Jamie Squire/Getty Images. Pictured: Chan Kim.
Another major means another long lists of prop bets to fire at with a group players from all over the world.
I’ve found a handful for the U.S. Open that I’ll be looking at.
_BookPromo=138
Chan Kim & Cameron Young — Top 40
The props will mostly be geared toward bombers near the bottom of the board and hoping the U.S. Open tradition where length trumps all hold up on Torrey Pines.
Both Kim and Young hit the ball a mile. Kim is second in driving distance in Japan this year, while Young is ninth on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Kim checks in at +490 on FanDuel to finish in the top 40, while Cameron Young was available at +500 on Monday night at DraftKings.
Kim is a West Coast guy who played college golf at Arizona State, so he’s got plenty of experience in California. He proved as much during his qualifier just south of Los Angeles, finishing as the medalist in the 90-man field that produced just five entrants into the event.
| [Bet Chan Kim at FanDuel and get a $1,000 risk-free bet.] |
Young actually qualified for the Farmers at Torrey this year and played well on the South Course, gaining 3.5 strokes tee-to-green in his round there. A bad round on the North Course did him in and he missed the cut. Luckily, it’s just the South Course at the U.S. Open.
| [Bet Cameron Young at DraftKings and get a $1,000 sign-up bonus.] |
Taylor Pendrith — Top Canadian
Pendrith is another Korn Ferry bomber who’s even longer than Young, ranking fourth in distance on that tour.
He’s up against Corey Conners, Adam Hadwin and Mackenzie Hughes and is +650 on bet365 to come out ahead of this group.
If you’re wondering whether he can hang with this group of established tour pros, you just have to look back to 2020’s U.S. Open where he won this group comfortably while finishing 23rd. He was nine shots ahead of Hadwin at the end of the event, while Conners and Hughes failed to make the cut.
None of those three have a particularly stellar record at Torrey. Hadwin’s 18th place finish this year was the best the bunch has ever accomplished in 12 career starts combined and he lost strokes ball striking during that event.
| [Bet Taylor Pendrith at bet365.] |
Jordan Smith — Top Englishman
I’ve been looking for a spot to light some more money on fire with Jordan Smith and this is where I’ve landed. He’s +3400 to be the top Englishman on FanDuel, meaning he’ll have to come out ahead of a group that features 13 others, notably Paul Casey, Justin Rose, Tyrrell Hatton, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood and Ian Poulter.
Of the group, Rose may represent the biggest obstacle. He has a win on the course in 2019. But Smith is coming in completely dialed in with his ball striking. He’s been inside the top 20 in three straight events over there, including third in Denmark.
He hasn’t shown up often in the U.S., but he has on occasion, popped up in big events. He came in ninth at the PGA in 2017 on another stern tee to green test at Quail Hollow, where he was the low Englishman that week. So when he’s on, he’s capable of beating this group.
| [Bet Jordan Smith at FanDuel and get a $1,000 risk-free bet.] |
AM First Round Leaders
Once the tee times are out likely some time on Tuesday, we’ll be able to find a few early tee draws who may take advantage of some better conditions.
The greens will be as good as they’ll be all week, and players with early tee times dodge that bumpy afternoon poa late in the day. The wind is allow forecasted to pick up a little in the afternoon, reaching around 10 mph. It’s nothing crazy, but no wind and smoother greens should result in some better conditions for the guys who pull those first few tee times.
