US Open: Scheffler on Tiger-like charge as he seeks fourth major
Ben Smith 
The third major of the golfing calendar gets under way on Thursday, with Scottie Scheffler looking to continue his recent dominance of the field.
The American will head to Oakmont as the clear favourite with betting sites to claim a fourth major - and second this season - of his career, bringing back memories of the kind of dominance shown by Tiger Woods in his heyday.
Free Bets golf expert Ben Smith has taken a closer look at the field competing this week.
Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy have each claimed a major this year, having entered both the Masters and PGA Championship as the clear top two in the betting market.
Since then, that duo has become a one-man show. Scheffler has continued his relentless winning run, while McIlroy has stumbled in the wake of his Augusta triumph.
The world number one is as short as 5/2 in golf betting markets to add a US Open to his sizeable trophy cabinet this week. It is the shortest odds any man has been to lift a major title since Tiger Woods was 9/4 at the Open Championship in 2009.
Scheffler still has a long road ahead before any true comparisons to Tiger are warranted, but his current level of dominance echoes that of the greatest player of the 21st century.
He has entered 11 straight majors as at least the co-favourite, a streak that underlines his stranglehold on the sport, and more wins seem a matter of when, not if. Success at Oakmont would set up a shot at the career Grand Slam at Royal Portrush next month.
It is no wonder that Scheffler is so heavily fancied, given how kindly he has taken to US Open setups since gaining his PGA Tour card. Last year’s tournament at Pinehurst was an exception, but in the three renewals before that, he registered finishes of third-place, T2, and T7.
Having notched nine victories in 2024, including a second Masters title, an Olympic gold medal, and the FedEx Cup, it was perhaps a surprise that Scheffler was winless this year until the CJ Cup Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch.
He prevailed by eight strokes that week in McKinney, serving as the ideal preparation for the PGA Championship, which he also won at a canter, finishing up five strokes clear of the trio at T2.
A rare below-average display with the putter from Scheffler at Colonial the following week opened the door for Ben Griffin to claim his first individual PGA Tour crown. But the roles were reversed at Muirfield Village, where the Texan bounced back in vintage fashion, securing his third win in four starts and relegating Griffin to a runner-up finish.
Many consider the list of players with a chance of stopping Scheffler from reigning supreme on Sunday to be very small. Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau is the second-favourite in the betting and is sure to be a popular pick given Oakmont’s similarities to Winged Foot, where he won his first major in 2020.
Some firms have Jon Rahm above McIlroy in the betting. The Spaniard remains consistent in LIV events, and he has brought that form to recent majors, posting finishes of T8, T14, and T7 in his last three.
Golf with Free Bets
We provide weekly golf betting tips from the PGA Tour and that's no different this week, as Ben Smith sticks his neck out and makes selections for the third major of the golfing calendar as the US Open gets under way on Thursday.
