How to Bet on Golf

Golf has always been one of the most popular sports in the world and with several major tournaments played every year, as well as the smaller tournaments, the chances for punters to make a profit are extremely high.

How to Bet on Golf

The great thing about golf betting is that betting odds are always decent and offer fantastic value, even on tournament favourites. This is due to the high number of players in a tournament, which is usually above 100. But, to maximise your potential of making a profit there are a few fundamental things you need to research first.

1) Recent Form

Studying player form will give you an insight into how they are currently playing and their psychological state heading into the tournament you are going to bet on. Most tournaments are won by a player who has at least recorded a top 10/20 finish within the last few tournaments played in.

Overall form is an important indicator, so look at world ranking and form in the last five or six tournaments. If a player has been there or thereabouts, take a punt on them, but try to avoid anyone who consistently fails to make the cut or finishes low down on the leaderboard

2) Course History

This one is divided into two different sections.

Firstly, you are looking at how well a player has performed at the course in the past. Look at the last few times they have played at the course the next tournament is being held at, where did they finish, what were their driving and putting stats, did they have a particularly good or bad round at a certain time.

All of these things will give you an indication of how well a player performs at certain courses.

Secondly, look at course tournament history in general. Are there any patterns to previous winners of the tournament? Tee times, weather conditions etc. may have played a part in deciding the outcome of a tournament in previous years.

3) Weather Conditions

As briefly mentioned above, weather conditions can play a big part in deciding the outcome of a tournament. So, if it’s going to be windy and rainy for the tournament you are betting on, it may pay to side with players who have previously done well in those weather conditions.

It’s no use backing someone to win a tournament in poor conditions if they have never managed to finish inside the top 20 in those conditions before.

4) Experience

The experience of a player is usually a factor when getting to the tail end of a tournament.

Inexperienced players may shoot a solid round or two but nerves may get the better of them during the final round, leading them to throw away a lead or lose pace with the leaders.

Previous experience of winning a big tournament or major trophy, or finishing high up on the leaderboard, will give that player an edge over someone who has yet to experience it. Not many players in any sport will win a major at the first attempt, so it’s probably best to back those players who have been there or thereabouts in the past.

5) Course Statistics

Study the course, distance of each hole, and other statistics. If a course demands accurate driving ability, check the accuracy statistics for the players you may take a punt on. If a course demands solid putting ability, look at that.

Research goes a long way to deciding who to bet on.

Each Way Bet on Golf

The obvious market is outright winner of a tournament, which usually has decent odds for each player. However, with over 100 players in most tournaments, it is difficult to pick the one player who will perform better than the others over four rounds of golf. Therefore, it’s always best to bet each way on players in a golf tournament.

Most online betting sites offer place boosts for big tournaments, paying out each way bets for players who finish in the top 10. Even without these place boosts, each way bets are usually paid out for the top 5 and normally at a quarter of the odds.

So, as an example, lets say you placed £10 on a player to win a tournament at odds of 20/1 and they finished fourth. You would lose your £10 stake. But, a £10 each way bet on a 20/1 shot may cost you double the original stake but would also give you 5/1 on the place. So, you would win £50 plus your £10 each way stake back.

Sometimes there may be a dead heat. This is where the final place position is shared. In such a scenario your stake money would be divided by how many players share that position. So, if two players finished fifth in a tournament where each way was paid to the top 5, your stake would be halved.

Golf Betting Markets

Alongside the outright winner and each way bets, there are several more betting markets available for golf tournaments. This is usually increased for major tournaments.

These markets include:

• Top 20 Finish – A different bet to backing a player each way, the top 20 finish market offers odds for a player to finish in the top 20. There is no win section and odds will not be quartered for a place. This is a fantastic betting market is you’ve noticed a pattern where players consistently finish in the top 20 but are yet to challenge at the top of the leaderboard
• Match Betting – This can be to bet on the winner of a 3-ball grouping or can sometimes be a virtual pairing of two players playing the same tournament but in a different group, with betting available on who will finish with the best round score.
• Miss The Cut – In this market you are betting on a player to be eliminated from the tournament after two 18-hole rounds. The cut is usually 70th place in most tournaments and you will win your bet if the player you backed to miss the cut finished below this position.
• Nationality Betting – Some bookmakers offer markets on the highest finishing player from a certain country.
• Special Bets – Other special bets are available, such as hole in one, highest finishing amateur etc.