2024 FTN NFL Power Rankings Through Week 15: Who Takes Over the Top Spot?
Daniel Kelley
It’s that time of year when the major golf world takes a small pause before firing up for another 11 straight months. During this time, it’s fun to take a peek behind the curtain at what the books are offering up for the majors, particularly the year’s first — The Masters.
I must point out that betting golf futures offers up no chance of a refund if any golfer you wager on decided to withdraw for any reason or doesn’t end up qualifying. Please keep this in mind while scrolling through the book offerings; not every golfer listed with odds will have qualified yet.
There isn’t much to say about Augusta National that hasn’t been said. We have the luxury of seeing Augusta every year, so we have course history and a set of data to work with. The wide fairways, lack of rough, and length play into those who drive the ball well, but the real test begins when approaching undulated greens (buzzword, drink!). Augusta National can give up birdies, but mistakes can quickly add up and turn into double bogey or worse. It will test the all-around game of each golfer and the winners are not slouches.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at what is currently being offered and pick out a couple golfers in the middle of the pack.
2022 Masters Best Bets
Here are two of my best bets for the 2022 Masters based on futures prices as of late December 2021.
Scottie Scheffler, 40/1
(DraftKings Sportsbook, FanDuel Sportsbook, BetMGM, Caesars)
The first glaring issues with backing Scheffler is that he hasn’t been able to win a regular tour event yet, so backing him to win a major — and The Masters at that — seems sloppy. You’re not necessarily wrong with that line of thought, but part of betting is simply a numbers game. The reason to back Scheffler now would be the argument that he wins in the months leading up to The Masters and you won’t see this number anymore. This is entirely possibly with his skill set and consistency. He has come close numerous times during his first two PGA Tour seasons, and it seems inevitable the win will come. His talents fit what Augusta asks of golfers as well: a strong ball-striker but also above average around and on the green. He has no true deficiency in his game and has been one of the best golfers in the world, tee to green, over the last year. Along with this, Scheffler has played in The Master multiple times, which is good since we know winners often need to have a few years of notes in their book before breaking through. He has finished 18th and 19th in those appearances which is also a good sign, so now we hope he can continue to play well leading into April.
Daniel Berger, 40/1
Berger has more going in his favor than Scheffler as it pertains to long-term statistics, specifically with his irons and putting. What is not in his favor is that he hasn’t performed all that well at Augusta National since finishing 10th in his debut in 2016. Berger has struggled with some injury issues between now and then plus 2021 Berger continued to perform like one of the best golfers in the world. He took his iron play to a new level, which if that continues, even slightly, it will pay dividends and hopefully with him winning his first major. The skill set is there, he’s played well in other majors and big events (Ryder Cups/WGCs/Players) and it seems like a matter of time before he’s pushing for a major title. Like Scheffler, I’m not sold that this number will still be available come April, but it is possible. The Sentry Tournament of Champions, which is a small field and not made up of entirely the same top end talent, includes Berger and he’s currently listed at 16/1. If he continues to play remotely close to how he did in 2021, he will go off closer to 25/1 or lower at Augusta, especially if he managed to win between now and then.
