British Open Profile: Bubba Watson

Best Odds: 110/1 (PaddyPower)
Age: 34
World Ranking: 16
Best Result in Open: T23- 2012, T30 - 2011

Open Record:

Conventional wisdom is that Bubba just isn’t built for the British Open, but he’s improving with every attempt. He missed cuts at Turnberry and St Andrews before fairing a little better with a T30 at Sandwich in 2011 and then a T23 last summer. 

Form:

Not as good as 2012 but certainly no disgrace. There have been three top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour with a fourth place finish at the Travelers Championship last month suggesting his game isn’t far away. That said, he hasn’t looked like contending in a major since claiming his Augusta Green Jacket in April of last year.

Verdict:

Not an obvious fit for links golf but that seems to be exactly why his odds are so extreme. Everybody just above him in the world rankings is considered much more likely to do well this week and it’s not exactly clear why. An anti-American big-hitter bias may have created some value.