Rory McIlroy is favored to defend his title at the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, which begins on Thursday, July 6 at Portstewart GC in Northern Ireland. A number of top players are in the field for this event, as joining McIlroy, are Hideki Matsuyama, Jon Rahm, Justin Rose and last week’s winner Tommy Fleetwood. Eight of the last ten winners of this event were from Ireland or Great Britain. Let’s look at the odds and Irish Open predictions.
Dubai Duty Free Irish Open Odds
Rory McIlroy +650
Hideki Matsuyama +950
Jon Rahm +1250
Justin Rose +1550
Tommy Fleetwood +1550
Thomas Pieters +2550
Matthew Fitzpatrick +3050
Rafa Cabrera-Bello +3050
Shane Lowry +3050
Tyrrell Hatton +3050
Lee Westwood +3550
Thorbjorn Olesen +3550
Andy Sullivan +4050
Joost Luiten +4550
Graeme McDowell +5050
Ian Poulter +5050
Pablo Larrazabal +5050
Peter Uihlein +5050
Chris Wood +5550
Dylan Frittelli +5550
Paul Dunne +5550
Soren Kjeldsen +5550
George Coetzee +6050
Andrew Johnston +6550
Hao-Tong Li +6550
Alexander Levy +7050
Kiradech Aphibarnrat +7550
Padraig Harrington +7550
Alexander Bjork +8050
Jamie Donaldson +8050
Jordan Smith +8050
Thongchai Jaidee +8050
Brandon Stone +8550
Bradley Dredge +9050
David Horsey +9050
Nicolas Colsaerts +9050
Victor Dubuisson +9050
Odds Analysis
Rory McIlroy +650
McIlroy is the defending champion, as he finally won the Irish Open in his 10th try a year ago. It has not been a banner year for Rory in 2017 and he needs a win to get some confidence heading into the Open Championship. The problem with betting on him is that he hasn’t putted well enough this year and he is completely overvalued at these odds.
Hideki Matsuyama +950
It has been an up and down year for Matsuyama who started really well but then faded. He did look better in the U.S. Open but his best finish in the Irish Open is a tie for 6th. I think he is overvalued at these odds.
Jon Rahm +1250
Rahm played well over the weekend at Le Golf National to finish in a tie for 10th. He doesn’t have a ton of links experience but he sure hits the ball far enough to do well. The key of course, will be his putting and he still hasn’t putted well enough to win that often.
Justin Rose +1550
Rose has always been a good links player and he won the 2014 Scottish Open at Royal Aberdeen which was on the coast. I think he is undervalued at these odds, as he should contend for the win this week.
Tommy Fleetwood +1550
He is coming off a win last week and it is hard to argue with his form, as he has a tie for 12th or better in nine of his 17 starts this year. The concern is that he has not played well in his career in the Irish Open.
Tyrrell Hatton +3050
This could be the week for Hatton to turn things around, as he was great last year on links courses with a tie for 2nd at the Scottish Open, a tie for 5th in The Open and he won the Alfred Dunhill Championship. He is the first of my three longshots this week.
Rafa Cabrera-Bello +3050
You have to give Cabrera-Bello a look, as he has been excellent in his career on Northern Irish links courses. He tied for second at Royal Portrush in 2012 and he tied for fourth at Royal County Down in 2015.
Thorbjorn Olesen +3550
Olesen is another golfer who loves to play links courses. He has a win and a second at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and he tied for 9th at the Open Championship in 2012.
Course: The Strand Course at Portstewart GC in Northern Ireland will host this event. It is a par 72 course that measures 7,004 yards. The course features high dunes and raised greens. It is located on the coast so wind will be a huge factor on the weekend.
TV Coverage: Golf Channel
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