{"id":149453,"date":"2020-09-20T06:35:01","date_gmt":"2020-09-20T13:35:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=149453"},"modified":"2020-09-20T08:07:44","modified_gmt":"2020-09-20T15:07:44","slug":"betting-preview-as-matthew-wolff-leads-u-s-open","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/betting-preview-as-matthew-wolff-leads-u-s-open\/","title":{"rendered":"Matthew Wolff, Former 80\/1 Long Shot, Leads U.S. Open Entering Final Round"},"content":{"rendered":"

Just 16 months ago, Matthew Wolff won the NCAA golf championship at Oklahoma State.<\/p>\n

\"Matthew
Despite being erratic off the tee, Matthew Wolff will take a two-shot lead into the final round of the U.S. Open. (Image: Brad Penner\/USA TODAY Sports<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Now, Wolff has positioned himself to go from long-shot contender to the youngest U.S. Open champion since the legendary Bobby Jones in 1923.<\/p>\n

On the strength of five birdies on the front nine, the 21-year-old Wolff shot a 5-under 65 on Saturday at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y., to surge to the top of the leaderboard ahead of Sunday\u2019s final round.<\/p>\n

Bombs Away<\/h2>\n

Wolff only hit two fairways, but did everything else right, as he beat the field scoring average by a whopping 8.6 strokes on Saturday.<\/p>\n

Wolff opens Sunday as one of only three players under par for the 120th edition of the championship. He\u2019ll be paired with Bryson DeChambeau, who is two shots back at 3 under. They will tee off at 1:30 p.m. Eastern.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a lot of holes out there, that maybe people would try to hit it in the fairway or maybe take the safe play, because it is a U.S. Open and they know that pars are a good score. But I don\u2019t really like to think of it that way,\u201d <\/strong>Wolff told reporters.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like to go out there and do what I feel comfortable with, rip dog, and see how it goes from there. I feel comfortable with every part of my game, so I don\u2019t like to shy away from things when I\u2019m feeling confident, and I\u2019m probably going to do the same [Sunday].\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Wolff, with one career win, opened the tournament at 80\/1 to win at Westgate SuperBook, and was 30\/1 entering Saturday\u2019s third round. He\u2019s now at 7\/4. DeChambeau is 9\/4. They are the clear front-runners, with Xander Schauffele the distant third choice at 8\/1.<\/p>\n

Who Else?<\/h2>\n

Wolff\u2019s lead isn\u2019t huge, but there\u2019s not exactly a lot of players within striking distance, either. DeChambeau is 3 under, Louis Oosthuizen is 1 under, and Schauffele, Hideki Matsuyama, and Harris English are tied for fourth at even.<\/p>\n

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According to SuperBook\u2019s Jeff Sherman, there are bets of $2,400 on Schauffele at 20\/1 and $1,000 on DeChambeau at 20\/1. As the final round got under way, Sherman said Wolff, Oosthuizen and Matsuyama were receiving the public support.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI bet you I\u2019m probably going to be a little antsy,\u201d <\/strong>Wolff said. \u201cIt\u2019s the U.S. Open, and I have a lead. I\u2019m going to try to keep my nerves as calm as they can be and not really try to think about it.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Patrick Reed and Justin Thomas joined DeChambeau as the 9\/2 favorites entering Saturday\u2019s third round. However, Reed shot a 77 and is 3 over, and Thomas shot a 76 and is 4 over. Both enter Sunday at 100\/1 at SuperBook. Tracking the right way is Rory McIlroy. He was 40\/1 entering Saturday, but shot a 68 to move to 1 over and within six shots of Wolff. He enters Sunday at 12\/1.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I go out there tomorrow and shoot another 68,\u201d McIlroy said, \u201cI won\u2019t be too far away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Final-Round Odds<\/h2>\n
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Here are the betting leaders at SuperBook, with scores in relation to par in parentheses. <\/strong><\/p>\n