First Round Leader Odds at 2021 Open Championship
- The 149th Open Championship from Royal St. George’s Golf Club tees off Thursday, July 15th
- Jon Rahm is the +1600 favorite over Jordan Spieth to lead after the first round
- See the best bets and odds to grab the first-round lead in the article below
The final major championship of 2021 has arrived with the world’s best traveling to Sandwich, England for the 149th playing of the Open Championship. Jon Rahm is the heavy favorite in the British Open odds to become the first golfer since Jordan Spieth in 2015 to capture back-to-back major titles.
The Spaniard is also the favorite to grab ahold of the early lead of this event over 2017 winner Jordan Spieth and a host of other big names, including world #1 Dustin Johnson. With weather always playing such a huge factor the first two days of this championship, being a part of the better draw is imperative for success. Tee times range from 6:35am local time to 4:16pm.
In this article, we’ll explore which players have the best chance of being the leader after day one, along with what players are playing well on Thursday’s this season.
2021 Open Championship First Round Leader Odds
| Golfer | Odds at DraftKings | Tee Time |
|---|---|---|
| Jon Rahm | +1600 | 9:58am |
| Jordan Spieth | +2000 | 9:25am |
| Brooks Koepka | +3000 | 8:03am |
| Dustin Johnson | +3000 | 10:20am |
| Xander Schauffele | +3000 | 2:59pm |
| Justin Thomas | +3000 | 3:10pm |
| Rory McIlroy | +3000 | 3:21pm |
| Viktor Hovland | +4000 | 7:41am |
| Bryson DeChambeau | +4000 | 9:25am |
| Louis Oosthuizen | +4000 | 9:58am |
| Patrick Cantlay | +4000 | 1:04pm |
| Collin Morikawa | +4000 | 1:26pm |
| Tony Finau | +4500 | 12:53pm |
| Tommy Fleetwood | +4500 | 3:10pm |
| Patrick Reed | +4500 | 3:21pm |
Odds as of July 13th. All tee times are listed as BST.
The forecast is expected to be mainly sunny throughout the morning and partly cloudy in the afternoon and into the evening. It’ll be low 60 degree weather for the morning wave, reaching low 70 degree temperatures mid afternoon.
Unlike some Open Championships that see a wild disparity of wind and rainy conditions throughout the day, Thursday will be relatively similar, with winds gusting around 20 miles per hour for the duration of round one.
A benefit for those teeing it up in the morning is the exact same as it is every week – less bumpy greens with fewer players chewing them up.
Abraham Ancer Quietly Solid
Ancer has been a model of consistency in his last twelve starts on the PGA Tour, posting a 26th place finish or better in all but one of those. That includes three top-5’s, including a fourth place result in his last start at the Travelers Championship and a T-8 at the PGA Championship.
That has led him to be very solid in plenty of strokes gained categories in his last 24 rounds.
Ancer’s Strokes Gained Stats In Last 24 Rounds
| Total | Putting | Off-The-Tee | Ball Striking | Tee-To-Green | Short Game | Approach |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 5 | 7 | 13 | 18 | 20 | 30 |
Ancer is second this season in par-4 scoring, which bodes well with twelve of the 18 holes fitting that mold. He’s sixth in driving accuracy and 13th in total birdies, which should give him plenty of opportunities to go low on Thursday.
- Pick: Abraham Ancer (+5000)
Lucas Herbert on a Tear
25-year-old Australian Lucas Herbert has been playing really strong golf on both the PGA and European Tours in his last four starts. His two finishes in the USA resulted in top-20’s at the Memorial and Travelers Championship.
All he’s gone on to do in the last two weeks in Europe is win the Irish Open (where he led after day one), then finish a shot out of a playoff at the Scottish Open.
For the season, he’s performing very well in several categories on the European circuit.
Lucas Herbert’s Strokes Gained Stats This Season
| Putting | Total | Off-The-Tee | Distance | Scrambling | Tee-To-Green |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 35 |
He may not be a household name but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t been playing spectacular golf in the last month, and at these odds, he’s awfully enticing.
- Pick: Lucas Herbert (+8000)
Guido Golfing Great
Two-time European Tour winner Guido Migliozzi has come close to adding to his trophy case in his last five events. In back-to-back tournaments, he finished runner-up, with one of them coming in a playoff.
Then the Italian really showcased his talents stateside, finishing T-4 at the US Open, earning a legion of fans with his exciting brand of play, and followed that up with a T-13 result at the Travelers Championship. For those two weeks, he was eighth in total strokes gained.
2020-21 PGA Tour First Round Scoring Average Leaders
| Golfer | Average Score | Odds |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Cameron Smith | 69.12 | +6000 |
| 2. Jason Kokrak | 69.21 | +7000 |
| 3. Cameron Tringale | 69.27 | +10000 |
| 4. Patrick Reed | 69.33 | +4500 |
| 5. Brian Harman | 69.45 | +8000 |
| T-6. Patrick Cantlay | 69.59 | +4000 |
| T-6. Scottie Scheffler | 69.59 | +5000 |
| 8. Joaquin Niemann | 69.62 | +6500 |
| 9. Jon Rahm | 69.75 | +1600 |
| 10. Sergio Garcia | 69.76 | +6500 |
He doesn’t find himself on the list of the top-10 first round scoring leaders since he hasn’t played enough on the PGA Tour to qualify, but Migliozzi is fourth in scoring average on the European Tour.
He’s eighth in bogey avoidance, 14th in greens in regulation and 15th in total strokes gained for the campaign.
Though this is his first Open Championship, that T-4 at the US Open last month was his first ever major start and he popped, and at these long odds, he could be a steal.
- Pick: Guido Migliozzi (+11000)
Michael "Hound Dog" Harrison is well known in the sports industry as the resident statistician for the SC with Jay Onrait Show. He has worked at TSN for over 16 years, where he's been featured on Sportscentre, That's Hockey, That's Hockey 2Nite, The Masters preview shows, and several more.
