US Open: We assess the top men ahead of the second Major of 2017
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In a fortnight from now, Wisconsin will be hosting its first ever US Open tournament.
The Erin Hills course was only opened 11 years ago, driven by the sole aim of one day hosting the fabled second Major.
The fact that it is a brand new course has drawn comparisons with the infamous 2015 event at Chambers Bay.
But Jordan Spieth – who won the event two years ago – has dispelled any criticism, suggesting the two are vastly different.
Enough about the course however, we’re analysing the market leaders.
Spieth heads to Wisconsin as 10/1 third-favourite, and the 23-year-old appears to have got himself together just in time.
The American missed successive cuts at the Players Championship and the AT&T Byron Nelson.
But a runner-up result last time out at the Dean and Deluca Invitational was a timely boost.
The favourite, as he so often is, is Dustin Johnson at 6/1.
DJ has bounced back in fine fashion from missing the US Masters after injuring his back in a fall.
The 32-year-old finished second on his comeback at Wells Fargo, and followed that up with a 12th at the Players and 13th at Byron Nelson, so there’s no reason he shouldn’t be at the sharp end.
Between the American duo in the betting is Rory McIlroy at 8s.
The Northern Irishman missed several tournaments earlier this year due to a rib injury, and the effects are still being felt.
Only this week McIlroy pulled out of the Memorial Tournament, and skipped the BMW PGA Championship last week too.
But when fit, Rory has been on form. He posted a seventh at the Masters, fourth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and seventh at the WGC Championships in Mexico.
So while there are some concerns for McIlroy, the same must also be said of 20/1 shot Hideki Matsuyama.
The Japanese star was simply unstoppable across the back-end of 2016 and start of 2017, and victory in Phoenix in February left us all expecting this season to be the 25-year-old’s year.
But since then Matsuyama has faded with just one top-20 from his last six starts.
He is taking part in the Memorial this weekend – scene of his first PGA Tour title in 2014 – and a repeat win would quickly see his odds tumble.
Matsuyama could do with taking a leaf out of Jason Day’s book.
The Australian failed to land a top-20 in four straight events across the spring, but brought it all back together at Byron Nelson last time out.
Day shared the top of the leaderboard, only to lose in a play-off to Billy Horschel.
The 29-year-old will hope to follow that up at the Memorial Tournament on what if effectively his home course in Ohio, and his 14/1 odds will also have trimmed should he secure another good result.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing
