road victory?
Odds suggest close competition 1t2l15
“The question everyone wants answered – ‘Who ya got?’ – might be my least favorite bet on the board this week,” Action Network’s Jason Sobel told Sports Handle.
Sobel’s attitude makes some sense, with BetRivers list Europe as +100 to win and the U.S. at +110, with a tie at +1000 at FanDuel and +1100 at bet365, BetMGM, and BetRivers.
Caesars Sportsbook has Europe at -105 to win the event, among the shortest odds available across major mobile sportsbooks.
Sobel, who elaborated on his favorite Ryder Cup bets in a recent Action Network article, said some bettors jumped on Europe months ago. RotoGrinders’ Derek Farnsworth saw the same trend, as savvy bettors took Europe before the teams were set with odds in the +200 range.
“Many smart people bet on Europe six months ago when it looked like USA was the clear favorite,” Farnsworth said. “I’ve seen a few tickets in the +220 range. If that number was still available, I would be all over Europe. They haven’t lost a Ryder Cup on home soil in over 30 years and you can make a strong argument that their golfers are in better form coming into the event.”
Farnsworth’s lean now, given the similarity in odds, is to take the American team.
“These are the best odds that we’ve been able to bet since the last Ryder Cup,” Farnsworth said. “Unlike the last time the Ryder Cup was in Europe, this course should set up much better for the American team. They are more talented top to bottom and many of them have a chip on their shoulder.”
The course, Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, should generate ample drama. It features drivable Par 4s in addition to reachable Par 5s, which could set up eagle opportunities.
While the course’s fairways aren’t the widest, it’s expected to be slightly more forgiving off the tee than Le Golf National, host of the 2018 Ryder Cup. That could benefit the U.S. side, which struggled in 2018 to keep the ball consistently in the fairway.
Despite what could be less of a course advantage for the Europeans than previous home Ryder Cups, Sobel is leaning toward the European side to win.
“The outcome for this one is very nearly a toss-up, hence the tight betting odds and my subsequent apprehension to go all-in with a no-doubt-about-it pick, though I believe Europe owns the smallest of edges,” Sobel said.
The longtime golf analyst also recommends live betting on the flip side of momentum swings. If you think the U.S. team will ultimately win, but it falls down 3-1 early in the event, consider jumping on updated odds while the Europeans hold easily lost momentum.
Experts share best bets 372d5p
Farnsworth expects to bet on Patrick Cantlay to lead the American team in points scored and anticipates a solid showing from the pairing Cantlay and Xander Schauffele.
“You can find this around +600 on most sportsbooks,” Farnsworth said. “We know he is going to be paired with his friend Xander Schauffele and we know they really play well together on the course. They were dominant at the last Ryder Cup as a duo (2-0-1) and they played well together at the Presidents Cup. I slightly prefer betting Cantlay over Schauffele as the top points scorer because he’s a slightly better driver of the ball, which could give him a slight edge when it comes to the singles matches.”
Sobel, anticipating a competitive event with Europe winning, says taking the European team to win 15-13 is one of his favorite bets of the week. That wager can be found at FanDuel with +1000 odds.
