5 U.S Open Predictions That Shouldn’t Go Unnoticed
Posted by Henry Watkins on Tuesday,June 13, 2017 11:45, EDT in
From June 15-18, 156 of the best golfers in the world will be chasing down a major at the Erin Hills golf course in Wisconsin, but only 1 can emerge victorious. The player who eventually emerges victorious is going to be the one who can best master a course that is absolutely brutal. There are already several players who have stated that the course is too tough, but shouldn’t that be the case for one of the most prestigious events on the PGA Tour calendar? Rather than trying to predict a winner in this piece, we are instead going to focus on 5 predictions about how things might play out. Let’s see how many we actually get correct and some of the latest golf betting predictions.
A Closer Look At The 5 U.S Open Predictions That Shouldn’t Go Unnoticed
Don’t Expect a Lot of Low Scoring
As we have already said, Erin Hills is a course that is not for the faint of heart. This is a set-up that rewards accuracy over power, and we all know that staying accurate over a period of 4 rounds of golf is incredibly taxing, which means that mistakes are going to be made. Combine that with weather conditions that might well wreak havoc and you get a winning score that is not likely to break any course records.
Look for the Europeans to Excel
Deep rough and howling winds are going to make this US Open feel as though it is being played on British soil. As such, we can probably expect to see a lot of European players hanging around near the top of the leaderboard on Sunday afternoon. We might even see Sergio Garcia land back to back major wins.
Sunday is Playoff Time
Since we expect the scoring to be not particularly low, there is a distinct possibility that the leaders are all going to be tightly bunched come Sunday afternoon, which sets up the real chance of playoff holes being required. If there were not a playoff this year, it would be the longest without one at the US Open in history. It has been 8 years since the last playoff, and 9 would break the longest streak. All signs point to extra holes.
A Relative Unknown Will Win
Dustin Johnson, who is currently the best player in the world, will once again be the favorite to win, but will he? I think this course is set up for someone to come out of nowhere and steal the win. The most logical choice would be a good European player who is not really a household name on this side of the pond. This is going to be a tough tournament to handicap for so many reasons, and a longshot may well be the way to go.
Things are Going to Get Rough
The fairways at Erin Hills are incredibly nice, but fail to hit them and you are in for a world of trouble. When you tune in over the 4 days of the US Open, expect to see a lot of players standing in knee deep rough looking horribly frustrated. As we mentioned earlier, accuracy is key, but the ability to get out of trouble will also decide who wins.
