Arnold Palmer Invitational odds: Pennsylvania bettor fires big on Rory McIlroy to win at Bay Hill
This week’s PGA Tour event that tees off Thursday in Bay Hill, Florida, just got a lot more interesting for one particular Pennsylvania bettor.
Caesars Sportsbook reported Wednesday that one of its Pennsylvania-based customers threw $10,000 on Rory McIlroy to win the 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational.
The bet was placed at +900 odds. So if McIlroy wins the event, he’ll collect the $3.6 million first-place check and the individual who invested in the 33-year-old from Northern Ireland will pocket a cool $90,000.
Odds updated as of 4:30 p.m. ET on March 1.
Arnold Palmer Invitational: Rory McIlroy among favorites to win
McIlroy enters the Arnold Palmer as one of three golfers sporting single-digit odds at Caesars Sportsbook. McIlroy is now sitting at +800, trailing favorite John Rahm of Spain (+600) and Scottie Scheffler of the U.S. (+900).
Not-so-coincidentally, that trio holds the top three spots in the current World Golf Rankings. Rahm is on top, followed by Scheffler and McIlroy.
Together, the three veterans have won five of this season’s 20 tournaments, with Rahm taking home three trophies and Scheffler and McIlroy each bagging one.
Despite their rankings and recent success, the fact three golfers have single-digit odds ahead of a golf event is rare — especially with the Arnold Palmer field featuring 23 of the world’s top 25 players.
“I can’t recall another PGA Tour tournament that has had three guys with single-digit odds like this,” Anthony Salleroli, lead golf trader at Caesars Sportsbook, said in a statement. “Normally if Rahm and Rory were sitting in the same tournament, they’d be two. If only one of them was playing, you’d have one single-digit guy. … So this definitely isn’t a normal occurrence, but I wouldn’t say it’s too big of a surprise here.”
What was a bit of a surprise? The five-figure wager on McIlroy.
Then again, McIlroy does have some positive history at Bay Hill, having won the 2018 Arnold Palmer Invitational.
He’s since only won nine PGA Tour events. However, one was The CJ Cup in South Carolina back in late October. McIlroy also won last year’s FedEx Cup, which goes to the year’s top golfer based on a points system.
“That Rory bet perked my eyebrows up,” Salleroli said. “We don’t see five-figure bets come in that often, especially for a non-major.
“That’s clearly a bet with a lot of confidence — $10,000 in a strong field with 120-plus golfers. You have to respect that bet. So after we accepted it, we lowered his odds accordingly.”
Arnold Palmer Invitational: Tracking the action
While the big wager on McIlroy is the largest Caesars has booked for this week’s event, there are other sizable payouts potentially looming for the sportsbook. Those include:
$1,500 on Cameron Young at +3300 odds from a Virginia bettor (potential winnings: $49,500)
$1,500 on Viktor Hovland at +2200 from the same Virginia bettor (potential winnings: $33,000)
$1,464.92 on Scheffler at +900 from a Michigan bettor (potential winnings: $13,184.28)
$1,000 on Keith Mitchell at +5500 from a Nevada bettor (potential winnings: $55,000)
When it comes to ticket count for the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Scheffler leads the way at Caesars Sportsbook at 7.3%. He’s followed by Max Homa (6.1%, +1600 odds), McIlroy (5.7%), Will Zalatoris (5.3%, +1800 odds) and Rahm (5.1%).
In terms of betting handle, McIlroy tops the field at Caesars. Thanks mostly to the big $10,000 wager, nearly 17% of all dollars wagered are on McIlroy.
Scheffler is next at 9.7%, followed by Rahm (6.7%), Zalatoris (5.9%) and Homa (4.2%).
The Inquirer is not an online gambling operator, or a gambling site. We provide this information about sports betting for entertainment purposes only.
