Could Scottie Scheffler be on the verge of becoming a record-breaking favorite in Texas this week? With odds as low as +250 to win the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open, his outstanding performance and past success at Memorial Park offer compelling reasons for such high expectations. Even the world’s top ranked player finished no better than ninth place after three starts here compared to Scheffler who achieved superior finishes of second and third-place twice!
My go-to data site, RickRunGood.com, reports that Scheffler has the lowest pre-tournament odds of +250 going back to 2019. These are likely the lowest in even longer than two years as this website stores betting odds for a longer period. For comparison purposes, Jon Rahm was closest last year at Mexico Open with cumulative odds of +380. Prior to that tournament, he had won four times starting from Masters! It’s worth noting that Gehman’s calculations eliminate Tour Championship due to its peculiarities which make it unsuitable for accurate comparisons.
I keep coming across different comparisons being made between Scottie’s exceptional strokes gained results in the past year and Tiger’s ball-striking data. With Scheffler having very favorable odds, we have yet another chance to draw parallels between the two players. In 2007, Tiger Woods triumphed in five of his final six tournaments with a second place finish at the one he didn’t win. He began 2008 by participating in The Buick Invitational (now called Farmers Insurance Open) where he was favored to win with even money odds.
In 2008, Woods emerged victorious in his initial three competitions. As the Augusta tournament drew near, he was a favorite to win with odds of +200. Though betting can offer an insight beyond strokes gained when it comes to golf history, Scottie Scheffler’s current performance is truly impressive; equivalent to that of legendary players from different eras. However, bookmakers prioritize financial stakes and continue holding Woods’ record as the cashing king above all else.
