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Horse Racing US Open Best Bet: 71.00 Value Pick This Weekend
US Open Best Bet: Thursday, June 15th
Los Angeles Country Club is the host course for the US Open. We have analysed the betting markets to bring you our US Open best bet.
In this article:
US Open Preview
Thursday, 15th June, 12:00 (UK)
Los Angeles Country Club (LACC) hosts the US Open for the first time. This being only the second time in 75 years that the US Open has been played in Los Angeles.
LACC has 36 holes on the property but it is the North Course that will host this week’s event. George C. Thomas Jr designed the North Course and it opened for play in 1928. A Gil Hanse update in 2010 brought it back to the way Thomas had intended it to play and the course is now a fitting test for the 123rd US Open.
Just like last week in Canada, small greens with plenty of slope will test the players. As with all US Opens, thick rough will cause problems for those who miss the fairways or greens.
LACC will play as a par 70, stretching to a maximum of 7,421 yards. Five par 3 holes will test the players this week, with the quirky 15th hole being the pick of these. It will likely play less than 100 yards on one of the days, making it the shortest par 3 in US Open history.
World number one, Scottie Scheffler, heads up the betting this week at 7.0. Yet to finish outside the top 12 in an event this year, his consistency alone makes him the deserving favourite.
Conditions look ideal and with no rain forecast, the greens should be firm and fast.
US Open Best Bet
Scottie Scheffler heads up the betting this week, followed by Masters winner Jon Rahm and PGA Championship winner, Brooks Koepka.
Having backed Koepka in this column for the PGA at 21.0, it feels like he’s now a fraction short in the betting at 12.0. There’s no doubt he can follow up his PGA Championship victory with a win in LA (he did the US Open/PGA Championship double in 2018) but the bookmakers are clearly running scared and others are preferred.
Rahm and Scheffler both have outstanding chances this week and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see either win. Rahm’s record in California is outstanding, his US Open win of 2021 coming in the state, alongside four other victories (including a win in Los Angeles at the Genesis Invitational earlier this year). Odds of 10.0 felt no more than fair though.
It is almost unthinkable that Scheffler doesn’t make an appearance on the leaderboard this week given the way he struck the ball last time out at the Memorial Tournament. However, he putted poorly that week and I’m not in the habit of backing 7.0 shots when there are concerns over one area of their game.
If the winner doesn’t come from the front three, Adam Scott could well spring a surprise. A two time winner in Los Angeles at Riviera, this part of the world holds plenty of positive memories for the Australian.
Whilst it’s fair to say Riviera and LACC don’t have too many similarities (different grasses, different style etc), Scott is on record as saying he enjoys both courses. He was quoted saying he “likes” LACC after playing a practice round at the course earlier this year.
Scott’s recent form can’t be underestimated either. Three top ten finishes in his last four starts, the outlier being a 29th place finish at the PGA Championship.
Putting and driving has been the main areas of strength for Scott over the past few weeks but he has had several good weeks with the irons. There’s nothing to suggest he can’t put it all together this week to mount a challenge.
Scott’s US Open record is commendable too. Only twice has he failed to finish inside the top 40 in his last nine US Opens. Those nine events have yielded five top 20 finishes and he’s clearly a player who enjoys a tougher challenge.
Max Homa suggested earlier this year that “you could play the ball along the ground a lot at LACC if you wanted to” and that further enhances Scott’s chances in my opinion. Scott is a proven links operator (three top five finishes at the Open Championship), where creativity and playing the ball along the ground are essential skills.
Back Scott at an industry best price of 71.00 with bet365. There are eight each way places on offer this week and that would be the preferred option in the outright market.
Finally, I like the look of Brian Harman to beat Phil Mickelson in the Top Lefty market. Harman has a rock solid record in this event and whilst his recent form has been patchy, he should outscore the erratic Mickelson. Take the even money with bet365 for Harman in that particular two horse race.
- Selection: Adam Scott EW
- Best Odds: 71.00 (bet365)
- Stakes: 1/10
Odds via bet365 as at 10.30 June 13th 2023. Odds may now differ.
