Scottie Scheffler betting favorite to win Open Championship - ESPN

For the fourth and final time this year, Scottie Scheffler is the outright favorite in a major golf tournament, carrying a +500 price into The 152nd Open Championship, according to ESPN BET odds.

The feat has Scheffler sharing rarified betting air, yet again, with arguably the greatest golfer of all time. He is the first player to be favored outright in every major of a calendar year since Tiger Woods did so in 2013; Woods accomplished that feat an astounding 12 times in his career.

Assuming his favorite status at Royal Troon holds, Scheffler also will have been the pre-tournament favorite or co-favorite at eight consecutive majors, tying him with Woods (2009-10 and 2012-13) for the longest such streak in the last 15 years.

The betting public is backing Scheffler at a healthy clip, attracting a field-leading 9.3% of the bets and 19.6% of the handle at ESPN BET,.

BetMGM, DraftKings and FanDuel also reported Scheffler as their tickets and money leader, but his short price dictates that he would need even more handle to give bookmakers a real scare.

«Surprisingly, we are on the plus side with Scottie. I don't know why — maybe [bettors] feel like the price is too short, but that hasn't stopped them in the past,» DraftKings director of sportsbook Johnny Avello told ESPN. «That doesn't mean that they're not betting it, it's just that we don't have a liability on him right now.»

Accordingly, DraftKings lengthened Scheffler's odds to win the tournament from +450 to +500 between Tuesday and Wednesday.

Scheffler has managed to maintain his favorite status at the majors this year by dominating the PGA Tour regular season: He won two tournaments before winning The Masters, then won an event between each of the other majors. But