Golf’s brightest stars will fly to the UK this week for the only non-US major in the calendar: the Open Championship, aka the British Open. Check out our 2025 The Open Championship golf betting tips and breakdown to find out what to expect from the final major of the season.
The Open Championship will return to Royal Portrush for the third time, following previous stops in 1951 and 2019. The Northern Ireland course will host the 2025 edition from July to July 20, with players from the PGA Tour, European Tour, and Japan Golf Tour set to attend.
Which players from the 156-man field made it into our golf Open Championship predictions 2025? We will reveal that soon, but first let’s go through some key details.
| ℹ️ Tournament: | 2025 PGA, European, and Japanese Tours; Open Championship 2025 |
| ⛳️ Venue: | Royal Portrush, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, UK |
| 🗓️ Dates: | Thursday, July 17 to Sunday, July 20 |
The Open Championship was born on October 17, 1860, at Prestwick Golf Club in Ayrshire. Over its 165-year-long history, the tournament has evolved many times and now stands as one of the four major tournaments in men’s golf.
As the name implies, the tournament is open to both professional and amateur players, and it has been that way since 1861. It’s the first open-format golf tournament in the world, which inspired many other similar competitions around the globe.
It’s a classic 72-hole stroke play event, which means 18 holes a day for four days. Players compete in groups of three through the first two rounds before pairing off for the final two. If things are all square after four rounds, the players head to a three-hole playoff. If it’s still level, sudden death will decide the champion.
Past champions should not be the primary benchmark to form The Open Championship 2025 predictions, but you should not disregard them completely. Here are the last five who have lifted the iconic Claret Jug:
Golf betting sites have released the latest PGA 2025 The Open Championship odds. These five players are currently the favorites:
The PGA Tour No.1 enters the tournament looking to build on his best Open Championship finish, a top-seven last year. With the best strokes gained stats in the world and a short game ranked just outside the top 10, Royal Portrush should suit him well. That’s why he has the shortest odds to win the Open Championship 2025.
UK Bookies are showing strong faith in their local hero after McIlroy’s narrow miss at the Genesis Scottish Open. McIlroy had been struggling form after completing his career Grand Slam earlier this year, but his impressive run at The Renaissance Club should make him a popular choice for 2025 The Open Championship golf betting tips.
Jon Rahm has finished top seven or better in three of his last four Open appearances, but that’s not the only reason why sportsbooks see the Spaniard as a top contender. Over the past three months, only Scottie Scheffler has posted better strokes gained off the tee stats, and Rahm has also been showing impressive iron play.
We have rarely seen Bryson DeChambeau thrive at the Open Championship. He has finished top-10 only once in the competition, and it came at St. Andrews, a course that has little in common with the challenges Royal Portrush will present this week. Golf British Open Championship sportsbooks have still kept him in the mix for his strong putting and good form.
Tommy Fleetwood finished only a step shy of the title at Royal Portrush in 2019. Even though he couldn’t make the cut at Oakmont because of his struggles off the tee, sportsbooks are not overlooking his strong form around the greens. Fleetwood will be determined to bounce back with a title charge.
These are the best The Open Championship 2025 predictions after analyzing the odds and markets across the top sportsbooks:
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McIlroy won’t have fond memories of his last Open Championship appearance at Royal Portrush. He missed the cut after a disastrous opening round of 79, despite a valiant 65 on Day 2. He also hasn’t won since the Masters. So, what makes him worth backing?
He seemed to be back to his best only days before the tournament at the Scottish Open. ‘Wee-Mac’ could not beat Chris Gotterup to the title in the end, but he did enough to restore his self-belief.
McIlroy was not so keen on talking to the media in recent weeks, but he looks more relaxed after the Scottish Open. The ex-World No.1 said he felt like he achieved his goal last week and was looking forward to Royal Portrush.
His recent run of poor results has somewhat overshadowed the fact that McIlroy has three wins, including a major, since the start of the year. Now, he returns home with a point to prove after his disappointing Open Championship showing at Royal Portrush last time out.
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Victor Hovland has been quite impressive at the Open Championship recently. He never finished below T13 in his last three campaigns, and finished fourth in 2022. He’s also made strong runs in other majors, including the 2025 US Open, where he finished third.
2025 hasn’t been perfect for him, but he did bag the Valspar title and looked sharp at the US Open. The Norwegian might have to wait a bit longer for his first major success, but we think he has the credentials to finish top 10 this weekend.
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Russell Henley won the Arnold Palmer Invitational earlier this year. He also did well when he played in this tournament the last time, as he secured a fifth-place finish. Henley comes to the 2025 Open Championship after three straight top-10s. With top-10 finishes in three of his last five majors and ranking second in strokes gained over the past 12 rounds, it feels sensible to back him for another T10 this weekend.
McIlroy seems to be in a good position to add another trophy to his stacked shelf, and with Henley’s stats, we like his chances of cracking the top 10, too.
