Golf betting is very attractive to punters! There are many betting markets offered by the on-line bookmakers for golf betting and, like tennis, is played all year round so there are always tournaments to gamble on. Because there are two different Professional Golf Associations (PGA) there are more tournaments now than ever before which means there are more betting opportunities and markets available.
What is the PGA Tour?
The PGA Tour is the biggest and most popular golf tour and so every online bookmaker offers markets on the major tournaments. The quality bookmakers also offer markets on most of the PGA tournaments that run all year and all over the world including the Majors.
What is the USPGA Tour and the EPGA?
The USPGA tour is played from January to November each year and there are 45 betting tournaments on the USPGA tour – these are played in North America. The other is the European tour which has 52 European PGA tour events (basically one a week!) and these are played all year from December to December all over the world, the last tournament of the year is the Dubai World Championship.
Many online bookmakers also offer the major markets for The European PGA Tour tournaments but for better odds it is important to check different bookmakers because American ones will often offer lower odds on American players and higher odds on European players and European bookmakers will offer lower odds on European players and have higher odds for American players.
What is the LPGA?
The LPGA (Women's golf) markets are usually limited to tournament winners only. Like the men's game there are events that run all year and there are some major events, they also have a US Open and a UK Championship for example. The women's game is becoming very popular however so look out for 3-ball and head to head to betting markets as they will become available in the near future.
What are the biggest championships?
There are four "Major" Championships (often called "The Majors) and there are two main international team events:
The Majors
The “Masters”
The Masters is the first major championship of the year and is always played at the same golf course in Augusta, in the U.S.A. and is held in the second week of April. All of the best players are entered.
The US “Open”
The US Open is also held in the U.S.A but it is played at a different golf course each year, it is played in the third week of June. All of the best players are entered.
The “Open” Championship
The Open Championship is played on one of ten "Links" golf courses in the U.K. and is played a month later than the US Open in the third week of July. All of the best players are entered. [A “Links” golf course is basically – a golf course next to the sea with almost no trees]
The PGA
The PGA is the final major championship and is also played in the U.S.A. at a different course each year and is played in the 3rd week of August. All of the best players are entered.
The International Team Events
The “Ryder” Cup
The Ryder cup is a two team event. One team of twelve American players (Team USA) plays another team of twelve European players (Team Europe). This event is every two years (even years e.g. 2012, 2014, 2016 etc.). When one is played in America, two years later the next Ryder Cup is played in Europe. The tournament is played over three days and is in the final weekend of September. It is watched by millions around the world and has the most betting action for any golfing event.
The “President’s” Cup
The Presidents Cup is almost the same as the Ryder Cup but Team USA plays an International Team which is a team made of players from around the world (but not Europe). It is also every two years (odd years e.g. 2013, 2015, 2017, etc.) and when one event is played in the USA the next event is played outside of the USA. The tournament is played for four days and is played over the second weekend in October.
How many golfers are there?
The fields are also quite large - up to 150 players in some tournaments so it is possible to bet on players that have very good odds. The fields also get "cut" after the first two rounds which makes it easier to choose who to gamble on at later stages. (It is also possible to gamble on who will or won't "make the cut"!)
Because there are so many golf tournaments the better players are spread around the world playing at different tournaments - it is only at the Major golf tournaments that you will find all the best players in the same field. Better players often pick and choose the tournaments they enter and they do this because these are the tournaments they like or have a good chance of winning.
When can I bet on golf?
Golf tournaments are usually played for four days from Thursday to Sunday so there are plenty of chances to win money. Because there are four rounds in each tournament the leaders of the tournament can change many times which makes it more difficult for the bookmakers to offer odds on different players.
The odds offered are also offered at Each Way - usually up to five places so there are opportunities to make money as the odds are often high. Most major online bookmakers and the betting exchanges will make their odds available on or before the Monday of the same week that the tournament starts.
Final word
Both betting on the player who is your favorite as rooting and betting on the specific player who has good value odds to get profit are very attractive regardless of whether you play golf or not. If you are interested in golf betting online, then open an account on bookmaker and check the odds before the tournament started. Good Luck!
