US Open 2017: 10 things you need to know
By John Buhler
9. Big names have won the last for US Opens
While major champions can come out of the woodwork in some events, that has not proven to be the case in recent US Opens. Given the difficulty of winning this high-stakes golf tournament, it is usually reserved for the best players in the world at that time to come out on top. In essence, don’t expect a dark horse to win at Erin Hills on Sunday.
The last four winners of the US Open are big names on the PGA Tour: Justin Rose in 2013, Martin Kaymer in 2014, Jordan Spieth in 2015 and last year’s champion Dustin Johnson in 2016. Kaymer may not have great odds to win the tournament (+6,600), but Johnson, Rose and Spieth are definitely front-runners in this event.
According to OddsShark.com, eight golfers have +2,200 or better odds to win it all at Erin Hills. Johnson (+750), Spieth (+1,200) and Rose (+2,200) all fit into that category. Rory McIlroy (+1,200), Jason Day (+1,400), Jon Rahm (+2,000), Rickie Fowler (+2,000) and Sergio Garcia (+2,200) round out the top-eight.
Playing on courses that force a lower score usually gives the best golfers an advantage to stay atop the leaderboard. It would be almost shocking to see any of these players, or really any other big names for that matter, to not win at Erin Hills this weekend.