Masters Odds Favor Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, and Jordan Spieth, Sportsbooks Win on Tiger’s Withdrawal

Posted on: April 5, 2017, 09:00h. 

Last updated on: April 5, 2017, 07:56h.

Casino.org Staff Writer Read More
Expertise: Commercial Gaming.

The Masters odds favor Dustin Johnson to don his first green jacket come Sunday, but there’s plenty of bettors in Las Vegas taking Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth as well.

Masters odds Dustin Johnson
Masters odds are going with Dustin Johnson, the world’s top-ranked player who is playing the best golf of his career. (Image: Harry How/Getty Images)

The Westgate SuperBook puts Johnson at 6-1 the day before the first round tees off on Thursday. Former world number ones Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth follow closely at 7-1. Spieth is the only one of the trio who has won a green jacket.

Johnson, the reigning US Open champ, is unquestionably the hottest golfer on planet Earth, winning his last three starts including two World Golf Championship events. DJ’s played in eight tournaments in the 2017 wraparound season, and has finished third or better in five.

But Augusta National has evaded him thus far. He’s finished in the top 10 just twice in his career at the Masters, though they’ve come in the previous two years.

“Golf is a funny game, it doesn’t matter how good you’re playing. You can still not win,” Johnson said this week. “If I want to win here, everything’s going to have to go well for me.”

Bettors at the SuperBook believe the first golf major of the year will be a three-horse race. The next closest odds come for Jason Day, Hideki Matsuyama, Rickie Fowler, Justin Rose, Jon Rahm, and Phil Mickelson, all who are listed at 20-1.

Online sportsbook Bovada has Johnson at +550, McIlroy +700, and Spieth +800 to win the Masters. Matsuyama, Fowler, and Day come next at a distant +1800.

Fan favorite Mickelson, who is entangled in a nasty sports betting legal case, is at +2500. Last year’s Masters champion Danny Willet is a long shot at 125-1.

As for the winning score, bettors can take the over/under of 281.5 at -110 at the SuperBook. There’s been just two winning scores of 282 or higher since 1990.

Woods Withdrawal Win for Books

Tiger Woods is in Augusta, Georgia, for the annual champions dinner, but the 14-time major winner won’t be teeing it up tomorrow. Citing ongoing back injuries, Woods announced his withdrawal from the Masters for the second consecutive year last week.

And while that’s disappointing news for patrons, television viewers, and especially CBS and its advertisers, it’s not necessarily a bad thing for sportsbooks. Woods hasn’t won a PGA Tour event since 2013, but Westgate golf manager Jeff Sherman says he was still in the top five in terms of ticket count.

“He was our largest liability on the Masters betting board,” Sherman told ESPN. “People always like to bet a little to win a lot; and to be able to do that on a name like Tiger Woods, they’re always going to do that.”

But in 2017, they lost a lot. Sportsbooks in Nevada typically don’t refund golf bets on players who withdrawal, meaning all the money the Westgate took on Woods will be staying in the casino’s pocket.