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Rory McIlroy & Tommy Fleetwood Co-Favored to Win European Masters Entering Final Round

Michael Harrison

by Michael Harrison in Golf

Updated Apr 13, 2020 · 7:57 AM PDT

Rory McIlroy shot out of the sand
Rory McIlroy is just three shots back entering the final round of the Omega European Masters. Photo from @GolfDigest (Twitter).
  • Andres Romero leads by one after 54 holes at the Omega European Masters
  • Tommy Fleetwood & Rory McIlroy co-favorites despite trailing by two & three shots respectively
  • See the updated live odds entering Sunday at the 2019 Omega European Masters

Andres Romero backed up his career-best second round 61 with a miserable start Saturday at the Omega European Masters which saw him start three-over through his first five holes. Unexpectedly, the Argentinian shot a blistering seven-under on his last 13 holes to open up a one stroke edge over Aussie Wade Ormsby.

Lurking are two of the top three favorites to begin this tournament – Tommy Fleetwood who is just two strokes behind and Rory McIlroy, three back after finishing his third round bogey-bogey. So where does the value lie entering the final day?

Live Omega European Masters Odds After Round 3

Golfer Position Score Rounds Odds
Rory McIlroy T-5th -11 67, 63, 69 +300
Tommy Fleetwood T-3rd -12 65, 65, 68 +300
Andres Romero 1st -14 69, 61, 66 +450
Wade Ormsby 2nd -13 66, 64, 67 +600
Gavin Green T-3rd -12 65, 64, 69 +1000
Christiaan Bezuidenhout T-5th -11 67, 67, 65 +1600
Sergio Garcia T-9th -10 66, 68, 66 +2000
Lorenzo Gagli T-5th -11 64, 68, 67 +4000
Matthias Schwab T-9th -10 63, 67, 70 +4000
Kalle Samooja T-5th -11 66, 71, 62 +5000

*Odds taken August 31st; follow the link in the table above to see all options

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It’s hard to believe it has been 13 years since a then-upstart young gun Andres Romero contended deep into two Open Championships, throwing away the 2007 tournament on the last hole. At that time, it seemed Romero was going to be a main fixture in the golfing world, but he stalled, having won just once on the PGA Tour in 2008 and just twice on the European tour, in 2007 and recently two years ago.

Now a 38-year old veteran, Romero has staked himself to a one shot edge in Switzerland. He doesn’t have much experience in this position in the last decade, with the victory at the 2017 BMW International Open his lone triumph in 11 years. Given his lack of winning pedigree, I’d be more inclined to look elsewhere for a wager.

Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood the Co-Favorites

Coming off a $15 million FedEx Cup victory last week there was bound to be a considerable emotional letdown for Rory McIlroy, which has resulted in more bogeys (10) for the Ulsterman this week than anyone in the top-13. That slight lack of edge proved costly at the end of his third round, with three bogeys in his last five holes, so I’ll stick to my pre-tournament guns and not bet on him.

Tommy Fleetwood is long overdue for his first victory in 20 months, having posted five top-5 finishes worldwide this year, including a runner-up at the Open Championship. He’s played the front nine even par this week, but has made up all his ground on the back, shooting 12-under, which will bode well in crunch time Sunday.

Best Live Value Picks at Omega European Masters

  1. Wade Ormsby (+600): Doesn’t present a ton of value but he’s just one shot back yet he’s the fourth betting favorite, giving you a slight edge. Late bloomer in his career, Ormsby has three top-5’s this year, including just last week.
  2. Christiaan Bezuidenhout (+1600): Either plays brilliantly or is plain awful. Catching him on a hot week and he’s just three back of Romero. Posted his first European Tour victory in June.
  3. Kalle Samooja (+5000): Shot round of day Saturday with a blistering 8-under, 62. Not much success to speak of in his career, the 300th ranked golfer in the world is just three shots back yet is sporting juicy 50-1 odds to win. What’s to say he can’t go low again in the final round?
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