The 2018 Players Championship is done, and Webb Simpson's historic performance has been filed away in the annals for good. Simpson never truly threatened the 24-under scoring record set by Greg Norman at TPC Sawgrass, but his performance was one of the best we've seen in recent years at any event, much less a tournament like The Players.
As a result, his U.S. Open odds have dropped. As a former champion of that tournament combined with the way he putted at TPC Sawgrass, Simpson is now one of a handful of semi-dark horses at 60-1.
The favorites for the second major of 2018 remain Dustin Johnson and Jordan Spieth. Both had lackluster finishes at Sawgrass, but both have won this tournament before. Tiger Woods' odds have also dropped, and he's now among the favorites. Here's a look at where things stand right now, according to GolfOdds.com.
Favorites
- Dustin Johnson: 10-1
- Jordan Spieth: 10-1
- Rory McIlroy: 12-1
- Justin Thomas: 14-1
- Jason Day: 14-1
- Rickie Fowler: 14-1
I like Fowler and Thomas at those higher numbers. Spieth is not as consistent as you'd like to see at this point in the season, although I'll start betting against him at majors approximately never. McIlroy at Shinnecock is going to be interesting. The USGA is apparently tightening fairways so it will take an insanely accurate week from a long driver (like we saw from Brooks Kopeka last year and Dustin Johnson in 2016) to take this crown.
Other Favorites
- Tiger Woods: 20-1
- Justin Rose: 20-1
- Hideki Matsuyama: 30-1
- Henrik Stenson: 30-1
- Patrick Reed: 30-1
- Brooks Koepka: 30-1
- Phil Mickelson: 30-1
- Sergio Garcia: 30-1
Who would have thought after last year's U.S. Open win by Koepka that not even one year later Woods, who just finished T11 at The Players, would have better odds than him? I love Koepka at that number, by the way, and I also like Garcia at 30-1. I don't love the rest, although Justin Rose at 20-1 is at least intriguing.
Dark Horses
- Paul Casey: 40-1
- Tommy Fleetwood: 40-1
- Adam Scott: 50-1
- Bubba Watson: 50-1
- Matt Kuchar: 50-1
- Branden Grace: 60-1
- Louis Oosthuizen: 60-1
- Alex Noren: 60-1
- Patrick Cantlay: 60-1
- Tony Finau: 60-1
- Bryson DeChambeau: 60-1
- Webb Simpson: 60-1
In honor of sports gambling being legalized on Monday, I would like to purchase all of the "Tommy Fleetwood at 40-1" tickets, thank you. Cantlay, Finau and DeChambeau are all very intriguing plays here. If you're wagering on somebody like Finau or Watson, you're essentially just hoping they have insanely accurate driving weeks because it's going to be easier (or "easier") for a long bomber who's hitting it straight to win on this course in this week than it would be normally. Interestingly, Adam Scott is not even in the field yet.