How to bet on Golf in 2020
Golf is a massively popular sport all across the world. While it was previously seen as a game for retired folks, Tiger Woods came along and changed the perception of the sport. These days, there is a new breed of players out on the PGA Tour. They are athletes who are able to bomb the ball massive distances. Young people now love watching and playing golf. As a result, golf betting has also become very popular. People love having a wager when they are on the course playing with friends and they also like having a horse in the race when they are watching PGA Tour events. There are many different forms of golf betting that you can get started with. This guide walks you through everything you need to know about golf betting.
Golf betting: The basics
Golf has been exploding in popularity in recent years. A new wave of golfers has emerged in recent years. The likes of Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau hit the ball a mile and they look like they could play in the NFL. The PGA Tour is the biggest golf tour in the world today. The European Tour also has a significant presence, but it does not attract the same strength of players and prize purses week in and week out that you will see in the US.
As there are more than 130 players taking part in most events on the PGA Tour, there are a lot of different players battling it out for the title after the four rounds are said and done. There is a halfway cut where about half of the field is cut from the rest of the event. As there are so many players taking part, this presents a lot of lucrative odds. This is why even those people who are not golf fans like the betting opportunities that are on offer for these events.
There are standard PGA Tour events that take place week in and week out. Then there are the likes of the World Golf Championships at the Players Championship that attract very strong fields. Finally, the four Major championships are the biggest events for the players every season. The US Masters, US Open, British Open and PGA Championship are these majors championship events. Then you have team events like the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup to consider.
The most popular types of bets for golf betting will be each way bets. You also have a whole host of other markets, such as betting on 3-balls, leader after round one, top 10 finishers, group betting and whether a given player makes or misses the cut. You will normally have almost 100 different betting markets for a PGA Tour event.
Examples of golf betting
If the US Masters is taking place and you think that Tiger Woods is going to do well, you will likely place an each way bet. For this example, presume the sportsbook is offering +4000 odds on Tiger to win the event, with the each way terms being 1/4 odds and paying out up to 8 places.
This means that if Tiger finishes in the top 8, your place portion of your each way bet will be paid out. For an each way bet, you pay a separate stake for the each way portion and the win portion of the bet. Therefore, a $10 each way bet means that you are staking a total of $20, $10 on the place bet and $10 on the win bet.
Winning example of golf betting
If Tiger manages to win the Masters after you have placed a $10 each way bet on him, this means that you will get a nice payout. For the place part of the bet, you will get a profit of $100 (odds/4 x place bet). For the win part of the bet, you will make a profit of $400 (odds x win bet). You will also get your $10 place bet stake returned, as well as your $10 win stake. Therefore, your total return will be $520, making a profit of $500.
Losing example of golf betting
If you bet on Tiger Woods each way in the Masters and he finishes in 27th place, this means that you will not get any money back.
Biggest golf events for betting
There are plenty of leading golf events that take place each year that are a great way for bettors to get in on some action. The crowds gather for these events and the markets offer even more value due to the strength of the fields. Here are the biggest golf events for you to bet on:
US Masters
The Masters is an iconic event that takes place every year at Augusta National, Georgia. This is the only major championship that takes place at the same venue each year. The amazing course tickles your imagination with its white sand and brilliant green grass.
A lot of drama has taken place over the years at this event and there is a massive amount of history. For many players, they want to win the green jacket more than any other major championship. As there is course form to consider, it makes it a bit more predictable for bettors who are trying to get an edge.
British Open
The British Open is another popular major championship that takes place at a different venue every year in Britain. Most of the courses are in Scotland and England, occasionally being in Northern Ireland. This type of golf is unique from the different majors as they take place on links courses.
This means that players are going to be tested with massive undulations, rock hard fairways and strong wind. Plenty of surprises have happened over the years meaning that a lot of value can be had around the field if you look hard enough.
US Open
The US Open is usually the toughest major championship in terms of scoring. The revenues are known for being very penalizing if you are not accurate. Long rough borders the fairways and surround the green. It is a battle of stamina, with players needing to focus for the entirety of the 72 holes. Big leads can be lost in a matter of a few holes, it is always exciting for bettors, particularly if you are placing live bets.
Placing a bet on golf: Step-by-Step
To get started with your golf betting experience, there are a few different steps to take. These don’t cost anything and will be pretty quick to complete. Here are those steps in a synchronized order:
- Step 1: Register a new account: You need to first see what sportsbooks are open for you to use. Use the state checker tool on Betting Billy to do so. Then narrow down the list by using your different preferences and priorities as a guiding tool.
- Step 2: Sign up: You can now sign up for a new account with this sportsbook. Follow all the outlined steps, including providing proof of address and some photo ID to verify the account.
- Step 3: Make your first deposit: You can now make your first deposit using one of the offered payment methods. If there is a welcome offer, there may be a promo code that has to be entered at this point.
- Step 4: Place bets: You can now see what golf betting markets are available. You can add a selection to the betslip and enter the sum you want to wager on it.
Golf betting spreads betting for beginners: How to bet
For a beginner in golf betting, the process is pretty simple once you learn the basis. There are some areas where bettors can go wrong in the beginning, so here are some tips to avoid those common pitfalls:
- Tip 1: Do your research: Golf is a great game for statistics and information. You can see what players match up well to a given course by looking at what aspects of their golf game are the strongest. Course form and current form also come into the equation.
- Tip 2: Find the value: As there are many players in the field each week on the PGA Tour, there are plenty of nice odds to be had. You should do your homework and see what strong candidates have longer odds than they should be. This value approach can pay dividends nicely.
- Tip 3: Try everything: You should try out all of the different golf betting types to see what tools are open for you to use. You can see what types of bets suit your approach and expertise the best.
- Tip 4: Use bonus offers: A great way to downsize your risk is by using all of the free bet offers and other promotions as possible. You can play with the house’s money when betting.
- Tip 5: Get expert advice: By seeing what the experts are betting on and what sort of stakes they are placing can give you a good idea as to how you can structure your own betting. Billy’s List is a service that you can sign up to for free and get golf predictions straight to your inbox.
Golf betting for professionals: How to bet
A lot of people make a lucrative living from golf betting. They take advantage of the juicy odds to make some nice profits week in and week out. Here are some of their characteristics that may help with your sports betting:
- Get the best odds: The simplest way to boost how much you win over time is by always obtaining the best odds To do so, sign up for an account with all of the leading sportsbooks. As odds can be large in golf, the differences between the odds offered by the different sportsbooks can also be significant.
- Covering all bases: Professional sports bettors do not just bet on golfers winning an event. They look at ways to cover their bases by combining a number of different markets and bets together to create a portfolio of sorts for a given event.
- Remove all bias: You may have some favorite players on Tour, but you should make sure to not allow this to affect your decision making process. It is often advisable to avoid betting on your favorite players if you cannot control your emotions.
Golf betting: Try it now at one of the top 5 betting sites
Golf betting is the best way to add extra excitement to the viewing experience of a sports event. You have loads of different pre-event and in-play betting markets to check out. Signing up to a sportsbook account just takes a couple minutes and you can get a free bet offer to kick start your new account.
The each way betting terms can change from operator to operator. For example, there are some sites that will pay you a quarter odds for a place, while others pay you one-fifth odds. In return, there may be an extra or one less place paid out as part of these wagers.
As well as the standard free bet offers, sometimes there are special offers in a golf event. This could see an extra place being paid out for each way bets or money back if a certain player ends up winning the event. It is always worthwhile checking out the available gambling promotions before placing your bets.
All PGA Tour events can be a good option for you to bet on. Generally the better players can be more predictable in terms of their form, so the bigger events often present some great opportunities as there are strong fields and better odds. However, this also increases the competition.
You are able to place certain types of parlay bets if you want with golf events. Some people choose players from different events in a given week and put them into a parlay bet. Others will bet on certain players winning their 3-ball or 2-ball matchups and adding them into a parlay bet.
A lot of sportsbooks now offer live streaming options for certain sports events. This is not overly common when it comes to golf, but you may come across a sportsbook that does offer this service. Oftentimes, you will need to place a bet on the event in order to get access to the live stream.
