Star power makes the United States the favorite on the 2018 Ryder Cup odds, but remember, being on home soil counts for a lot.
Team USA is the -135 favorite with Team Europe coming back at +145, while a tie offers +1100 on the updated Ryder Cup betting lines at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
The Americans are the defending champion going into the three-day match play competition at the par-71, 7,331-yard Albatros course at Le Grand National in Guyancourt, France. The favorites have won three of the last four renewals of the biennial golf competition, but the host team has won 27 of the last 41 matchups, or 65.8 percent.
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The main props revolve around who will be the top scorer for each team, and who will be the first and last men out for each side during Sunday’s 12 singles matches.
Dustin Johnson (+500) is the favorite to be the top Team USA points scorer. However, Le Grand National is not a course that can be overpowered and the more deliberate, precise Webb Simpson (+2200) could be a darkhorse play.
Justin Rose (+500) and Rory McIlroy (+500) are co-favorites to be Europe’s top points scorer. However, there could be cause for wariness toward backing men with a tight turnaround from the Tour Championship, and the very consistent Tommy Fleetwood (+750) could be fresher mentally.
Patrick Reed (+400) and Jordan Spieth (+500) have top price on the golf odds to be the first out in singles for Team USA. Both handled the pressure of an early start at the 2016 Ryder Cup and if worked once, why not do it again.
Predicting Europe’s first player out in singles would involve some guesswork on whether they’ll be chasing the U.S. at that point. McIlroy (+330) was first out for Europe on 2016.
As far as the anchor prop – last player out in singles – is concerned, rookies Bryson DeChambeau (+650) and Tony Finau (+650) are co-favorites for Team USA.
On the Europe side, Paul Casey (+600) and Alex Noren (+600) are co-favorites but the experience of Sergio Garcia (+800) makes him a viable option for the Europeans if the result comes down to the very end.
Last but not least, it’s +400 on whether there will be a hole in one, and -650 that they’re won’t be one. The last Ryder Cup hole-in-one was in 2006.
The Ryder Cup consists of foursome (alternate shot) and fourball (better ball) matches on Friday and Saturday, 16 in all, each worth one point.
For more odds information, betting picks and a breakdown of this week’s top sports betting news check out the OddsShark podcast with Jon Campbell and Andrew Avery. Subscribe on iTunes or listen to it at OddsShark.libsyn.com.