Odds On Top 10 Golfers Are Players Shooting For Their First Masters Win 

The 2020 Masters is set to make its fall debut and the splendid colors and shots from the players will be a site to see. Unfortunately, the sounds and roars from fans and spectators that accompany golfs most popular tournament won't be part of the major event due to continued COVID-19 restrictions. But record betting will be a part of the 2020 Masters as players shoot for birdies and the coveted green jacket.

The Masters at Augusta National is a picture of perfection. Manicured fairways, lush green landscape and magical moments and memories surround the final major championship of 2020. Thursday's opening round will be filled with rain and scattered showers, with the rest of the event forecast looking more favorable with added sunshine and 70 degree temperatures. 

Many players will be restricted on and around the greens this week. The fast and heavily undulated and contoured putting surfaces will cause many players problems, and especially those less familiar with Augusta National. Experience on these grounds is so valuable, as is precision ball striking, quality irons and approach play and premium putting with the ability to get the ball in the hole from a distance of 15-feet or less. The 7,475 yard Par 72 course will play long with the fairway grasses slightly thicker and showing more grain in patches. Length will have its advantage again at Augusta, but it's still more of a second shot approach course with placement into the greens and premier putting paramount for success. 

Those keys to success and strokes gained stat categories may help you identify more bets of interest. Outright winners are the most popular plays at the leading online sportsbook, but not close to the best plays. A bigger payoff? Sure. But with more prop bets, tournament match-ups, 'group betting' and even top finishing position offered at more online sportsbooks, you'll be wise to stick to more prudent and positive bets when wagering to win at the Masters. 

I reached out to some leading online sportsbooks for some insight on the betting activity for the 2020 Masters, and record wagering is in store for many bookmakers. That includes BetOnline, and spokesperson Dave Mason chipped-in some added insight and information you can bet on. 

Along with big welcome bonus offers and free bets, BetOnline has a $10,000 Masters Predictor contest.  Answer 10 questions (plus a tiebreaker) and wager $25 on the Masters in order to qualify for cash prizes that will be deposited into your BetOnline bankroll. 

One of the questions is 'Will the 2020 Masters feature a Hole-in-One? Sorry, Jon Rahm's unbelievable skip-across-the-water in Tuesday's practice round does not count.

1. Which are the most bet categories for the 2020 Masters?  

The most popular ways to bet The Masters among our players are the futures odds to win outright, and the tournament matchups. The sharper players really like to dig in deep and handicap the head-to-heads to find value, and everyone loves to bet on the winner. The favorites are most popular, but adding some longshots and seeing them contend makes betting on the event even more exciting. 

2. Any Masters Bets of significance OSGA readers should know? 

We took a five-figure bet on Tiger to win very early. We have a few more sprinkled around with some of the favorites like Bryson DeChambeau and Xander Schauffele. There's not a lot of faith in Rory McIlroy from the players (bettors), interestingly.

3. Tournament Match-ups & which players taking most bets?  Adjusted prices since posted? 

Schauffele has been a popular bet, and why not, the guy just dominates in majors. Hasn't closed quite like Koepka, but he's getting there. We opened the X-Man as a slight favorite over Jason Day in the head-to-head matchups and that’s been hammered up to -145. And speaking of Koepka, he’s being faded in his matchup against Justin Thomas as he’s now a +125 dog. 

4. Any player props on Tiger, Koepka, Others? 

We literally have hundreds of props available for the tournament. Some of the more fun ones include, water balls on Hole 12, the cut line, long drives and DeChambeau on the clock for slow play. 

5. None of the Top 10 golfers in odds to win have won the Masters/Green Jacket. Patrick Reed and Bubba Watson at +3000 are next. Comments? 

Prior to Tiger winning, the previous four champions were first-time Masters winners, and seven of the last nine were maiden Green Jacket holders. There are just so many great, young players at the top of this game, and I think we’ll see another. 

Masters champions Patrick Reed and Bubba Watson are next at +3000 with Tiger Woods (+3300), Tyrrelll Hatton (+3300) and Collin Morikawa (+3500) rounding out the 15 players with odds of less than 40/1.

6. Comments on handle thus far for Masters, compared to previous 1-2 years, and additional expectation and in-play betting or adjusted odds?​ 

I think The Masters being played in the same week/weekend as football is extremely exciting for the players. We’re on pace for the largest handle for as long as I can remember. It’s going to be a great weekend for sports bettors. And we will be offering live betting all four rounds, with adjusted futures odds and matchups following each day.

I'll chip-in my Fairway Favorites and Longshots, plus some matchups and other props.

Favorites: D. Johnson, McIlroy, Rahm, Schauffele
Longshots: Cantlay, Day, Kokrak, C. Smith
Mulligan: Matsuyama
Fade Favorite: DeChambeau (No top 10, Even)
Top 20: Day (+110)
Top Debutant: Kokrak (+900)
Top Ireland/Great Britain: McIlroy (+225)
Tournament Match-ups: Dustin Johnson (-120) over DeChambeau, Kokrak (-110) over Champ, Day (-170) over Woods 

Compare odds and Masters offerings at leading online sportsbooks, and thanks to BetOnline for Masters betting updates.