How to bet on golf

Golf betting explained

Golf is a sport that is getting bigger and bigger in the betting industry. All major online bookmakers will offer markets on golf throughout the calendar year. Golf is known as one of the harder sports to bet on, but if you get it right, the rewards could be huge. Here we will explain how to bet on Golf as well as explain the game itself and all the betting markets.

How golf is played

Golf is a sport which requires you to have a golf ball, which is a small circular ball, and a set of the golf club to take part. There are many different golf clubs available. Here are some of the clubs used; Driver – this is what you will use for your first shot on long holes. Hybrid club – these will be used for shots 150 yards +. 2 to 9 irons – these clubs range on the steepness of the end, the steeper the club, the higher the ball will go, the straighter the club, the further the ball will go. Wedges – this is for hitting short chip shots to get onto the green or out of a bunker. Lastly a putter – this is what you will use on the green only when using this one, the ball will not come off the ground, it is to put the ball in the hole.

In golf, the aim of the game is to get your ball into the hole in as fewer shots as possible, the less you get it in; the better your score will be. There are different names for different scores you get on holes. Each hole will have something called par; this is the score a good player would be expected to get. Then you have an ace, which is a hole in one, a double eagle, which is three strokes under par, an eagle, which is two shots under par, birdie is one shot under par. Then there are shots that you can get if you go over par, one stroke over is called a bogie, two is a double bogie, three is a triple bogey and so on. If you finish a round having used the least amount of shots, you would win the round.

You can also get penalties in golf if you do any of the following.

Out of bounds – If you play a shot which is deemed as out of bounds, you will receive a two-shot penalty which could have a massive effect on your overall score.
Whiff – This is if you shape up to hit the ball and miss it altogether, you will be caught out for that shot. If you practise swinging away from the ball, that is fine.
Unplayable lies – This is if the ball falls somewhere where it is impossible to hit. You will have a one-shot penalty for this and will be able to move the ball anywhere up to two clubs away from where it fell. You will drop the ball, but it cannot be in front of the original position.
Water Hazard – If your ball lands in the water, you will have to replay the shot from the position where you hit and receive a one-shot penalty on top of that.

Golf is a game played over 18 holes. In a major tournament, you would usually do those 18 holes over the course of around four days, with 18 on each day. This makes the tournament more exciting as players will need a consistent week rather than a good day. The four biggest tournaments of the year are The Masters, the PGA Tour, the US Open and the British Open Championship. After the 2nd round in tournament players are cut, this means the bottom half of the field will play no further part in the tournament. This is to try and make the tournaments more exciting and less long-winded.

Golf betting markets explained

Here we have all the golf betting markets explained, including how they work and how to bet on them.

To win outright

Probably the most obvious and common bet in golf is the outright winner. This is where you chose the player you think will win the whole tournament. The odds on this kind of bet are usually quite reasonable, but it is hard to pick an outright winner. You can also do them each way, which will pay out if the player you picked finishes in the top five. They will usually pay out at 1/4 of the odds.

Top 10 finish

This one says it in the name. You have to pick a player who you think will finish in the top ten of a tournament.

 

Get a £30 free bet here

Top European/American/Australian/Rest Of The World

Players take part in tournaments from all over the world so in this selection; you can split them into their different part of the world. You can pick the top-ranked player from either Europe, America, Australia or any other part of the world. If two players are tied, the bookmakers will pay out.

Round leader

Here you will bet on who will win a specific round. For example, if the players are setting out for their first round of 18 holes, you are betting on just those, rather than the whole tournament.

To Make/Miss Cut

Here you will bet on the players you think will make or miss out the cut of the tournament. This is making it into the final stage to play a certain tournament. If the player does not end up taking part in the tournament, then bets will be a void.

Two Chances To Win

This is where you will pick two players who you think stand a big chance of winning the tournament come the end of it. This gives you double the chance of winning. However, both players must take part; otherwise, bets will be a void.

Three chances to win

This is the same as above, but you have the chance to pick three players who you think have a chance of winning the tournament.

Tournament Group Betting

This is where you will choose a player from a specific group, who you think will finish out on top. Players are grouped together for betting purposes only, so you will need to check with your bookmaker.

Netbet £50 free here

Match Handicap

Match Handicap is where you pick a player who you think will get the lowest score, against a handicap which is shown. The handicap will be changed by a bookmaker depending on the situation. But once it is put on, your handicap is secured.

Next Hole Score

On this you are betting on who you think will win on the next hole of the course. For example, if the players are moving onto bet 9, you can put for a certain player to win that single hole.

Tee Shot Hits Fairway

On this one, you are betting on whether the ball will hit the fairway (short grass area) when taking a shot of the tee.

Player to score a birdie

This is betting on a player to score a birdie on a certain hole. This is often only available in-play.

Three-ball betting

In golf, players go out to play in groups of three, for this bet you can bet on the player to get the best score of the three.

Two-ball betting

After the cut players go out in pairs, for this bet you pick the player out of the two you think will win the round.

Hole in one

In this bet you can bet on players to hit a hole in one on a certain hole.

Ladbrokes £50 free bet here

Forecast

This is where you will bet on who will come first and second in a tournament. If you guess this correctly, there is no doubt the returns will be great, whatever stake you put on. These are very hard to get right but are common as odds tend to be big.

There is no doubt that gold is getting bigger and bigger in sport and betting, and with there being many different markets to bet on, it makes it more exciting than it may have been before.

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Fantasy Golf

Companies like Draftkings now offer great fantasy markets on golf; you can select your fantasy golf team for a tournament and then pit yourself against other fantasy fans. These competitions offer large cash prizes and offer golf fans a great chance to pit their knowledge. With fantasy sports ever-growing this is a great new way for fans to enjoy their sports.