Tony Castle
The 150th edition of The Open Championship begins on July 14 and wraps up on July 17. Picking a single winner out of the loaded playing field isn’t the only way to make money off the major tournament either. There are also prop bets to make on the 2022 British Open — which offer much more value. In this article, we’ll cover our favorite props and the best betting tips of the British Open!
Tiger Woods Prop Bet
Let’s begin with the player that’ll have the most eyeballs on him at the famed Old Course — Mr. Woods. This tourney and course have been special to Woods in the past. He’s won two times (2000 and 2005) when St. Andrews hosted the major. Of course, those victories were long before injuries and a scary crash threatened to end his career for good. He’s back in 2022, and perhaps for the last time since Old Course won’t host again for years to come (no one knows for sure but it’s worth speculating given Woods’ body condition).
Popular online sportsbooks are very well aware of the attention Woods commands from bettors. That’s why there’s a host of Woods-related prop bets available right now. The one we’re eyeing, however, is whether Woods makes the cut or not. Here’s where the odds currently stand:
| Outcome |  |  |
| Yes | -175 | -175 |
| No | +135 | +135 |
It’s important to remember that Woods has only participated in two PGA events this year — The Masters and the PGA Championship — as he’s still recovering from a near-fatal car accident in early 2021. Woods made the cut at both 2022 events, though, he did withdraw from the PGA Championship in round three (he finished 47th at the Masters). That’s likely why the yes is the betting favorite at -175.
Our money says that Woods indeed makes the cut at Old Course — which he’s on record saying is his favorite track, more so than Augusta National. He played a practice round on Sunday in advance of the Open Championship. It’s the first time in three years that he’s done so. By that alone, you should glean that Woods is preparing as well as his body can hold up for the tourney.
Woods is notoriously unemotional — through the good times and bad, which his career has an abundance of both. Still, one has to wonder whether the thought of never competing at Old Course again will creep into Wood’s mind this week. We’re betting it’s a positive effect and Woods brings his A-game to the famed event.
Matchup Prop Bet: Rory McIlory vs. Xander Schauffele
At the moment, McIlory is the entire tournament’s betting favorite with +1000 odds to win straight up. Schauffele is tied with Jon Rahm with the second-best odds at winning with +1400. This creates a tantalizing matchup bet between McIlory and Schauffele over who finishes the tournament in a better spot. Top-rated golf betting sites are favoring McIlroy ever slightly, as seen below:
| Player | | |
| Rory McIlroy | -135 | -135 |
| Xander Schauffele | +112 | +112 |
We’ll be completely upfront and say Schauffele is our pick here. He’s red-hot going into the British Open with two straight wins in PGA event’s he’s played — the Travelers Championship and this past weekend’s Scottish Open. And that’s what we like out of Schauffele more than McIlroy: he’s finding ways to close wins, not just compete.
Ultimately, that’s the big knock on McIllroy, who is major-less since 2014 despite some close calls. It’s also been the theme of most of his 2022 season. Yes, Rory took the Canadian Open title, but also came painstakingly close before losing at the US Open and Masters. We’ve said it before but we’ll say it again: McIlroy is missing that “killer instinct.” He’ll fare well, but not as good as Schauffele, hence our betting decision.
Top-5 Finish Prop Bet
For our third and last British Open prop bet, we’re looking at the players that’ll finish top-5. Every single player in the field has a line for this prop, however, we wanted to stick to the “top names” which are featured below:
| Player | | |
| Rory McIlroy | +250 | +250 |
| Xander Schauffele | +375 | +375 |
| Jordan Spieth | +400 | +400 |
| Jon Rahm | +400 | +400 |
| Scottie Scheffler | +400 | +400 |
| Matthew Fitzpatrick | +425 | +425 |
| Justin Thomas | +475 | +475 |
| Shane Lowry | +475 | +475 |
| Cameron Smith | +600 | +600 |
| Collin Morikawa | +600 | +600 |
Immediately, we’re surprised Morikawa — the defending British Open champion — is only +600. It feels a tad low for the No. 8-ranked player in the world. But hey, that just means it’s a better betting opportunity for us, which we’re taking to the bank!
That’s not to say Morikawa is playing well right now. Admittedly, he’s had an underwhelming 2022 campaign. However, his few bright spots have been at majors. Morikawa was fifth at the Masters and then tied fifth at the US Open (an event he led halfway). Majors bring out the best in Morikawa and we expect the same at Old Course this week.
How To Bet On 2022 Open Championship?
The three props we covered above are only a small sliver of what’s available to bet on at the 2022 Open Championship. Want all the bets — which is in the dozens? Then visit one of the bookmakers listed underneath. Not only do these bookies carry ALL the British Open bets, but they also offer them at bettor-friendly prices.
Speaking of bettor friendly, that also applies to the lucrative sign-up bonuses they offer. These deals can net you hundreds to thousands of dollars in free play from just creating an account on the sites. Bonus money earned can be used freely on British Open bets too!
