How to bet on the Masters

The Masters is the most iconic of the four majors on the PGA TOUR, as well as one of the most popular and lucrative golf tournaments in the world, as evidenced by the fact that the prize pool money was a record $15 million in 2022. It will next take place from April 6 to 9, 2023, at the Augusta National in Georgia, US.  

The best golfers in the world attempt to win the coveted green jacket at the Masters every year. To qualify for this prestigious tournament, a player must have won it before or finished in the top 12, won or finished in the top four of a different major, finished in the top two of the US Amateur, won other amateur tournaments, won an Olympic gold, won a PGA TOUR event, and/or be in the top 50 of the world rankings ahead of it.  

As a result, the Masters often receives the most action from a betting perspective, and usually has its odds released the earliest. This allows for significant line movement and provides the most edge to be had in long-term futures as a result.  

Checking in on a player’s current form and how they’ve played Augusta in the past is a solid strategy to betting on the Masters. Unlike other majors, like the U.S. Open or the British Open, it is played at the same course every year, which leads to odds primarily being adjusted based on a player’s course history.

The Masters is available to bet on at almost every sportsbook months in advance, and therefore the odds are ever-changing. Whether you are looking to place a wager on the outright winner, someone to make the cut, or place in the top 10, shopping around for value and looking at form is the best way to go about it.  

Naturally, the most popular market to wager on is the outright winner, in which odds can go as high as around +5000 for a golfer to beat the field. You can also bet on players to win any given round as well as head-to-head odds, where you wager on one player to outperform another player on either a given round or throughout the entire tournament. These odds are usually close to even.  

Live and in-play bets are also available to wager on. For example, if Mackenzie Hughes shoots a 1-over on Thursday (the first day of the tournament) and usually does well at Augusta, you might want to place a small wager on him to finish inside the top 10 and take advantage of the value. 

Prop bets are one of the most engaging ways to follow the Masters and there is no shortage available. Will a golfer cry after winning the green jacket? Who will he hug first? These are some of the less skillful but nonetheless entertaining wagers you can place on the tournament. 

American Scottie Scheffler won the 2022 Masters, earning his green jacket with a tournament total 10-under par. Rory McIlroy finished second at 7-under, while Shane Lowry and Cameron Smith tied for third at 5-under. The win capped an excellent season for Scheffler, who also won the WM Phoenix Open and the Arnold Palmer Invitational that year. 

The only Canadian to ever win the Masters was Mike Weir in 2003, also becoming the first left-hander to win at the Augusta National. Weir shot a bogey-less final-round 68 to prevail in a playoff, becoming the first Masters champion since 1957 to go bogey-free on a Sunday. Weir’s Masters win capped an impressive year that featured three of his eight tournament wins.