How Do You Bet on Golf

Have you ever asked, how do you bet on golf? Here’s your answer.

Key Points

– There are a number of ways to bet on golf.

– Success in betting on golf comes with the help of certain metrics.

Each and every week, there are tons of opportunities to bet on golf. The golf season typically has a tournament every weekend.

Seasons begin in September and run all the way through until the following August. Many bettors are aware of betting on a golfer to win a tournament, but there is a wide variety of other golf bets.

The sport is not as popular as the NFL or NBA and, as a result, golf markets are little less efficient than others. That presents bettors with lots of chances to find value.

That brings us to the point of our article – how do you bet on golf?

As mentioned, the one golf bet that most would know is the outright winner of a tournament. Bettors wager on who they believe will win a certain tournament. Adding outright winners to your golf betting strategy is a must.

The great thing about betting on golf tournament winners is that even the overall favorite will be given odds of at least +500. It’s not unusual to see tournament favorites at +800, +900, or even higher in some cases.

With odds like that, golf is a great sport to capitalize on longshots. Take the 2007 Masters which was won by Zach Johnson. He was given odds of +12500 to win the tournament. A small investment can pay off big when betting golf tournament winners.

The odds are so great in the outright winner category because it is difficult to pick them. Instead of betting on the overall winner, bettors can wager on a golfer to finish in a certain position.

There are bets on finishing in the top-5, top-10, and top-20. Obviously, the odds in these categories are not as favorable as the outright winner. However, these are bets that can help keep a bankroll chugging along. 

Bettors can still get even money on many of these bets which offer a better chance of winning. Golfers that have been playing well and have a strong history of success on a course are great options for finishing position bets.

There are also golfer versus golfer bets. Instead of a tournament winner or where a guy finishes, you can simply bet on one golfer to place higher than another.

For example, Golfer A is given -175 odds to finish higher than Golfer B (+150). If Golfer A finishes 12th and Golfer B ends up 22nd, a $175 bet wins $100.

The issue with head-to-head matchups is the risk versus the reward. Golfer A could have a bad round or two and maybe Golfer B is more consistent. 

The other thing is that bettors will not find a world-ranked top-10 golfer in a head-to-head matchup with a golfer who is closer to No. 50 in the world. It’s typically two golfers of relatively the same skill level that are pitted together.

Bettors can also place bets on head-to-head matchups for a single round. The golfer with the better score in the round is the winner. PGA Majors are a great spot to use this option.

Another fun and exciting way to bet on golf is in the props market. Bettors will find all sorts of interesting golf props for every tournament.

Consider these golf props from various tournaments:

• Will there be a hole-in-one?
• Will there be a playoff?
• Top Finishing American/Brit/etc.
• Will the tournament winner be under 35 years of age?

Oftentimes, bettors can eliminate a large chunk of a tournament field in certain prop bets. With fewer choices, bettors can often have success when betting golf props.

If you are going to be on golf, it helps to understand certain golf metrics. The sport is one of the leaders in metrics and analytics. Every golf shot can provide a mountain of data including where it started, where it landed, speed, height, and much more.

As a bettor, many of the golf metrics can help when making betting decisions. The one area that has really come into play over the last decade is Strokes Gained. This is a measure of performance on each shot relative to the rest of a tournament field (or the PGA Tour as a whole).

If the PGA Tour average to hole out from 210 yards in the rough is 3.2, a player that does it in 2.0 shots has gained 1.2 strokes on the rest of the field. 

The Strokes Gained metric is broken down into off the tee, approach, around the green, and putting. Typically, the best players in the world are the ones that are best off the tee and with their irons on the approach. How do you bet on golf? Whether or not you win could be determined by these stats.

Using this information along with other data like course layout and history, bettors can make strong betting decisions and become successful in betting on golf.