SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — This week’s WM Phoenix Open marks a momentous event for the PGA Tour and its leisure distributions. PGA Tour Dwell, along with ESPN BET, will debut a brand new stream that focuses solely on betting, offering in-depth information, reside odds, and hole-by-hole insights. It’s a groundbreaking launch, nevertheless it additionally reveals how the PGA Tour is leaning into the ever-growing aspect hustle that’s legalized sports activities betting.
Many watch golf for the betting angle, putting wagers each week on their favourite gamers or on those that they suppose will do effectively. And when you’ve got seen something about PGA Tour odds over the previous few years, Scottie Scheffler is an awesome favourite at any time when he performs. This week is not any completely different. FanDuel Sportsbook lists Scheffler, who has gained at TPC Scottsdale twice, at +280 to win — a preposterously low determine for any {golfing} favourite.
But, the World No. 1, true to his character, couldn’t care much less.
“I don’t guess on golf,” Scheffler mentioned Wednesday.
“I don’t take note of that stuff. I couldn’t care much less once I’m favored to win a match. It doesn’t imply something. I begin the match even par, so it doesn’t actually matter.”
Scheffler by no means centered on his odds, even earlier than he turned the perfect participant on this planet. As an alternative, he sticks to his course of day by day, attempting to enhance as an individual and a participant.
“On the finish of the day, what we love out right here is competing, and I feel what guys relish out here’s a likelihood to compete in opposition to the perfect. So, going week in and week out, I feel the blokes on the prime of the leaderboard on Sunday are those taking part in the perfect, and people are those you need to compete with. It’s a whole lot of enjoyable. I really like having these battles,” Scheffler defined.
“I’ve had some good battles right here at [the WM Phoenix Open] over the previous few years. Final yr, Nick Taylor gained. I used to be shut coming down the stretch. He beat me. The yr earlier than that, Nick and I and Jon Rahm have been shut, after which the yr earlier than that, Patrick and I ended up within the playoff, and there have been a ton of men on that leaderboard.”
For Scheffler, it’s all in regards to the coronary heart of the competitors — a facet of sports activities that has sadly diminished in significance over the previous few years now that People can legally gamble in 38 states. However whether or not or not you might have a stake within the recreation doesn’t take away from the fun of victory or agony of defeat for the person within the area.
Talking of arenas, no higher surroundings in golf exists than what PGA Tour execs face down the stretch at TPC Scottsdale. The par-5 fifteenth options an island inexperienced; the par-3 sixteenth, with its well-known stadium filled with over 20,000 followers, is not like anything within the sport. The drivable but dangerous par-4 seventeenth and the terrific par-4 18th solely add to the large drama seen seemingly yearly.
“This golf match has lended some fairly thrilling finishes through the years, and I feel that’s simply due to how the closing stretch is,” Scheffler added.
“There’s a whole lot of alternative to make birdies, and there’s additionally some alternatives to make some numbers. I feel that’s what makes a terrific match. When you concentrate on the good golf programs that we play, Augusta Nationwide at all times involves thoughts, and the way in which they arrange Augusta on Sunday just isn’t essentially the toughest check. They put a number of the pins in bowls they usually go away alternatives for guys to hit nice photographs, and that’s why I feel you might have such thrilling finishes there as you do right here.”
Jack Milko is a golf employees author for SB Nation’s Enjoying By way of. Observe him on X @jack_milko.
