U.S. Open Tee Times Set: 3-Ball Betting Odds Released

• Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka and Collin Morikawa headline the early groups.
• Phil Mickelson looks to win his U.S. Open title as he’s paired with Xander Schauffele and Max Homa.
• Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau will group with reigning Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama and Tyler Strafaci.

SAN DIEGO – The 121st U.S. Open is set to begin on Thursday at Torrey Pines and the first-round tee times and groupings have been announced.

There are a handful of high-profile groupings who have betting odds as to which golfer will be in the best position after the first day of the tournament.

Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka, Collin Morikawa

In what is potentially the most high-profile grouping of the day, Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka and Collin Morikawa will tee off at 10:29 a.m. EST. This group consists of the No. 2 ranked golfer in the world  (Thomas), the No. 4 (Morikawa) and the No. 10 (Koepka).

Despite being the lowest-ranked in the group, Koepka is the betting favorite in the 3-ball odds.

U.S. Open First Round 3-Ball Odds

• Brooks Koepka +165
• Justin Thomas +185
• Collin Morikawa +190

Koepka is sort of a betting anomaly. He has just eight wins on the PGA Tour in his career, but four wins at the major championships including back-to-back U.S. Open wins in 2017 and 2018. He placed second in the PGA Championship less than a month ago, but as he is still unlikely 100% after his knee surgery, there are too many factors to be worth betting him as the favorite.

Legal sports bettors may be more inclined to side with Thomas in this grouping. Thomas ranks No. 11 on tour in true strokes gained at Torrey Pines and third in true strokes gained versus expectation. Not only is he ranked No. 2 in the world, but he performs well at the course. U.S. Open bettors could be getting a steal with JT not being the favorite here.

Phil Mickelson, Xander Schauffele, Max Homa

Another morning group worth noting is Phil Mickelson, Xander Schauffele and Max Homa who have a scheduled tee time of 10:51 a.m. EST. Homa is a good golfer in his own right, but all eyes will be on Mickelson and Schauffele in this grouping.

U.S. Open First Round 3-Ball Odds

• Xander Schauffele EVEN
• Phil Mickelson +240
• Max Homa +250

Mickelson, at age 51, is still searching for the first U.S. Open win of his career. He won the PGA Championship in May but missed the cut in his only appearance since.

Mickelson does have the advantage of being very familiar with the course as he’s a San Diego native, but he’s simply not consistent enough to justify backing in this group.

Schauffele is the big favorite for a reason. He also has a familiarity with the course as he grew up close to the area and played high school tournaments on it. He finished tied for second at the course earlier this season and also has never placed outside of the top 10 at the U.S. Open in his career.

PGA bettors should feel confident in Schauffele’s ability to succeed on the course.

Bryson DeChambeau, Hideki Matsuyama and Tyler Trafaci

Bryson DeChambeau, the defending U.S. Open champion, will group with the reigning Masters winner, Hideki Matsuyama, and Tyler Strafaci. The three will tee off late in the afternoon with a scheduled time at 4:14 p.m. EST.

U.S. Open First Round 3-Ball Odds

• Bryson DeChambeau -125
• Hideki Matsuyama +140
• Tyler Strafaci +900

No disrespect to Strafaci, but it’s probably safe to rule him out as a contender against this caliber of a grouping. Not only is he simply less talented than his competition, but he ranks fourth-worst in the PGA with -3.94 true strokes gained at Torrey Pines.

DeChambeau isn’t much better at the course despite being listed as a big favorite over the group. He is right ahead of Strafaci as the fifth-worst in true strokes gained at Torrey Pines with -3.94 overall and -4.06 versus expectation, good for fourth-worst on tour.

By process of elimination, Matsuyama could very well be the best bet from this grouping. Given the price attached to his name, it might actually be the only bet worth playing from the trio.

Other Notable US Open Tee Times

Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose – 4:30 p.m. EST
Jon Rahm, Patrick Reed, Marc Leishman – 4:36 p.m. EST
Jordan Spieth, Will Zalatoris, Scottie Scheffler – 4:25 p.m. EST

News tags: Brooks Koepka | Bryson DeChambeau | Collin Morikawa | Dustin Johnson | golf | Hideki Matsuyama | Jon Rahm | Jordan Spieth | Justin Rose | Justin Thomas | Marc Leishman | Max Homa | Patrick Reed | Phil Mickelson | Rory McIlroy | Scottie Scheffler | Tyler Strafaci | US Open | Will Zalatoris | Xander Schauffele