U.S. heavily favored in 2019 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne

The 2019 Presidents Cup commences December 12 at Royal Melbourne in Australia. It will mark the third time that Royal Melbourne has hosted the event. It also hosted in 2011 (a U.S. victory) and to 1998 (still the only International win). There has been one tie (2003, in South Africa) in Presidents Cup history and the rest have been U.S. wins, including a 19-11 thrashing by the Americans at Liberty National in New Jersey two years ago.

Odds to win the Presidents Cup

In my opinion, it’s essential for the Presidents Cup to be competitive and for both sides to win on occasion. That has occurred in the Ryder Cup, golf’s signature team event at the elite level. However, because of the one-sided results in the Presidents Cup, it’s getting closer and closer to irrelevance.

I don’t think it will change this year, either, despite the absence of world No. 1 Brooks Koepka (who was replaced by Rickie Fowler). The U.S. team’s lowest-ranked player—Matt Kuchar at 23rd—ranks higher than all but two of the International side’s players, Adam Scott (15th) and Hideki Matsuyama (20th). Though the International side has a number of young and talented players with big futures, the U.S. probably has too much firepower to lose. I would not play the team winning prop except for an upset, because there is little value wagering on the Americans.

Presidents Cup top U.S. scorer odds

There will be some value in selecting the top point getters for each side, however. As of now, one of those—Patrick Reed—has odds of +950. The 2018 Masters champion posted a record of 3-1-1 two years ago and has done well in the Ryder Cup, as well. He thrives in this atmosphere and has no second thoughts about getting under the skin of the opposing galleries. Reed got on the team as a captain’s selection by Tiger Woods, and he should validate his captain’s faith. He is perfect for a singles match, and for a partnership likely will be paired with Patrick Cantlay. Those two earned a top 10 in the 2018 Zurich Classic and a respectable tie for 14th in the same event the previous year. It’s difficult to see Woods not pairing those two together.

Presidents Cup top international scorer odds

The International team has seven rookies, and of the other five on the team, only one has a winning record in this event—Louis Oosthuizen. He may be too obvious of a choice, so I’ll give a shot at the young Chilean, Joaquin Niemann, to earn the most points for this side at a price of +1400. The 21-year-old, who was only a month old when the International side won this event in 1998, annexed the recent A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier in most impressive fashion. Chances are this will be the first of many appearances for him in the Presidents Cup, and he has nothing to lose now.

When the International side took the Presidents Cup the last time it was on these grounds, Shigeki Maruyama of Japan, another rookie, went 5-0 and had the only perfect score among the competitors. Why not Niemann two decades later and with some value?

It’s worth noting that in the one International team victory, the U.S. had players ranked first, second, third and fourth in the world. So the matches still must be played.

---

Get into the swing of things with BetAmerica's golf odds and futures.