Masters Round 1 3-Ball Bets (Tiger Woods to Take Down Homa, Day in Opening Round)
I have been writing about my Masters bets all week, but I have one more market to talk about before the opening tee shot; 3-ball bets.
If you aren't familiar, 3-ball bets are wagers on a golfer to finish with the lowest score in the threesome he's played in that day. For example, Tiger Woods will be playing along side Max Homa and Jason Day in Round 1. A bet on Tiger would mean you'd need him to finish the round with a lower score than Homa and Day.
These bets are some of my favorite to place and they give you something to cheer for in the opening round. I have three locked in for Thursday, so let's jump into them.
I placed these bets at BetMGM Sportsbook so if you want to get in on the action, click the link below to sign up for an account. If you do, you'll receive $150 in bonus bets when you place your first $5 wager!
Masters Round 1 3-ball Bets
- Tiger Woods (+240) vs. Homa/Day
- Xander Schauffele +230 vs. Scheffler/McIlroy
- Matt Fitzpatrick +170 vs. Rahm/Dunlap
Tiger Woods (+240) vs. Homa/Day
If you want to bet on Tiger Woods in some fashion this week, an opening round 3-ball might be the best way to do it. He'll be at his freshest on Thursday, but it's a mystery as to how much his injuries will affect him the rest of the way.
He also gets to play with two golfers in Homa and Day, who haven't been in great form of late. Homa has finished inside the top 10 only once in 2024 and his ball striking hasn't been as good as we're used to seeing. Day has been even worse, coming off a missed cut at the Texas Children's Houston Open who he lost almost two strokes per round with his irons.
Tiger is in a great spot to finish with the best score of the group in the opening round.
Xander Schauffele +230 vs. Scheffler/McIlroy
This grouping is the marquee matchup and it's made up with arguably the three golfers with the best chance to win this week. I think this threesome is a lot more evenly matched than the odds indicate so I'll take a gamble on Xander Schauffele, who has the longest odds in the threesome.
Schauffele currently ranks second on the PGA Tour in total strokes gained behind only Scheffler and his strong history at Augusta gives me even more confidence in this pick.
Matt Fitzpatrick +170 vs. Rahm/Dunlap
Matt Fitzpatrick is quietly entering the Masters in great form, finishing solo fifth at the Players and T10 at last week's Valero Texas Open. He struggled in the early parts of the season but has seemingly found his swing in recent weeks.
I don't think we need to concern ourselves much with Nick Dunlap, the amateur-turned-pro who will be making his Masters debut. That leaves us with Jon Rahm, who has been good but not great since joining LIV in the offseason.
I'll take a chance with Fitzpatrick to lead this group in the opening round on Thursday.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
You can check out all of Iain's bets here!