Ryder Cup Betting Odds 2021

One of the biggest competitions in golf takes place next week and Team Europe head to America to defend the Ryder Cup!

First played back in 1927 the Ryder Cup takes place every two years. English businessman Sam Ryder donated the trophy, hence the name, for the very first running of it at Massachusetts. Every two years the location will change between USA and Europe.

Great Britain struggled and won just three out of the first 22 Ryder Cups which lead to the introduction of the rest of Europe in 1979. Since then, Team Europe have been more successful that Team USA, winning eleven compared to their eight.

The Ryder Cup is so fascinating because it’s the only time golf becomes a team sport. Fans from around the world travel to watch it and get right behind their team.

Each team is made up of 12 players, with each team having a captain who will select a certain few and others automatically qualifying due to world ranking. The players compete over three days. The current format is two rounds of foursomes and fourballs over the Friday and Saturday, followed by 12 singles matches on Sunday.

This years 43rd Ryder Cup is being played at Whistling Straits, Wisconsin, which is the courses’ first Ryder Cup. Europe are the current holders and a draw is enough to secure the trophy for another two years, but are they favourite in the Ryder Cup odds?

Ryder Cup Outright Betting

USA – 1/2

When looking at the Ryder Cup Odds, Team USA are the favourites this year, despite winning just two Ryder Cup’s in the last ten year. Their team is very strong, with not one of their players being outside of the top 21 in the world rankings.

They have a mixture of experience and youth this time around. Six of the 12 players in Steve Strickers teams are debutants. On top of this, six of his players have won at least one major in their life, with Brooks Koepka having the most with three. These players are right at the top of their game and can handle pressure.

Another huge factor playing into USA’s hands is the home advantage. Obviously with it being in America they are going to get more fans that they would if it was in Europe. However, this year no European fans are allowed to travel to America, which means all the support will be for Team USA and on the Sunday this could be huge. Couple this with the fact they will be more used to the American conditions then can you really see the Ryder Cup going elsewhere?

Europe – 9/4

Despite all of this though, the current defending champions will be no push overs. They are captained by four time Ryder Cup player Padraig Harrington, who has won 10.5 points for Europe and has Vice Captained on three occasions.

His side consists of 12 players ranking from number one in the world Jon Rahm to world number 48 Ian Poulter. Despite Europe players being lower ranked, they are still fantastic Ryder Cup players, with Poulter getting 17 points in his career! Europe still has three players inside the top 17 and should not be overlooked at all.

Being in America won’t help them, but as we’ve seen before in 2012 at Medinah, they can perform very well when under pressure. Just three of Europe’s players are debutants, so the vast majority of the team will be used to the pressure and the hostile atmosphere next week.

Tie – 10/1

In the history of the Ryder Cup, there has been just two draws, the most recent of which was in 1989. Now, if you are having a Ryder Cup bet, this sports bet does offer good value but it’s not great from a spectator point of view wanting a draw!

Top Point Scorers – Ryder Cup 2021

Top USA Points Scorer

Ryder Cup betting can be quite difficult and when you are just picking one team to win, the odds aren’t great. Another market to look at though for next week, is Top Point Scorers. As we said earlier players get a point if they win and half a point if they draw.

The favourite for the USA is Justin Thomas at 13/2 in the betting odds. His only appearance in the Ryder Cup was in 2018 when he got four points from a possible five. He is one of the best iron players in the world, which in match play is ideal.

Just behind him is Patrick Cantlay at 15/2. This is his first Ryder Cup of his career, but he couldn’t be going into in much better form. Cantlay has four wins to his name this season, winning the Tour Championship most recently. He has a strong all round game which is what you need for the Ryder Cup and should be fairly relaxed for a rookie.

Another golfer priced at 15/2 is Dustin Johnson. The 2020 Master champion has played in four Ryder Cups prior to this one and is the most experienced player in the team. On his day, DJ is the best player in the world. His record isn’t the best with seven wins and nine losses, however, once DJ get’s going, no one can stop him.

Top Europe Points Scorer

For Europe, when looking at the Ryder Cup betting odds, there are two men leading the way to be the top European points scorer.

World number one Jon Rahm is the obvious favourite for Europe at 4/1. His current game is fantastic, winning the US Open this year as well as finishing in the top ten of the other majors. Rahm has appeared at just one Ryder Cup prior to this where he won one and lost two. His form is so good of late though that we wouldn’t be surprised if this man did a clean sweep of all his matches.

Now a somewhat Ryder Cup veteran is Rory McIlroy, who is priced at 11/2 in the betting odds. McIlroy has played in five Ryder Cups prior to this and like Dustin Johnson, once he gets going he is a machine. McIlroy has played in 24 matches, winning eleven, drawing four and losing nine. It is likely he will play in all sessions this year again, giving him a good chance of getting the most points.

Viktor Hovland is a debutant with a good chance of doing well this year. The world number 14 is priced at 15/2 after a very impressive year. Hovland has had seven top tens this year and is a very calm player under pressure. His game is in a very good place of late and we can see Harrington giving him as many matches as possible this year.