Round 1 of The Open Championship at Royal Portrush was brutal, with wind, rain and thick rough making scoring difficult. Still, five players—Matt Fitzpatrick, Harris English, Haotong Li, Jacob Skov Olesen, and Christiaan Bezuidenhout—traversed the elements to lead the field with rounds of 67, good for a share of the lead at 4-under. Scottie Scheffler shot a clean round of 68 to sit just one back, while Rory McIlroy recovered from poor back-nine to finish 1-under.
Below I detail my two favorite bets for Friday’s second round.
Tyrrell Hatton Top 10 after Round 2 -120
Hatton was locked in during the first round, gaining 2.19 strokes on approach, 1.97 off the tee, and 1.85 with the putter. All those gains combined for a solid 68, tying him for sixth place heading into Friday. He carded four birdies against just one bogey and sits just one shot off the lead.
This performance is not a one-off, as Hatton clearly thrives at Royal Portrush. He finished T6 here in 2019, the last time The Open was held at this course, which is his second-best finish in the tournament.
Bryson DeChambeau over 71.5 Round 2 Score +105
DeChambeau has never fared well at links golf, and Thursday was a harsh reminder as he fired a birdie-free, seven-over 77. He lost 2.98 strokes on approach and 3.6 strokes around the green, ranking eighth worst and dead last in the field, respectively, after Round 1.
Portrush played tough Thursday, with a scoring average of +2.04. To make the cut, DeChambeau will need a 67 or better in Round 2—something only five players managed in Round 1. While he’s unlikely to give up, the conditions are tough enough that even-par or better feels unlikely. After how badly he struggled Thursday, I’m taking the plus-money on the over here.