Odds Outlook: Scottie Scheffler leads gold medalist Xander Schauffele atop Olympic odds board

Men's golf will featured at the Olympic Games for the third consecutive Summer Olympics. Highlighted by the No. 1 player in the Official World Golf Rankings, Scottie Scheffler (+400), Le Golf National outside of Paris will host a field of 60 players. As has been the case for most of 2024, every time the Texan enters an event, he resides in the penthouse at the top of the BetMGM Sportsbook odds board. Winning the Travelers Championship kicked off summer proper after a disappointing T41 at the U.S. Open. Returning two weeks at Royal Troon Golf Club, he added another top-10 finish (T7), his 14th in 16 events this season. With Mom and baby Bennett in tow, balancing his golf and life won't be as challenging. The demanding tee-to-green nature of the Albatros course should accentuate what Scheffler does best.

Hot on the heels of Scheffler heading into the event is Xander Schauffele (+550). The first player to win two major championships in a season since 2018, the Californian added Champion Golfer of the Year to his mantle after a 65 to close in the final round at Royal Troon. Both of his wins this year have been major championships, and only the world No. 1 (Scheffler) has more top-10 finishes than the world No. 2 (Schauffele). The reigning gold medal winner from the Tokyo Olympics will look to become the first player to defend the Olympic title successfully.

The par-71 layout, playing 7,174 yards, was the host of the 2018 Ryder Cup victory by the European Team and serves as the challenge on the DP World Tour annually to determine the Cazoo French Open champion. Rory McIlroy (+850) won three points, including his singles match versus Justin Thomas, and should return with positive vibes. Although the track will not provide the same penal rough, the tight fairways remain protected by sand and water. Making his second appearance in the Olympics, the world No. 3 was one of seven athletes who played off for the bronze medal in Tokyo. Chinese Taipei’s C.T. Pan (+20000) survived the four-hole playoff to win the bronze. Pan joins Schauffele as the only previous medalists in this week’s field.

The only piece of the puzzle yet to be completed in 2024 for Collin Morikawa (+1100) is hoisting the trophy, or a gold medal, at the end of play on Sunday. With a streak of eight consecutive events of T16 or better, including results in all four majors, the fairway finder will paint the sprinkler line red, white, and blue 20 miles outside Paris. Keeping tee balls out of trouble carries significant weight this week, and he's one of the best on the planet doing that.

After missing the 2020 edition due to COVID-19, Jon Rahm (+1100) will make his Olympic debut at Le Golf National. The Spaniard is one of seven players who entered this week from a field of 60 who finished in the top 15 at The Open Championship. The 2023 Masters champion cashed T7 at Royal Troon, his best finish and only top-40 result in the majors this season.

The incredible 15 months of Ludvig Åberg (+1100) continues with a chance to win an Olympic medal in France. Turning pro in June of 2023, he has won on both the DP World Tour and the PGA TOUR and has played all four major championships, including finishing second at the Masters. Making 14 of 16 cuts this season, the Swede will look to bounce back after missing the weekend at Royal Troon after 75-76. Like the players at this number or better, his ball-striking makes him look like a TOUR veteran.

The toast of Paris during the 2018 Ryder Cup, Tommy Fleetwood (+2000) combined with Francesco Molinari (not entered) to form “MoliWood” and help the Europeans run away with the victory. The Englishman posted four wins from five matches and should be more than comfortable returning to the Paris suburb, especially after winning the 2017 HNA Open de France on this course. Making his second visit to the Olympics, the linksman from Southport finished T16 in Tokyo.

Shane Lowry (+2200) has already enjoyed two of the biggest honors in sports. The male flag bearer for Ireland at the opening ceremonies in the rain almost added his name for the second time to the claret jug at Royal Troon. The 36-hole leader at Royal Troon stumbled with 77 on Saturday but rallied to post 68 and claim sixth place, his second consecutive top-10 payday on TOUR. Joining Fleetwood on Sunday in Tokyo, he faded with 71 in the final round and finished T22.

Placing T14 in Tokyo, Viktor Hovland (+2200) makes his second appearance in the Summer Olympic Games. The Norwegian star is looking for any momentum to get his season back on track. With only one, top-10 finish (solo third, PGA Championship) from 13 starts, the reigning FedExCup Champion currently sits 55th on the FedExCup points list. With only the top 70 qualifying for the post-season fun, at this moment, he is only guaranteed into the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the first of three events.

Here's a look at the remaining odds in the 60-man field via BetMGM, including Hideki Matsuyama who lost in that bronze medal playoff three years ago.

Note: Countries are limited to a maximum of two individual participants, except for the U.S. which sent four players since all four were ranked inside the top 15 in the final rankings.

• +2800: Hideki Matsuyama, Joaquin Niemann
• +3000: Tom Kim
• +3300: Alex Noren, Corey Conners, Matt Fitzpatrick
• +3500: Min Woo Lee, Sepp Straka
• +4500: Byeong Hun An, Wyndham Clark
• +5000: Jason Day
• +5500: Carlo Ortiz, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Thomas Detry
• +6000: Abraham Ancer, Adrian Meronk
• +6600: Nicolai Højgaard
• +8000: Guido Migliozzi, Stephan Jaeger, Victor Perez, Ryan Fox
• +10000: Keita Nakajima, Matteo Manassero, Thorbjorn Olesen
• +12500: David Puig, Erik van Rooyen, Mito Periera
• +15000: Emiliano Grillo, Kevin Yu, Nick Taylor, Sami Valimaki
• +20000: C.T. Pan, Matti Schmid
• +25000: Gavin Green, Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Shubankar Sharma
• +30000: Alejandro Tosti, Daniel Hillier, Fabrizio Zanotti, Kris Ventura
• +40000: Adrian Dumont de Chassart, Nico Echavarria, Phachara Khongwatmai, Rafael Campos, Tapio Pulkkanen
• +50000: Carl Yuan, Gangjeet Bhullar, Zecheng Dou, Joel Girrbach
• +75000: Camilo Villegas

How the Olympic men’s golf competition works:

• A field of 60 players representing 32 countries
• Ten of the top 15 players in the OWGR including the top seven.
• Stroke play, 72 holes, no cut.
• The winner receives a gold medal, exemptions into every major championship in 2025, an invitation to the 2025 PLAYERS Championship, a spot in The Sentry (if an official TOUR member) and OWGR rankig points.

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