Wagering on Golf on the Internet

Around the world, golf is one of the most popular summer sports to bet on. At most gambling websites on the internet, there is plenty of action offered for PGA, EPGA and LPGA golf tournaments. Huge cash payouts for the four Majors (Masters, US Open, British Open, and PGA Championship) and end-of-season #1 player in the world can also be found along with tons of prop bets at Bet365.

For serious handicappers, the trick is to find value and the best prices. Since it’s tough to pick tournament winners, gaming sites have come up with several other ways to bet on golf – bets that are easier to win.

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How to Bet on PGA, EPGA & EPGA

For casual bettors, one of the fun things about betting on golf is that there are a lot of betting options. Whether you want to bet on a particular golfer to win an entire tournament or to win a match-up bet against another player, these and other types of bets can be found at most bookmakers. There are benefits and negatives for every type of golf wager, so here’s some information that will hopefully help you to become more profitable. First, lets start with the basic betting options.

Types of Golf Bets

As mentioned above, several types of golf bets can be made. Some are more difficult to win than others, and some offer much better value than others as well.

Wagering on Tournament Winners

Most beginning handicappers like to wager on tournament winners. While this can turn a small wager into a huge profit, these are tough bets to win. Betting on 1-2 players per week can quickly drain a bankroll unless you’re lucky enough to hit.

A lot of people wager on 2-3 golfers per tournament so they have multiple horses in the race. Since tournament favorites generally have odds in the 8/1 to 12/1 range, and other top players are in the 15/1 to 33/1 range, bettors can bet on 3 – 4 players and still make a nice profit.

Matchups

The type of wager that I enjoy the most is the match-up bet between 2 golfers. Quite a few sportsbooks will offer match-up bets with 2 golfers in them for every round of the tournament. You simply need to pick the golfer that you think will shoot the better round and place your wager. Some sportsbooks will also have match-up bets with 3-5 golfers in them and they offer better payouts, but the odds of winning are obviously worse.

Propositions, a.k.a “Props”

A few sportsbooks also offer exotic golf bets, but don’t expect to find these types of bets everywhere. You may be able to find wagers such as whether or not a golfer will make the cut or finish in the top 3-5. Betting on a golfer to win a tournament outright isn’t the easiest task, so if you can find a sportsbook you like that allows you to bet on golfers to finish in 3rd-5th then you’ll have a much higher win rate. I prefer Bet365.com for bets like this. They offer a lot of different types of golf bets, and they’re the best sportsbook on the internet for international bettors. If you already have an account at Bet365 and want to try a fantasy golf betting site, give DraftKings a try as well. They’re another favorite of ours, and a great alternative to your standard sportsbook.

How to Read the Odds

Before placing a bet, the first thing that everyone needs to learn is how to read golf lines (betting odds). If you can’t read the odds then you’re not going to know how much to bet or how much you can potentially win. Below is an example of a match-up bet, but the odds will be displayed the same for every type of golf betting option. These are listed in American odds format. At each sportsbook you’ll also have the option to view odds in decimal or fractional formats.

· Tiger Woods –130 vs. Phil Mickelson +120

In the above example Tiger Woods is favored against Mickelson and you’d need to pay juice when betting on him. A $130 wager on Woods would net you $100 profit whereas a $100 wager on Mickelson would earn you $120.